Für unsere Gäste » Matheny said. This is a good day

Throughout the Tour de France, Australian professional cyclist Richie Porte will be checking in. Here is his latest entry, as told to ESPN contributor Rupert Guinness:Stage 19: Albertville to Saint Gervais Mont Blanc, 146kmWith one mountain stage to go in this Tour de France on Saturday and so little time between second place and me in fifth, the best way to prepare for one of the greatest opportunities of my career is to keep it simple by focusing on finishing on a good note.Thats how I am going to take it when we line up to start the 146.5km 20th stage from Megève to Morzine that is in the Alps and will be the penultimate stage of this years Tour.Saturday will decide the Tour winner and who joins him on the podium, with Sundays final and 21st stage from Chantilly to the Champs élysées tailor made for the sprinters to race.So there is no doubt about how big a stage Saturdays race will be, and what is at stake. But you can complicate big occasions by making too much of it.So I just want to go in and race. The drama of Fridays finish to the 146km 19th stage from Albertville to Saint Gervais Mont Blanc served as another reminder of how tenuous any riders fate is in the Tour - literally from race leader Chris Froome (Sky) down, as Froome crashed as I did after the rain fell.Fortunately, my injuries were not serious, and even if I am stiff and sore for Saturdays stage, I will not let that impede how I plan to race in the last mountain stage of the Tour.Its great to know that my team are right behind me, as they showed on Friday when they pulled me back up to the group with Froome and the other main challengers after my crash.It was great to see guys like Micky Sch?r, Greg Van Avermaet and Damiano Caruso up there. It wasnt easy for them. I think a couple of teams rode to make it harder for me then.Thats how it is, but you dont forget it. Saturday may provide a moment to repay the favour. Look ... crashing like I did didnt help.And I felt it later when I tried to get away on the final climb to the finish as Frenchman Romain Bardet (Ag2r-La Mondiale) was in the throes of finishing off a terrific solo ride to win the stage and also move up to second place overall.Froome still leads overall by 4:11 on Bardet, but now with Nairo Quintana (Movistar) in third at 4:27, Adam Yates (Orica-BikeExchange) in fourth at 4:46 and myself in fifth at 5:17.But crashes were the curse for many on Friday, with rainy conditions making the road extremely slippery.I felt I had too much pressure in my tyres. I sensed it early and should have stopped and let some out then, but at the time the race was so fast I didnt have time. It was on the whole day. The next I know I was flying on the ground on my chest.I have never had a crash like that. I should have also changed my bike as it didnt feel right after. Still while it wasnt ideal to get gapped there in the finale and lose a bit of time, it was good to get today behind us - and without serious injury.?I was neither the only rider to crash.Even better ... the Tour is not over yet, even though there is only one mountain stage left.The Col de Joux Plane and the tricky descent from its summit to the finish could be critical. On top of that, it looks like it is going to be a wet one again, which will add to the suspense.How I race is something I will decide after speaking to our sports directors before the stage. But similarly when it comes to the descent to Morzine, lets make it clear: I am not the sort of guy who is going to risk everything racing down the Joux Plane.There are calculated risks, but I think it is better to make time up on the Joux Plane than when descending it. Its a tricky technical descent and I dont think it is worth putting everything on the line there.But Im still focused on trying to get on to the podium for Sundays finale in Paris; and I know I am not the only rider who is not just thinking of that, but actually believing they can. I believe I can.Whether I do is another question. But I will try my best to fulfill that ambition. If its not this year, whatever happens in this Tour can only help for the years to come. Cheap Bruins Jerseys . