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One of the biggest events, if not the biggest race, on Saturdays strong Stars & Stripes Festival card at Belmont Park is the Belmont Derby for 3-year-old males on the turf. And one of Saturdays four stakes at Arlington Park is the American Derby, also for 3-year-old males, and also on the turf.The American Derby has a purse one-tenth the size of the $1.25 million purse of the Belmont Derby and, at 1-1/8 miles, the American Derby is one furlong shorter than the Belmont Derby. The American Derby is also something of a means to an end. It is the local springboard to next months Secretariat Stakes. The Belmont Derby, with its outsized purse, is an end. The American and Belmont Derbies are not exactly mirror images of each other. But there are still compelling similarities between the two races.And thats the point. The Belmont Derby and American Derby are two turf stakes for 3-year-olds going long on the turf run on the same day. And yet, the Belmont Derby drew a field of 13, and the American Derby drew a field of 11. Even after you separate the wheat from the chaff, thats a lot of numbers. Who knew there were so many 3-year-old grass horses?Well, these 3-year-olds are still young, lightly raced, and full of hope. So clashing, competing stakes schedules -- not exactly a new matter -- are not quite the issue for this group that it is for other divisions which have been compromised to a greater extent by the contraction of the general pool of available race horses.Consider the older male division, and recent overlapping opportunities for this group.On June 18, the Grade 1, $500,000 Stephen Foster Handicap at 1-1/8 miles was run at Churchill Downs. The Foster drew a field of seven, and was won by Bradester. Bradester, a 6-year-old, is an admirable hard hitter, and on some level, it was nice to see his persistence finally rewarded with a score in a big spot. However, in 22 prior starts over four years, Bradester had never, ever been confused with a true Grade 1 performer.One week later, on June 25, the Grade 1, $500,000 Gold Cup at Santa Anita at 1-? miles was run. The Gold Cup attracted a field of eight, and it was won by Melatonin. Before his 5-year-old season this year, Melatonin had made only two starts in stakes races, and was unsuccessful in both. But the Gold Cup was his second major victory this year; he earlier won the prestigious Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap. Melatonins emergence is a welcome development regardless of the reason for it. Still, its only natural to wonder if Melatonins ascendency is due more to a weakened division lacking quality depth than to considerable improvement on his part.One week later, on July 2, the Grade 3, $300,000 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap at 1-1/8 miles was decided at Prairie Meadows. The 5-year-old Smack Smack, another one of those admirable campaigners who had previously finished third or better in 18 of 25 career starts, beat eight opponents in the Cornhusker for his first career graded stakes win. Despite having plenty of opportunity during a very active career, Smack Smack had only taken his chance in three prior graded stakes races, and never finished better than fifth in those graded stakes attempts.On Saturday, one week after the Cornhusker, two weeks after the Gold Cup at Santa Anita, and three weeks after the Foster, which represents a fast turnaround for race horses these days, one of the undercard stakes at Belmont is the Grade 2, $300,000 Suburban Handicap at 1-1/4 miles for, you guessed it, older males. The Suburban drew a field of eight, but the only previous front line race winners in it are Noble Bird, and Effinex, one of two in the Suburban making that fast turnaround from the Foster.Look, I understand racetracks are in competition with each other, and realize that one way for a track to gain a competitive upper hand is to put on a better race than its competition. Santa Anita wouldnt think twice if it were able to poach a horse from the Foster, and Belmont wouldnt shed a tear if it did the same to the Gold Cup.However, the absence of a tangible incentive for tracks to fashion more cooperative -- hey, lets make that read logical -- stakes schedules paves the way for an unappealing diet of diluted stakes events that frankly dont do the sport much good.I mean, look at the four stakes I referenced above. They all drew from the same pool of talent -- older males going nine to 10 furlongs on dirt -- and that pool is shallow this year. But even in years when there is a bit more depth to the older male division, its difficult to see the sense of four so similar stakes races run in a three week window. Not when you could have done a mash up between the Foster, Gold Cup, Cornhusker, and Suburban, and wound up with two very nice, much better races. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . -- Aaron Murray threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns, ran for another score, and led No. NFL T-shirts From China . