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NEW YORK -- A streak or two of celebration whipped cream was still stuck in Brandon Nimmos hairline as he peeled off his baseball socks in the clubhouse Thursday night.Plenty of time to clean up, the Mets rookie figured. For now, he just wanted to hang onto this feeling.Yoenis Cespedes socked a colossal home run , Jeurys Familia pitched out of a huge jam in the ninth inning and Nimmo keyed a three-run rally in the seventh that sent New York past the Chicago Cubs 4-3 in their first meeting since last years NL Championship Series.Im just ecstatic, Nimmo said after his first big league home game. Im just overjoyed and so thankful right now.Chicago put runners on second and third with no outs against Familia, who got two strikeouts and a bases-loaded popup for his 27th save, most in the majors.He screamed and pumped his arms repeatedly after Javier Baez popped up to end it.I think our last three at-bats were a little bit too anxious, said Kris Bryant, who fanned for the first out in the ninth. But hes supposed to do that. Thats why hes the closer on their team.Baezs throwing error at second base allowed Nimmo to score the go-ahead run, and the Mets overcame a 3-0 deficit to stop their four-game slide.New York, which swept Chicago last October to reach the World Series, had lost nine straight regular-season games to the Cubs dating to August 2014.We made one mistake on defense, but otherwise it was a pretty good game of baseball, Chicago manager Joe Maddon said.Bryant hit a two-run homer for the major league-best Cubs. Baez added a solo shot off rookie Steven Matz before a scuffling Mets lineup finally pushed back in the opener of a four-game series between banged-up teams.Cespedes launched a solo drive off John Lackey in the sixth that soared into the third deck in left field, two or three rows deep. The ball came off the bat at 110 mph and would have traveled 441 feet unimpeded, according to MLBs Statcast. ESPN Stats & Info had it at 466 feet.Either way, it was thought to be the first home run to reach the third deck at Citi Field, which opened in 2009.Thats not unfamiliar territory to Cespedes, though. He sent several shots up there three years ago -- while winning the All-Star Home Run Derby.I think it woke us. I really do, Mets manager Terry Collins said. He hadnt hit one in a while and that was a big one. I really think that got the guys energized.Travis dArnaud singled with one out in the seventh, chasing Lackey. Joel Peralta (0-1) walked slumping pinch-hitter Alejandro De Aza before Nimmo, starting for injured outfielder Curtis Granderson, singled on the ninth pitch of a gritty at-bat for his first career RBI.Thats a big league at-bat for the kid, teammate Neil Walker said. Those are the at-bats that give you confidence, especially as a young guy. So I cant say enough about how he grinded through that and how big a hit that was.The throw to third allowed Nimmo to reach second, and the Mets had two runners in scoring position. With the Cubs playing their infield in, Walker hit an RBI chopper toward the middle against reliever Pedro Strop.Figuring he had no play at the plate, Baez threw to third in an attempt to get Nimmo. But the wide throw ticked off Bryants glove and rolled into foul territory, letting Nimmo cross the plate with a big smile on his face.He was definitely a sparkplug for us today, Walker said. This is how we have to grind right now.Erik Goeddel (1-0) struck out two in 1 2/3 hitless innings for the win.Getting beats one thing. When you feel like you kind of gave one away, let one go, thats a different kind of loss, Lackey said.TRAINERS ROOMCubs: RF Jason Heyward was rested against the left-hander with Chicago in the middle of playing 24 straight days. He has a little soreness on his left side but certainly could have started, Maddon said. Heyward pinch-hit in the eighth and shattered his bat on a weak grounder back to the mound against lefty Jerry Blevins, stranding two runners.Mets: Granderson was out of the lineup again after an MRI revealed a mild strain of his right calf, general manager Sandy Alderson said. Granderson was unavailable off the bench and is expected to miss at least a couple of games. A reinforcement could arrive Friday in Gold Glove outfielder Juan Lagares (sprained left thumb), nearly ready to come off the 15-day DL. Lagares played his third rehab game with Double-A Binghamton on Thursday night.UP NEXTCubs RHP Jason Hammel (7-4, 2.58 ERA) starts Friday night against RHP Jacob deGrom (3-4, 2.67), who won Game 3 of the NLCS last year at Wrigley Field. The 2015 All-Star is 0-4 in 10 starts since beating San Francisco on April 30. Chicago has lost Hammels last four outings after going 9-2 in his first 11. Bryce Love Jersey . It was the second consecutive win for the Pacers (2-5), who lost their first five preseason games. Jeff Teague led the Hawks (1-5) with 17 points and eight assists and Al Horford had 12 points and seven rebounds. Mike Scott scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half. Alex Smith Womens Jersey . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. https://www.redskinssportsgoods.com/Womens-Sean-Taylor-Inverted-Jersey/ . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. Montez Sweat Redskins Jersey . Rousey will put her perfect 8-0 record and hardware on the line against another undefeated fighter, 7-0 Sara McMann in the main event of UFC 170, which will be held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas Nevada on February 22nd. Doug Williams Youth Jersey . Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek defeated Nenad Zimonjic and Ilija Bozoljac 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (4) on the indoor hard-court at Belgrade Arena. The victory improved the Czech pairs impressive cup doubles record to 14-1. One thing we do know as we await the second ranking from the College Football Playoff selection committee: Texas A&M should no longer be No. 4 after its loss to unranked Mississippi State on Saturday.What we dont know? Who will replace the Aggies as the highest-ranked one-loss team, and whether they, too, will land in the top four.Its the biggest question this week, but not the only one. The second of six rankings will be unveiled at 7 p.m. ET Tuesday on ESPN. Heres whats facing the 12 committee members this week:1. Who is No. 4? There werent any results that should change the committees top three -- No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Clemson and No. 3 Michigan -- but there should be significant debate within the room about the No. 4 team. If the committee stays consistent, one-loss Ohio State could be ranked ahead of undefeated Washington. Committee chairman Kirby Hocutt justified the groups ranking of Texas A&M at No. 4 last week in large part because of strength of schedule; right now, the Buckeyes have the edge over Washington in that category, with three wins over teams currently ranked by the committee (Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Nebraska). This might be a closer debate than it was last week, though. According to ESPNs strength of record metric, it is about as hard to go 9-0 against Washingtons schedule as it is to go 8-1 against Ohio States. Because Louisville was ranked No. 7 last week -- behind the Buckeyes (No. 6) and Washington (No. 5) -- it doesnt seem likely that a win over a 4-5 Boston College team will change its position much.2. How much respect can the Pac-12 South get from the committee? If USC can earn a spot in the committees top 25 this week -- right before it heads to Washington -- thats another ranked opponent on the Huskies schedule, and they could certainly use it. So far, Washingtons only victory against a team currently ranked by the selection committee was a 31-24 win at No. 17 Utah on Oct. 29. The Huskies face USC on Saturday, and the Trojans have won five straight games with an average scoring margin of 21 points during that stretch. Even after accounting for the strength of opponents faced, the Trojans have been a top-20 offense and defense over their past five games. Last week, No. 22 Florida State was the only three-loss team in the committees rankings. If USC (6-3) can work its way into the rankings this week, and No.dddddddddddd 25 Washington State can stay ranked, Washington could significantly boost its playoff résumé before the final rankings are revealed on Dec. 3. The Huskies would also face another ranked opponent from the South in the Pac-12 title game (No. 15 Colorado or No. 16 Utah). That could all add up to four wins over teams ranked by the committee -- leaving no doubt within the room that the undefeated Pac-12 champs are one of the top four teams in the country.3. Which two-loss team is in the best position? Dont rule out the possibility of a two-loss conference champion finishing in the top four just yet, as Wisconsin, Auburn and even Penn State can still win their league titles, and Oklahoma is still undefeated in Big 12 play. Last week, No. 8 Wisconsin was the committees highest-ranked two-loss team. How far will the committee drop Texas A&M? With the Aggies loss, Auburn will win the SEC West if it wins out. And after Nebraskas loss, Wisconsin will win the Big Ten West if it wins out. OU is a long shot, but the committee likes the Sooners more than one-loss West Virginia right now, so they appear to be the leagues best hope. Penn State was one of the biggest surprises in the first rankings, at No. 12. Will the Nittany Lions take another step forward after their 41-14 drubbing of Iowa?4. Can any conference still get two teams in? This obviously isnt something the committee will decide today, but if it puts Ohio State in at No. 4, theres a possibility two Big Ten teams will make the final top four. Theres a very streamlined scenario for it, though: If Michigans only loss is a close game at Ohio State, and the Buckeyes go on to win the Big Ten title, AND -- the catch here -- Washington loses the Apple Cup. An improbable scenario? Yes, but heres another one to consider: What if Auburn runs the table and, in the process, beats Alabama? If Auburn wins the SEC, would the committee really leave out a one-loss Alabama team that had been the clear-cut No. 1 all season? The committee showed last week its not afraid to put two SEC teams in the top four. Lets see if the Big Ten holds as much clout. ' ' '