导出博客文章WASHINGTON -- Washington Nationals right-hander Max Scherzer said he learned a lesson from his first postseason start, which came on Oct. 2, 2011, at Yankee Stadium when he played for the Detroit Tigers.Scherzer entered that game with a different mindset than he used in regular-season games, and he proceeded to walk two batters in the first inning and four overall in six innings. Scherzer won the game but from then on tried to have the same approach for every outing.On Friday he will take the mound at about 5:38 p.m. ET to face lefty Clayton Kershaw and the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the National League Division Series at Nationals Park. Scherzer was 20-7 with a 2.96 ERA in regular-season play while Kershaw was 12-4 with a 1.69 ERA.All of the chips are on the line, Scherzer said Thursday. That fact that I get the ball, man, you couldnt ask for a better situation. It is going to be fun. It is what you play this game for. This is the best opportunity I could face. You want to be in these situations. It should be a good experience. I cant wait to come out here. It is the same game (but) every pitch is just a little bit more magnified.Washington manager Dusty Baker said Thursday that rookie Pedro Severino would be the catcher Friday. But Baker would not say which pitcher the Nationals will start in Game 2 Saturday.Kershaw was on the disabled list in July and August but returned to make five starts late in the season.There is no other person I would rather have on the mound tomorrow night, Dodgers first-year manager Dave Roberts said before a workout at Nationals Park on Thursday. What I learned to appreciate was the four days in between (starts). That is what makes him great.Kershaw is 2/3 in NLDS series and 0-3 in the NLCS.It is always fun to start the series, get to pitch in Game 1. It is an honor, Kershaw said Thursday. The team wants you to be out there. That is a good feeling. I think in the past I have felt that (postseason) pressure more. This year has been a little bit different for me, watching on the sidelines for two months. (Scherzer) has had an amazing year. We know we have our hands full for sure. Hopefully it should be a good game.Kershaw allowed one run in seven innings against the Nationals on June 20 in Los Angeles, but has a 4.59 career postseason ERA.He is one of the best. I cant wait to compete against him, Scherzer said. You dont shy about from it. You embrace it.Washington first baseman Ryan Zimmerman also welcomes the challenge. He is hitting .318 in 22 at-bats against Kershaw. Nationals outfielder Jayson Werth is hitting .313 with two homers in 32 at-bats against him.Just go out there and try to hit strikes. There is no secret to it; he is really good at what he does, said Zimmerman, who hit just .218 overall this season. In the playoffs it comes down to pitching and defense.Scherzer is 2-4 with a 3.29 ERA in 10 games, with eight starts, in his career against the Dodgers.Kershaw is 10-2 with a 2.02 ERA in 14 games, with 13 starts, against Washington. He was 1-0 this year after giving up six hits and one run in seven innings on June 20 in Los Angeles.Washington right fielder Bryce Harper is 1-for-15 against Kershaw. He is one of the great pitchers in baseball. But we have a great lineup, Harper said.Nationals center fielder Trea Turner, who has also played short and second, will leadoff in his first postseason game at the Major League level. He hit .342 with 13 homers and 33 steals in 39 tries in 73 games after spending the first half of the year at Triple-A Syracuse.You just try to go up there and have good at-bats. He is one of the best pitchers in baseball, Turner said.That lineup got a boost when speedy Turner became the regular leadoff hitter.Walks turns into doubles, Harper said of Turner. He loves to play the game. He is going to help us out tremendously.Scherzer was reminded this week that the Nationals lost in the NLDS in 2012 and 2014 and have never won a playoff series.That was the past. This is a whole new team, said Scherzer, who joined the Nationals prior to the 2015 season. There is no reason why we cant win.Baker said that infielder Daniel Murphy, who hit .347 this year, should be ready to start on Friday. He has been out of the starting lineup for about two weeks with a strained glute but took part in batting practice and did some running againThursday.We think hes ready. He looks good, Baker said after Thursdays workout.Severino hit .321 in 16 games and 28 at-bats for the Nationals. Regular catcher Wilson Ramos is out for the year after he tore an ACL in the last week of the season.He is one our two catchers, Washington general manager Mike Rizzo said of Severino. He is going to handle a staff he doesnt know so well. He has gone from a prospect to big leaguer.Dodgers won five of six this year against the Nationals, including two of three in Washington.Dusty is one of the best in the game in keeping the clubhouse together, Roberts said.Washington right-hander Stephen Strasburg has been ruled out of the NLDS due to a flexor mass strain. It would be easy if we had Strasburg, Baker said, when asked about a Game 2 starter. Most likely it will be right-hander Tanner Roark or lefty Gio Gonzalez against Rich Hill of the Dodgers.
