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PITTSBURGH -- Ryan Vogelsongs resilient return from the facial fractures that cost him two months in the middle of the season is remarkable.The veteran pitchers stuff at the moment, however, is not. And the 39-year-old knows it.The Chicago Cubs pushed Vogelsong around for five choppy innings and Pittsburghs ninth-inning rally fell short on Tuesday night in a 6-4 loss.Pittsburgh was eliminated from postseason contention when San Francisco won later Tuesday, ending a run of three-straight playoff appearances.Vogelsong (3-7) struggled with his command, giving up four hits, walking five and hitting a batter. He threw just 51 of his 102 pitches for strikes and fell to 0-3 with a 9.55 ERA this month, a downturn thats coincided with his teams fade out of playoff contention.Just an unacceptable start, really, Vogelsong said. Just no excuses. Unacceptable.Vogelsong managed to get out of a two-on, two-out situation in the first but couldnt in the second. Two walks and a hit batter loaded the bases before Chris Coghlan sent an offering off the wall in right-center to clear them to give the Cubs the lead. Chicago won for the seventh time in its last eight games to improve to 101-56, the clubs highest victory total since it won 104 games in 1910.Much of that success has come against the Pirates. A year after the two reached the postseason as wild cards, Chicago is 14-3 against the Pirates this season, outscoring them 109-64 in the process.Dexter Fowler added an RBI double for Chicago. Lackey (11-8) worked around five hits and three walks to win his last regular season start.Felix Pena recorded the final two outs for his first career save after Andrew McCutchen hit a two-run single off Justin Grimm to get the Pirates within two. Pena struck out Sean Rodriguez with the bases loaded to end it.Chicago manager Joe Maddon is experimenting with his lineup over the seasons final week with the Cubs already assured of home-field advantage in the NL playoffs. That means plenty of playing time for Coghlan, who has been mired in a season-long slump but is hitting .423 (11 of 26) since Sept. 16.Lackey made sure the early lead stood, though not without some shaky moments. He needed a double play to thwart a potentially big inning in the second and his defense bailed him out when Jordy Mercers line drive with the bases loaded in the fourth went straight to second baseman Munenori Kawasaki, who flipped to second to double off Rodriguez.The Pirates went 2 for 13 with runners in scoring position -- both hits coming in the ninth -- and left 11 men on base.NO Ks FOR NICASIOPittsburgh reliever Juan Nicasio gave up two runs in the ninth and failed to record a strikeout for the first time in 34 appearances, ending his club-record streak.TRAINERS ROOMPirates: LF Starling Marte remained out of the starting lineup with back stiffness and grounded out as a pinch-hitter in the fifth. The All-Star has just three plate appearances -- all as a pinch hitter -- since Sept. 5. Theres a chance Marte could get back in the lineup before the series with Chicago ends. Things are moving quickly and Im feeling a lot more better than things were before, Marte said after the game. Right now, Im just submitting to my trainers and what they have me doing and hopefully Ill get back and be able to bounce back as soon as possible.UP NEXT:Cubs: Jake Arrieta (18-7, 2.85 ERA) makes his final start of the regular season. The 2015 Cy Young Award winner is 9-1 with a 1.46 ERA in 12 career starts against the Pirates.Pirates: Rookie Jameson Taillon (4-4, 3.49) faces the Cubs for the second time this season. Chicago touched him for four runs in four innings of a 10-5 loss on June 19. Hydro Flask 64 Oz Wide Mouth . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. Cheap Hydro Flask 32 oz Wide Mouth Flamingo Water Bottle . Just not the game. Kyle Palmieri scored two straight goals in the third period to rally the Anaheim Ducks past the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 on Tuesday night. http://www.flaskwaterbottle.com/hydro-flask-32-oz-sale.html . Goals from Jerome Boateng, Franck Ribery and Thomas Mueller extended Bayerns unbeaten run to a record 37 matches. "This record is incredible," Bayern coach Pep Guardiola said. Pink Hydro Flask 20 Oz . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July. Hydro Flask 40 OZ . The news was first reported on Gonzalezs Twitter account and confirmed by the Rockies. Gonzalez has a six-week window before position players have their first workout at spring training in Arizona. RIO DE JANEIRO -- Maggie Steffens and the U.S. womens water polo team stood on the top step of the podium and belted out the national anthem through a mixture of smiles and tears.Italy and Russia stood on each side of the Americans, and they might as well have been miles away.The dominant U.S. womens teams in gymnastics, basketball and swimming have some company. The womens water polo team, hailing almost exclusively from California, beat Italy 12-5 on Friday for its second straight gold medal, and there are signs it could replicate the sustained success of some of Americas most famous Olympic juggernauts.We could, goaltender Ashleigh Johnson said. But some of our girls arent coming back, and they already know that. It wont be the same team. This team will never be the same team again.The U.S. closed its schedule with 22 straight wins, rolling through its six games in Rio by a combined score of 73-32. It currently holds each of the major crowns in womens water polo, adding a second Olympic gold to its world championship, World Cup and World League Super Final titles.The ease with which it dispatched with the eight-team field in Rio -- the Americans held the lead after 23 of their 24 quarters and trailed for a total of 44 seconds -- made a case for this team being the best ever assembled in the sport.I think you could make a strong argument, coach Adam Krikorian said. That 2012 team in the last games I love to death, they were a gritty, hard-nosed, tough crew, but this team has done some special things.Said Italy coach Fabio Conti: USA is, in this moment, a team of another universe.While the 2012 gold medalists were a veteran crew, the U.S. had nine newcomers this year, includiing teenagers Maddie Musselman and sisters Makenzie and Aria Fischer.dddddddddddd. Musselman scored 12 goals and made the all-tournament team, and Makenzie Fischer scored seven times.Johnson, the first black woman to play water polo for the United States in the Olympics, turns 22 next month. Steffens, the MVP of the last two games, is just 23 and sounded ready to sign up for Tokyo right away.I dont know whats going to happen in the next four years, Steffens said, but this is too incredible, incredible of an opportunity to call yourself an Olympian with a team, a real team, not just people that are thrown together, but a team that has grown together, to pass up again. So I for sure would love to be back in this situation in four years.The big question is the status of Krikorian, who said he wasnt sure if he would continue with the national team. Krikorians brother, Blake, died right before the start of the Olympics, starting an emotional time for the former UCLA coach, culminating with the victory in the final.Krikorian is beloved by his players, who rallied to his side when he returned to Rio after going home to spend time with his family, and his departure could alter the trajectory of the program.I love coaching. I love this team, Krikorian said. I love having an impact on young people. I love leading. That doesnt mean that this is what Im going to do the rest of my life. I think I need to figure that out. I think its always good to keep your options open and see what else is out there.---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap ' ' '