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Bruins Jerseys 2020 . The No. 1-ranked Nadal tweaked his back warming up for the Australian Open final, which he lost almost four weeks ago in a major upset against Stanislas Wawrinka. His first stop after the layoff is the clay in Rio as he tests the back and tries to stay healthy for the French Open in three months. https://www.cheapbruins.com/ . -- Josh Sterk scored once and set up two more as the Oshawa Generals edged the visiting Belleville Bulls 3-2 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Boston Bruins Shirts .Y. -- Bills receiver Stevie Johnson has a bone to pick with the NFL schedule maker. Custom Boston Bruins Jerseys . After a first half in which he thought "the lid was on the basket," the Toronto Raptors coach watched his squad mount a second half surge to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91. PITTSBURGH -- Down to his final strike and his team trailing by a run with two outs in the ninth, St. Louis pinch-hitter Matt Carpenter told himself to just find a pitch he could handle.When the fastball from closer Tony Watson ended up right down the middle and not up and away as Watson hoped, Carpenter pounced. His solo homer -- a major league record 15th by a St. Louis pinch-hitter this season -- tied it and sent a jolt through the Cardinals. A home run each from Randal Grichuk and Jhonny Peralta followed, and St. Louis rallied for a stunning 9-7 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.Weve got a team that I think the best way to describe it is a dangerous team, Carpenter said. Weve got a team that I dont think anybody wants to match up with, especially in a postseason scenario. Its a fun team to play on. We never quit, and tonight was a good example of it.St. Louis blew an early five-run lead and the Pirates were a pitch away from ending a seven-game losing streak when Watsons 0-2 fastball turned into Carpenters 18th home run. An All-Star two years ago as a setup man who moved into the closer role when Mark Melancon was traded to Washington at the deadline, Watson gave up as many homers in the ninth as he did during the entire 2015 season.Were not playing good ball and to go out there and (have) guys fight back and be a strike away and serve up four more runs, its tough to swallow, Watson (2-4) said after his third blown save since replacing Melancon.Yadier Molina went 4 for 5, including a first-inning grand slam for St. Louis. Mike Mayers (1-1) tossed a scoreless eighth for the win, and Seung-Hwan Oh worked around a solo homer to Jung Ho Kang in the ninth for his 16th save.The Cardinals finished with five home runs in all, including Matt Adams 436-foot drive over the seats in right field that plopped into the Allegheny River on the bounce. The comeback allowed St. Louis to remain a game in front of the New York Mets for the second wild card in the National League.Im speechless, St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. Just, I love how this team competes, right down to the last out. Having a guy like (Carpenter), who hadnt felt quite right, to be able to come into that situation, and then riight after that .dddddddddddd. Im at a loss.Jung Ho Kang had two homers for Pittsburgh and Jordy Mercer hit a two-run double in the fifth as the Pirates took advantage of some sloppy defense by the Cardinals to overcome an early five-run deficit. Watsons implosion, however, sent Pittsburgh to its eighth straight defeat.The Pirates came in reeling during their longest skid in two years, one that dropped them to the fringe of playoff contention. Opponents have outscored them 47-22 during the slide, including a 12-6 setback on Monday night in which the Cardinals simply overpowered Pittsburghs struggling pitching staff.It looked like more of the same early on Tuesday. The Cardinals loaded the bases against Ryan Vogelsong and Molina cleared them with his first grand slam since 2012, the 25th straight game the Cardinals have homered, a club record.MARTINEZ FINALLY ARRIVESSt. Louis rookie outfielder Jose Martinez made his long-awaited major league debut when he entered as a pinch-hitter in the seventh. The 28-year-old son of former major leaguer Carlos Cafe Martinez grounded out to third in his first plate appearance after more than a decade in the minors.It was good to see him get that chance, Matheny said. This is a good day for him. Long time coming.TRAINING ROOMCardinals: RF Stephen Piscotty was initially held out of the lineup to give his aching left wrist a breather. Piscotty took a pitch off the wrist on Monday. Postgame X-rays were negative and Piscotty doubled as a pinch-hitter in the eighth.Pirates: Pittsburgh held C Francisco Cervelli out of the lineup a day after he experienced discomfort in his left hand trying to block a pitch.UP NEXTCardinals: Mike Leake returns to the rotation after a stay on the disabled list while battling a case of the shingles. Leake is 9-5 with a 3.28 ERA in his career against Pittsburgh but is 1-2 with a 5.71 ERA this season.Pirates: Rookie Jameson Taillon will face the Cardinals for the first time in the series finale. The 24-year-old has a 2.80 ERA over his last 10 starts and pitched six innings of one-run ball last week against Milwaukee. ' ' '