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Vlade Divac Lakers Jersey .C. -- Chris Thorburn thinks one of the reasons the Winnipeg Jets have been successful under new coach Paul Maurice is that theyre playing together as a team.PHILADELPHIA -- Brett Browns thick, New England accent wouldnt have fit well in Philadelphia when the 76ers and Dr. J were one of the NBAs elite teams, consistently battling Larry Birds Boston Celtics for Eastern Conference titles in the early 1980s. Those days are long over. The Sixers havent won it all since Julius Erving and Moses Malone led them to a championship 30 years. So, theyre turning to Brown to build them into a contender again. "To be here is surreal. I can still see Doc and George McGinnis and trying to take their photos (as a kid)," Brown said after he was hired to replace Doug Collins. The deal was completed earlier in the week, and Brown was officially introduced as the 24th head coach in franchise history on Wednesday. Brown is the eighth coach to lead the Sixers since Larry Brown left in 2003. Collins resigned in April after the Sixers went 34-48, a year after advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals. He led the Sixers to the playoffs his first two seasons and left with one year remaining on his original four-year deal. "We went through an exhaustive search to find the right head coach for our organization, one who had a passion for developing talent, a strong work ethic to help create the kind of culture we hope for, and a desire to continually improve," general manager Sam Hinkie said. "Brett has all of that. He also has a wealth of experience as a head coach and a championship pedigree, to boot. We are delighted to welcome him as our coach, and I am invigorated for the two of us to roll up our sleeves and get to work." The 52-year-old Brown was part of three NBA title teams with San Antonio as an assistant and won another with the Spurs when he served in the basketball operations department in 1998-99. He left after that season to become the head coach of the Sydney Kings of the Australian National Basketball League, but rejoined the Spurs in 2002 as the teams assistant coach/director of player development and was moved to the bench as an assistant under Gregg Popovich in 2006. Brown also coached the Australian mens national team from 2009-12, and played a key role in helping Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker develop into All-Stars with the Spurs. "If I was going to leave a situation like San Antonio, it better be for the right one," Brown said. "Its a privilege to be here." Brown inherits a team in total rebuilding mode.dddddddddddd Hinkie, who was hired away from Houston, traded All-Star guard Jrue Holiday to New Orleans on draft night for the rights to Kentucky centre Nerlens Noel. Hinkie also drafted Syracuse point guard Michael Carter-Williams with the 11th overall pick in the first round. Evan Turner, Thaddeus Young and Spencer Hawes are Philadelphias main holdovers, giving Brown some talent to develop. "Ive always been a fan of Thaddeus. I see that potential in Evan. You pay attention to Spencer," Brown said. "The pieces that are in place are workable pieces. I look forward to working with them." Asked if he sees any star players on the roster, Brown said: "I dont know enough about the players to give an accurate answer." A year ago, the Sixers were coming off a first-round upset of top-seeded Chicago and were counting on going further in the playoffs after the acquisition of former All-Star centre Andrew Bynum. But things unraveled quickly, and Bynum never played a game in a Sixers uniform because of knee problems. Brown is used to a winning program at San Antonio, so hes not familiar with starting from the bottom. But the Sixers realize its not an overnight process and gave him a four-year contract to turn things around. "You get excited to be a part of the rebuild," Brown said. "We all know the pain of the rebuild is real. There needs to be patience. I have not been a part of a rebuild since I was in the NBA. The rebuild has to be keeping the locker room together." What type of offence will the Sixers have under Brown? That depends on the players and their ability, though Brown has his preference. "We want to go. We want to get out in the open court, and we want to run," he said. "Its easy to say, but its hard to run for 82 games. You have to have a tremendous fitness base." Brown expects his coaching staff in place by Sept. 1. It doesnt appear he has to be concerned with owner Josh Harris moving the team. There had been speculation that Harris may consider taking the team out of Philadelphia after his purchase of the NHLs New Jersey Devils is complete. But Hinkie dismissed that idea. "Josh Harris is more committed than ever to owning the Sixers, the fans of Philadelphia and to keeping the Sixers here forever," Hinkie said. ' ' '
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