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. http://www.footballwholesalejerseys.com/ . Brandon Morrow allowed five runs on six hits over three innings. He struck out two, walked one and hit a batter. Edwin Encarnacion had a two-out, bases loaded two-RBI double in the third inning. Wholesale NFL Gear . Having already announced that the race will start May 9 with three stages in Northern Ireland and Ireland and finish in Trieste on June 1, the rest of the route was unveiled Monday. China Jerseys . That gave fans outside Joe Louis Arena another chance to ask for autographs from the 19-year-old whose stardom in the NHL has arrived earlier than most expected. SEATTLE -- Felix Hernandez and Justin Verlander couldnt settle things Wednesday night, so slugger Nelson Cruz decided the outcome with his bat.Cruz hit his 28th homer in the eighth inning after Hernandez and Verlander dueled through the first seven, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Detroit Tigers 3-1 to complete a three-game sweep.Cruz hit a 1-1 pitch from Justin Wilson (2-4) over the batters eye 421 feet away to help the Mariners get their season-high sixth straight victory.Hes always aggressive with the fastball, Cruz said. I looked for something I could hit.Hernandez and Verlander each pitched seven innings of one-run ball in a battle of former Cy Young Award winners. Hernandez struck out eight and allowed three hits and four walks, while Verlander allowed seven hits and two walks and struck out six.It was what it was billed to be, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. Two very good pitchers going at it, Felix and (Verlander), and they both pitched outstanding. The difference was the eighth inning.Leonys Martin added an insurance run on an RBI single later in the eighth. That gave Nick Vincent more of a cushion to finish the game, and he got his second save filling in for closer Edwin Diaz, who needed to rest.Hernandez was lifted after throwing a season-high 117 pitches, and Verlander also had a season high with 121. Both knew they had to work long into the game to protect their bullpens after a 15-inning contest on Tuesday.Hernandez had trouble in his previous four starts with the first inning, allowing a combined nine runs. He retired the side 1-2-3 to begin Wednesday.About time, Hernandez said. I just tried to make better pitches in the first inning. Facing a great lineup, facing a great pitcher, your level, you have to raise it up. You just have to challenge them.Instead, Verlander flinched in the first, allowing Robinson Cano to tag him for his 25th homer on a 1-2 changeup.I knew, based on (Tuesday), my pitch count limit was probably a little higher than it normally would be, Verlander said. And thats to be expected, thats what I want, thats what I needed tonight. Those guys battled. It was a combination of those guys battling and fouling off some tough pitches, and me not being as consistent as I would like early in the game.All of a sudden you look up and find yourself with 75 or so pitches after four, and thats not very conducive of going deep in the game. I was happy to go out and get thrrough seven innings and not have our bullpen come in too early, because they were pretty taxed last night.ddddddddddddArquimedes Caminero (1-0) pitched the eighth and earned the victory.BULLPEN BACKUPAfter Tuesdays game in which 16 combined pitchers were used, both the Tigers and Mariners added to their bullpens. The Mariners promoted RHP Jarrett Grube from Triple-A Tacoma, and OF Guillermo Heredia was optioned out while SS Luis Sardinas was designated for assignment. The Tigers called up RHP Warwick Saupold from Triple-A Toledo, placing OF Cameron Maybin (left thumb sprain) on the 15-day disabled list.CUPPING `DEFINITELY WORKSTigers reliever Alex Wilson is amused by Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps and other athletes who have embraced cupping, a treatment that involves applying glass or plastic cups to the area of discomfort and either applying heat or suction to create a vacuum.Its pretty common (in baseball), Wilson said. Id say at least the last five, six years. It definitely works.He picked it up in Boston three years ago watching Koji Uehara and Junichi Tazawa do it.I think every swimmer and gymnast have cup marks on them now, he said. Its kind of fun to watch.TRAINERS ROOMTigers: The club placed OF Cameron Maybin on the DL (sprained left thumb) before the game, retroactive to Aug. 4. ... RHP Bruce Rondon missed the series to be with his wife about to deliver a baby. He will join the team Friday in Texas. ... RHP Shane Greene (oblique strain) should be ready to pitch again by Friday.Mariners: LHP Charlie Furbush, on the DL all season, will have rotator cuff surgery Tuesday. His recovery time is 12 to 18 months. ... LHP James Paxton, hit on the left elbow by a line drive Aug. 7, is moving along at a good pace, manager Scott Servais said. No determination has been made when he will start again. He needs to play catch and have a bullpen session to see how it holds up.UP NEXTTigers: RHP Anibal Sanchez (6-11, 5.88) pitches in the opener of a series against Texas on Friday. Hell face righty Yu Darvish (2-3, 2.78).Mariners: LHP Ariel Miranda (1-0, 6.00) worked one inning -- and was the winning pitcher -- in Tuesdays 15-inning victory. That shouldnt prevent him from starting against the As on Friday. He has had three appearances since his acquisition from Baltimore July 31. ' ' '