vities such as parades and specifies particular items that are

PHOENIX -- Then-Dodgers Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw finished 2/3 in the National League Cy Young Award race last season and a case could be -- and was -- made that either could have won the award.But neither ace will be on the mound when the Diamondbacks and Dodgers return to NL West play after the All-Star break on Friday in the opener of a three-game series at Chase Field.Greinke has not played catch since suffering a strained left oblique after going two innings in June 28 start against Philadelphia, and Kershaw has not pitched since June 26 because of a herniated disk in his lower back.In Greinkes absence, the Diamondbacks will send Patrick Corbin, Archie Bradley and Robbie Ray to the mound in the series. The Dodgers will counter with Bud Norris, Brandon McCarthy and Kenta Maeda.Norris will make his second start for the Dodgers since being acquired from Atlanta immediately after Kershaw was placed on the disabled list, and McCarthy will make his third start since missing 14 months after undergoing Tommy John surgery.The other big-name starter missing from the Arizona rotation is right-hander Shelby Miller, who was optioned to Triple-A Reno when the team gathered for a Thursday workout.The move adds fuel to those who said the Diamondbacks gave up too much -- Ender Inciarte and minor leaguers Aaron Blair and Dansby Swanson -- to get Miller at the winter meetings, but the Diamondbacks believe it is the right move. Miller was 2-7 and his 7.14 ERA was the highest among NL pitchers with at least 12 starts. His WHIP is 1.75 in 14 starts.To his admission, he was not right here, Arizona manager Chip Hale said. His stuff was good enough to win at times. He just couldnt put it together. Were letting him take a deep breath and go down there and pitch.Miller, 25, was 11th in the NL in ERA and tied for 10th in quality starts last season in Atlanta. He was seen as a complement to Greinke to give the Diamondbacks a 1-2 punch to rival any in the NL West.Miller allowed one run or fewer in 15 of his 33 starts a year ago, and his 6-17 record considered a reflection of the 2.54 runs of support he received.But he gave up 10 runs and five homers in his first two starts this season and never seemed to recover, at one point tweaking his mechanics that caused him to brush his pitching hand on the mound after his delivery.Im surprised I stayed up here this long, Miller said candidly. Obviously, I havent been helping in the way I can. Whatever it takes to get back up here. Figure some things out. There is still a lot of season left.Arizona will recall left-hander Edwin Escobar to pitch out of the bullpen on Friday, Hale said, and will promote right-hander Zack Godley for Tuesdays start against Toronto.Kershaw could return as early as Thursday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts seemed to indicate. There is no timetable for Greinke, who might pitch one or two simulated games and might not need a rehab start before returning, Hale said. Jodie Meeks Jersey . Thousands of fans at Mosaic Stadium will be cozying up to each other in an effort to stay warm in chilly temperatures and block the Prairie wind that locals say can knock your socks off. Serge Ibaka Raptors Jersey . Malkin got tangled up with Detroits Luke Glendening early in the third period and his left skate took the brunt of collision with the boards behind Pittsburghs net. http://www.nbaraptorsonline.com/Authentic-Patrick-McCaw-Jersey/ . Those lessons were more than enough to overwhelm the Utah Jazz. Lou Williams scored 25 points and the Hawks continued their offensive upswing as they rolled to an easy 118-85 victory over the Jazz on Friday night, winning their third straight and for the fourth time in five games. Norman Powell Jersey . Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee? Green had bounced around the NBA when he wasnt playing overseas. The Pacers gave up on Plumlee after just one season. Now Green and Plumlee are key cogs in the Suns surprising breakout season. Patrick McCaw Jersey . It was Kerbers third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5. The Carolina Panthers home game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday has been declared an extraordinary event as the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, looks to ramp up security in an effort to enhance public safety.The declaration was made by Charlotte interim city manager Ron Kimble on Saturday night. Sundays game is set for 1 p.m. ET at Bank of America Stadium.According to the news release, an extraordinary event is defined as a large-scale? event or an event of national or international significance which might attract a significant number of people to a certain geographic area of the city.The designation allows the city to modify its permitting process for activities such as parades and specifies particular items that are prohibited from being brought into certain boundaries of the event.There have been both peaceful demonstrations and violent protests in Charlotte every day since Tuesday night, when a black Charlotte police officer shot and killed 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott, who is also black, in an apartment ccomplex parking lot about 15 minutes from Bank of America Stadium.ddddddddddddThe protests moved within a few blocks of the stadium on Wednesday night, turning violent with gunshots, vandalism and police setting off tear gas bombs in an attempt to break up the protesters.Protests in Charlotte were peaceful on Saturday night, and Panthers president Danny Morrison told ESPNs Britt McHenry, We are good to go for Sunday.Morrison also explained steps the team took in the offseason to enhance security.This offseason, we constructed four new security posts around the stadium to account for people coming onto the property, Morrison said. There are now 95 walk-through magnetometers, which will be used in place of the wanding procedure for screening. Additionally, camera coverage and explosive detection canine teams have been enhanced.ESPNs David Newton and The Associated Press contributed to this report. ' ' '