itizen last year, also was beloved for his stature in the Cuban

PHILADELPHIA -- Pirates relievers Zach Phillips and Wade LeBlanc had numbers more notable than four strikeouts and no runs in a combined 2 1/3 innings Wednesday night.Phillips (53) and LeBlanc (54) helped Pittsburgh set a team record for players used in a season.The Pirates added to their loss total, too.Freddy Galvis continued his home run surge, hitting his 19th of the season to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 6-2 win over Pittsburgh.The Phillies won two of the first three in the four-game series and all but knocked the Pirates out of the hunt in the NL wild card. The Pirates are six games back and appear set to have their playoff streak end at three seasons. They had the second-best record in baseball behind only the St. Louis Cardinals from 2013-15.Well, we got a record tonight, manager Clint Hurdle said.Hed rather take a winning one over the one set from an inflated roster that helped the Pirates top the 52 players used in 2011.Galvis connected on a two-run shot in the second inning off Steven Brault (0-3) for his 10th homer in the last 32 games. Known more as a defensive whiz since taking over for Jimmy Rollins at shortstop, Galvis has been a bright spot offensively for the Phillies. He already has career highs in doubles, homers, extra-base hits, RBI and stolen bases, though his .239 average and .271 on-base percentage need considerable improvement.I dont know if Im surprised, he said. All I know is, I put in a good workout in my offseason and worked really hard to prove I could play baseball every day.The 26-year-old switch hitter changed his approach early last month after a session with hitting coach Steve Henderson. Galvis kept all his weight on his back leg during his swing and suddenly found the pop that was missing.Galvis had 20 career homers in 322 games entering this season.His newfound power could be enough to overcome his measly OBP.I remember a few years when Jimmy Rollins didnt hit a whole lot, Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. You can live with a guy like that.Tommy Joseph hit his 19th homer for the Phillies. Jeanmar Gomez got the final two outs of the ninth for his 37th save.Brault allowed nine hits and five runs in 3 2/3 innings. He remained winless in seven career starts.The Phillies have long been out of the playoff picture and -- like so many teams playing out the string -- are looking for any kind of positive to end the season. Galvis has been one. Joseph showed power in his rookie season. Speedy rookie outfielder Roman Quinn has been solid in September.Quinn even threw out a runner at the plate in the ninth to snuff a Pirates rally.We had two outs to play with, Hurdle said. We made a bad decision there.The Phillies got a rare boost on the mound from righty Jake Thompson (2-5). Thompson, who won for the first time since Aug. 12, allowed six hits and two runs over six solid innings.Against the Pirates, he was sharp enough in front of a small and lifeless crowd to show how he went 11-5 in the minors this season and was considered valuable enough to be included in last years Cole Hamels deal with Texas.Andrew McCutchen hit his 21st homer for the Pirates.OPENING UPThe 2017 schedule was released on Wednesday. The Pirates will open April 3-6 at Boston in their first trip there since 2005. The Phillies open the season April 3 at Cincinnati.UP NEXTPirates: RHP Chad Kuhl (3-3, 4.09 ERA) will make his 11th career start. Hes lost each of his last three decisions, though the Pirates have won seven of his 10 starts.Phillies: RHP Jerad Eickhoff (10-13, 3.73 ERA) has pitched six innings in each of his last five starts and six of seven overall. Danilo Gallinari Thunder Jersey . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Danilo Gallinari Jersey . The team also announced Tuesday that the Braves will wear a commemorative patch on the right sleeve during the season. The patch, shaped like home plate, carries the number 715, Aarons autograph and a "40th Anniversary" banner. https://www.thunderrookiesshop.com/Shawn-Kemp-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Down by seven with 90 seconds left in regulation, thats where they looked comfortable. Nerlens Noel Thunder Jersey .Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres have recalled forward Kevin Porter and defenceman Chad Ruhwedel from the minors as part of a five-player roster shuffle made by the NHLs worst team. Devon Hall Thunder Jersey .875,000, avoiding arbitration. Clippards deal Monday means all eight Nationals players who filed for arbitration wound up settling before a hearing. CHICAGO -- Chicago Cubs outfielder Jorge Soler played with Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez when the two were growing up in Cuba. They traveled together to Venezuela for a youth tournament.Soler said Fernandezs ability was obvious, right from the start.Since he was a child, since we were kids, I knew he had something, Soler said through a translator. He had a talent. It was very impressive.Fernandezs death in a boating accident at the age of 24 cast a dark shadow over the major leagues on Sunday. Miamis home game against Atlanta was canceled, and several ballparks observed moments of silence. Wrigley Fields iconic hand-operated scoreboard displayed Fernandezs No. 16 in its pitching column next to Miami.But the loss of Fernandez was felt most acutely in baseballs growing Cuban community.He was one of those guys that everybody loved, St. Louis Cardinals catcher Brayan Pena said. He was one of those guys that everybody knew exactly what he meant to our community. For us, its a big, big loss. Its one of those things where our thoughts and prayers are obviously with his family, the Marlins organization and the fans. But it gets a little bit closer because he was part of our Cuban family.There was very little mention of Fernandezs death by Cuban state media, which were virtually silent with none of the countrys main newspapers mentioning it.The sole state-run evening news program also said nothing about the fatal accident. A brief story in Cubadebate, the countrys main news website, said Latin American baseball and the Major Leagues are undoubtedly in mourning, and many of his followers cant believe the news.The flight of baseball talent for rich contracts in the U.S. remains a sensitive topic in Cuba, where a baseball program that was a source of national pride has been devastated by departures for the Major Leagues. With few exceptions, state media do not mention Cuban players who have gone to the U.S. and games featuring those players are not rebroadcast on government-run TV.There were 23 Cubans on opening-day major league rosters this year, an increase of five over last season and the most since the commissioners office began releasing data in 1995. Many of the players share similar stories when it comes to their perilous journey from the communist country to the majors, and the difficulty of adjusting to life in the United States.A native of Santa Clara, Cuba, Fernandez was unsuccessful in his firstt three attempts to defect, and spent several months in prison.dddddddddddd At 15, Fernandez and his mother finally made it to Mexico, and were reunited in Florida with his father, who had escaped from Cuba two years earlier.He was drafted by the Marlins in 2011, and quickly turned into one of the majors top pitchers.How he was on the mound was a reflection of him, Oakland first baseman Yonder Alonso said. A guy who had a lot of fun, was himself. A very talkative guy, he would come into the room and youd know he was in the room. Never big-leagued anyone, very professional. No matter what, he would talk to you about hitting, because he thought he was the best hitter, and he (would) talk to you about pitching, because he thought he was the best pitcher.Alonso said Fernandezs death was a big-time shock. Yasiel Puig used torn pieces of white athletic tape to display Fernandezs jersey on the wall in the home dugout at Dodger Stadium. Cardinals rookie Aledmys Diaz, who had known Fernandez since they were little kids, declined an interview request through a team spokeswoman.We Cuban players know each other well and all of us have a great relationship, Pena said. For us, its devastating news when we woke up. We were sending text messages to each other and we were showing support. Its something that obviously nobody expects.Fernandez, who became a U.S. citizen last year, also was beloved for his stature in the Cuban community in Miami.He was a great humanitarian, Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman said through a translator. He gave a lot to the community and I think thats why he got a lot of respect from the community in terms of what a great person he was and always giving, in terms of always willing to help out in whatever way he can to try to better and progress within the community someone that perhaps wasnt as fortunate as he was.The 28-year-old Chapman lives in the Miami-area in the offseason. He said he spent some time with Fernandez while he was home.He would come by my house. I would go by his, Chapman said. We would have long conversations. We would talk a lot. We spent a lot of good amount of time together. It was very special for me.---Associated Press Writer Michael Weissenstein contributed to this report from Havana---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap ' ' '