Coming up against South Africa at the start is re

MILWAUKEE -- There are a lot of reasons the Chicago Cubs are making a laughing stock of the National League Playoff race, but their bench corps might be the teams most overlooked component.Monday, it was a pair of reserves -- Chris Coghlan and Miguel Montero -- who led the way, combining for four hits, three RBI and a pair of runs as Chicago rallied late for a 7-1 victory at Milwaukee.Were so deep, said Coghlan, who went 2-for-2 and drove in three after entering the game as a pinch-hitter in the seventh. (Manager) Joe (Maddon) picks his spots, gives guys breathers and the guys on the bench can be playing every day for different teams.Coghlan was dealt to Oakland in February but returned though a June trade and is hitting .231 in 65 at-bats. Montero began the season as Chicagos starting catcher but lost that job in August after prospect Wilson Contreras was summoned from Triple-A.I give them a lot of credit, because it would be easy to turn the dimmer switch down a bit, and they have not, Maddon said. Theyve gone the other way.Chicago will try to take another step toward locking down a postseason berth Tuesday when Jason Hammel takes the mound against the Brewers at Miller Park.Hammel snapped a two-game losing streak with his last outing, giving up just a run on three hits with three walks and six strikeouts over six innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates.He was really good, Maddon said. His stuff was very good.Hammel has thrived against the Brewers. In 14 career starts, hes 10-1 against them with a 2.50 ERA , and is 1-1 this season after tossing seven scoreless innings on Aug. 16 at Wrigley Field.Milwaukee, which had won four in a row before dropping the series opener, looks to get back to its winning ways behind right-hander Wily Peralta.Peralta had the worst ERA (6.68) among qualifiers when he was demoted to Triple-A Colorado Springs in June but since returning in early August, he has a 3.00 ERA over his last five starts and is starting to look much more like the pitcher Milwaukee had in mind when Peralta was named the teams opening day starter.Peralta took the no-decision his last time out but pitched well, holding the St. Louis Cardinals to just a run on three hits with 10 strikeouts over a season-best seven innings in a 2-1 loss at Miller Park.That was his best start of the year, for sure, Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. The slider and the fastball were both equally good. The fastball was down and heavy, the slider was certainly swing-and-miss tonight. He pitched very, very well. Hes really strung together a bunch of good starts since hes been back. Hes pitched well since hes been back, hes pitched very well.The Cubs, though, have been a bit of a nemesis for him. Peraltas faced Chicago 11 times over his career, going 3-7 with a 4.09 ERA. He has yet to face the Cubs this season.Hugo Lloris Jersey . Newcastle dominated in the early stages but City weathered the storm and then raised its game in extra time. Negredo broke the deadlock from close range after a simple move in the 99th minute before Dzeko took the ball round goalkeeper Tim Krul to seal the victory in the 105th. Kingsley Coman France Jersey . They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display. http://www.nationalfrancesoccer.com/laurent-koscielny-france-jersey/ . -- New England Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis is retiring after a 16-year career to become the goalie coach for the Los Angeles Galaxy. Mamadou Sakho Jersey . LOUIS -- Theres no telling how these wacky World Series games will end. Eliaquim Mangala Jersey . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services.Mitchell Johnson at the WACA. For the better part of a decade, this was one of the most watchable parts of Australias home summer. Johnson was quick anywhere, but something about Perth brought his threat to a new level, even in the years when the WACAs typical pace and bounce suffered a lull. Nowhere did he take more Test wickets than the 45 at 22.77 he claimed in Perth, and his best work there came against South Africa.Johnson was back at the WACA on Wednesday, 50 days out from the ground hosting South Africa for the first Test of the Australian summer. But this year, South Africas batsmen will not have to worry about the threat of Johnson running in on a zippy pitch with a breeze to help him swing the ball. And yet another left-arm danger could be just as effective, if not more, when the home summer begins: Mitchell Starc.Johnsons retirement during last season stripped 313 wickets from Australias Test attack, but the transition to a post-Johnson era has been smooth. That is largely thanks to Starc, whose swing, pace and mastery of the yorker have made him one of the most challenging fast bowlers in world cricket at the moment. If Australias recent series in Sri Lanka was a disaster it was not because of Starc, who topped Australias wicket list with 24 at 15.16.It was the highest series tally ever by a visiting fast bowler in Sri Lanka, and it was followed, in the one-day series, by Starc breaking the world record for reaching 100 ODI wickets in the fewest matches. Australia will be greatly looking forward to seeing what Starc can achieve during the six home Tests this summer, after he missed the second half of last season due to an ankle injury that required surgery and a long recovery.It was really exciting to see Mitch Starc perform well, Johnson said in Perth on Wednesday. I thought he was really close when we went over to England for that last Ashes series, and wasnt quite there. But hes shown that after his injury hes really committed to working really hard and did all the work. Ive kept in touch with him and he was really positive going into that series. To be the leading wicket-taker in Sri Lanka in those conditions was a real positive and a good step forward.He can dominate again [at home] on wickets that are goingg to provide bounce, and with his height, its going to be very difficult.dddddddddddd. He bowls the fuller ball, gets the ball up there, and especially on a wicket like the WACA where it can get good bounce, its really vital to be up there. Hell swing the ball when he pitches the ball up.That yorker hes got is very dangerous. Hes always working to improve his game. Hes still pretty fresh in Test cricket. Hes only going to get better. Hes going to keep breaking records, I think, as well. Its really exciting to see him play really well.The first Test against South Africa will be Australias first in Perth since Johnson farewelled Test cricket there last November. The three bowlers who rounded out Australias attack alongside Johnson in that match - Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon - have continued to steer Australias Test bowling with success since then.Its nice to be able to finish and have him performing in the line-up that Australia have, Johnson said of Starc. Its a pretty inexperienced bowling line-up. Theyve got Nathan Lyon there, whos got plenty of experience spin-bowling, and Josh Hazlewood is still trying to find his feet. Theres always going to be pressure on him to be like a [Glenn] McGrath.But I think weve got a really good bowling line-up at the moment, and its really well-balanced. Those guys are really tall as well, so in these conditions theyre going to be really difficult to play. Coming up against South Africa at the start is really going to test Australia. But the bowling is really good at the moment. Im really happy where its placed.Johnson, like the current Australians, is less happy with where the team is placed on the Test rankings - No.3 after losing top spot in Sri Lanka - but it is also a time of change for South Africa, who are currently ranked fifth.South Africa are going through a bit of a change at the moment but there are a few guys that have just come into really good form, Johnson said. Dale Steyns back in form, Morne [Morkel] is floating around there as well, and theyve got a great batting line-up as always. Australia have always competed very hard against them. ' ' '