department, it might have been as good a suggestion as any.

LOS ANGELES -- After pulling even with San Francisco for first place in the NL West this week, the Los Angeles Dodgers have hit a bump in the road and are chasing the Giants again.Andrew McCutchen and Jordy Mercer homered to lead newcomer Ivan Nova and the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 5-1 victory Friday night that kept the Dodgers a game behind San Francisco.The Giants lost 5-2 to Baltimore.Los Angeles has dropped consecutive games, with an off day sandwiched in between. This time, the Dodgers failed to take advantage of their opportunities against Ivan Nova.Handed a three-run lead before he threw a pitch, Nova (2-0) has won both starts for the Pirates since they obtained him from New York at the Aug. 1 trade deadline. The right-hander scattered nine hits over 5 1/3 innings in his first outing against the Dodgers and improved to 9-6 overall this season.He didnt walk guys, made us put the ball in play, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. Those guys over there can really defend.I thought we had some good at bats against Nova, hit some balls hard, got some hits, hit some other balls that they made plays on. Defensively, they can track it down.Ross Stripling (3-4) went seven innings for the Dodgers, giving up six hits and five runs -- including two homers.Ross has had a great opportunity and really seized the moment, Roberts said. I think that now and going forward it has been a great learning process for Ross. I think his growth has been exponential.Ross threw really well tonight. He gave us seven innings and his pitch command was real good.Stripling (3-4) started in place of Rich Hill, on the disabled list with a middle finger blister on his pitching hand. After a rough first inning, Stripling retired 17 of 19 hitters but gave up five runs, including solo homers to McCutchen and Mercer.Those were probably the two worst pitches I made all night, Stripling said. They definitely punished me for them.Pittsburgh, which had lost eight of 10 road games, extended its recent dominance of the Dodgers. The Pirates have beaten Los Angeles in four of five games this year and improved their record to 14-4 against the Dodgers since the beginning of the 2014 season.Pittsburgh jumped on Stripling for four hits and three runs in the first. McCutchen and David Freese stroked RBI singles, and Mercers RBI fielders choice made it 3-0.I think I threw the ball really well, Stripling said. The first inning was obviously frustrating, when really one ball makes it to the outfield and you give up three runs. I was able to kind of calm down and bounce back from that.Howie Kendricks two-out RBI single in the second cut the lead to 3-1. Kendrick finished with three hits.McCutchen continued his torrid hitting at Dodger Stadium with a third-inning solo shot, his 16th homer of the season. In his last seven games at Dodger Stadium, the slugger is 8 for 16 with four doubles and two home runs.I love Dodger Stadium and LA. Its Paradise, and the weather is always great, McCutchen said. When we come out here, I seem to get more down time and Im more relaxed.McCutchen also made an outstanding, over-the-shoulder catch near the warning track in left-center in the second inning to take an extra-base hit away from Yasmani Grandal.Los Angeles outfielder Josh Reddick robbed Josh Harrison of a home run when he reached over the low right-field wall to make a grab.Nova twice struck out Stripling to end a rally. Antonio Bastardo got the final two outs in the sixth before Felipe Rivero, Neftali Feliz, Juan Nicasio and Tony Watson followed and shut down the Dodgers.Watson came on with runners at the corners and retired Corey Seager for his fifth save.It was just one of those games where nothing went our way, Roberts said. I dont think it is an indication of where we are at, scoring one run tonight.TRAINERS ROOMDodgers LHP Clayton Kershaw, on the 60-day DL with a mild disk herniation, is scheduled to play catch Saturday. No target date has been set for his return. ... RHP Joe Blanton was reinstated from the bereavement list, and the Dodgers optioned LHP Luis Avilan to Triple-A Oklahoma City. ... The Dodgers plan to activate LHP Brett Anderson (herniated disk surgery) off the DL to start Sundays series finale.HOCKEY NIGHT AT CHAVEZ RAVINELos Angeles Kings players Kyle Clifford, Trevor Lewis, Brayden McNabb and Tyler Toffoli threw out the ceremonial first pitches.UP NEXTPirates: RHP Gerrit Cole (7-7) pitches Saturday. His last time out, Cole gave up four hits and four runs in 5 2/3 innings and lost 7-3 to the Reds. He is 3-0 against the Dodgers in four career starts.Dodgers: RHP Brandon McCarthy (2-2) felt healthy during workouts this week and is expected to pitch Saturday. 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"Given the way the meeting transpired," Ray Halbritter, an Oneida representative and leader of the "Change the Mascot Campaign," said Wednesday, "it became somewhat evident they were defending the continued use of the name. Andrew Whitworth Rams Jersey .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. MONTREAL -- The World Anti-Doping Agency has released its 2017 list of prohibited substances for athletes, adding a drug used for treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and eating disorders to its catalog of banned stimulants.The substance, known chemically as lisdexamfetamine, is part of a family of drugs that stimulate the central nervous system.Nicomorphine, an opioid analgesic drug available in parts of Europe and which is converted to morphine following administration, was added to the list of banned narcotics.WADA noted in the list it released early Friday that it was putting codeine on its monitoring program so that researchers could establish patterns of use for possible performance enhancement.All athletes around the world are held to these standards and there can be no tolerance for people who intentionally break the rules, WADA President Craig Reedie said in a statement. Updated annually, the list is released three months ahead of taking effect so that all stakeholders -- in particular athletes and their entourage -- have ample time to familiarize themselves with the list and its modifications.The most-discussed addition in 2016 remained on the prohibited substance list for next year.Meldonium was added to the list from last Jan. 1 and resulted in a two-year ban for Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova, who was among hundreds of athlletes who tested positive at the start of the year in results that forced WADA to conduct more research on the substance and extend no-fault findings to athletes who tested positive for low concentrations of the drug.dddddddddddd.Sharapova tested positive for the endurance-boosting drug at the Australian Open in Melbourne in January and is appealing her ban.The Latvian-made drug was used in parts of eastern Europe to treat heart conditions but was not approved for use in the United States. It increases blood flow, which improves exercise capacity by carrying more oxygen to the muscles. There is significant debate among doping experts over whether meldonium, also known as Mildronate, actually enhances performance.Olivier Niggli, WADA director general, said the latest list was published after nine months of reviews.Experts examine such sources as scientific and medical research, trends, and intelligence gathered from law enforcement and pharmaceutical companies in order to stay ahead of those that wish to cheat, Niggli said. It is vital that all athletes take the necessary time to consult the list, and that they contact their respective anti-doping organizations if they have any doubts as to the status of a substance or method. ' ' '