s manager Bob Melvin said. "That kind of makes him at times who he is, too. He can paint you on two pitches and then miss by a foot

ARGELES-GAZOST, France -- Vincenzo Nibali crushed everyone on the last mountain leg of the Tour de France on Thursday, all but ensuring he will be crowned champion when the race ends in Paris in three days. On the big, final climb of Stage 18, the Italian broke out of the peloton, chased down breakaway riders, and rode solo in front for the last eight kilometres (five miles) uphill. Nibali, who captured his fourth stage of the Tour, stuck out his tongue, tapped his chest, and raised a fist skyward as he finished the 145.5-kilometre (90-mile) leg more than a minute ahead of Thibaut Pinot of France, who was second. Rafal Majka of Poland, in third, was another two seconds back. The remarkable effort by Nibali, set to become the first Italian to win the Tour since Marco Pantani in 1998, essentially reduced the race drama to who will join him on the podium on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday. "I didnt want to lose command. My goal was to win here," Nibali said. "It was important to me to win another stage in the Pyrenees. The team worked really hard and this victory is for them." He is also set to become only the sixth rider to win all three Grand Tours of France, Italy and Spain. He won the 2013 Italian Giro and the 2010 Spanish Vuelta. One man basking at the finish line was Alexandre Vinokourov, the general manager of Nibalis Astana team, and a former rider who was expelled from the 2007 Tour for blood doping. He said the stage victory was "not by chance." "We said, we need to show that theres a boss," Vinokourov told French TV. The last time the term "boss" was used regularly at the Tour was when a doped-up Lance Armstrong won seven in a row. While three stages are left, Fridays is mostly flat and unlikely to allow a breakaway rider to gain time. The last real challenge will be Saturdays individual time trial, but Nibalis lead is so big -- 7 minutes, 10 seconds ahead of Pinot, and 7:23 ahead of Frances Jean-Christophe Peraud -- that it would take a disaster for him to lose the yellow jersey before Sunday. "It was a very good day," said Pinot, who rose a spot from third, "but Nibali is untouchable." The race for second heated up: Alejandro Valverde of Spain lost crucial seconds on the last climb and fell from second overall to fourth, two seconds slower than Peraud. But Valverde is considered a stronger time-trial rider than Pinot, and possibly Peraud. "Everything is possible," Valverde said. "Before, I was ahead, now Im behind, but its very tight. Im pretty happy." After setting off from Pau, riders tackled the famed Tourmalet pass -- the highest Pyrenean peak on this Tour -- before heading up to Hautacam ski station. Both climbs are among the toughest in professional cycling. Two breakaway riders, Mikel Nieve of Spain and Blel Kadri, a Frenchman who won Stage 8, were the first over Tourmalet more than 4 1/2 minutes ahead. But by the valley below, the duo had lost two minutes: Nibalis chasing bunch was gaining. That was partly because Valverdes Movistar squad bolted ahead in a challenge to Nibali. The Italian didnt let that last long, and Valverde was caught within a few minutes. By the foot of Hautacam, the main contenders were bunched together. Then, American Chris Horner, who beat second-place Nibali in the Vuelta last year, broke away. Nibali stayed with him, and then, rounding a curve and looking back for the peloton, burst ahead. Nibali said later he had memories of Horners Vuelta victory in mind. That said, Horner was little threat for the Tour title: He was about 35 minutes behind when the stage began. On the way up, Nibalis shoulder whacked the outstretched elbow of a woman speaking on a mobile phone on the side of road, with her back to the peloton. He winced briefly. "Happily, it wasnt serious for her or me," Nibali said. Stage 19 on Friday in southwestern France will likely end in a sprint finish, and Nibali and his Astana teammates will keep a close watch on the riders closest to him in the general classification. They are no longer rivals, nor challengers. Erik McCoy Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Cheap Saints Jerseys . Anything less than gold for either nation is considered a disappointment. Yet for Switzerland, advancing to the semifinal might be a victory in itself. http://www.cheapsaintsjerseyselite.com/ . -- Jose Bautista never worries about hitting homers during the regular season. Chauncey Gardner-Johnson Jersey . He chirped to the caddie of Brandt Snedeker about their money game, a Mickelson tradition at the majors. Lefty was in good spirits Monday at the British Open, except for having to return the claret jug. Cheap Saints Jerseys China . In a matchup of teams battling head-to-head for the final playoff spot in Major League Soccers Western Conference, the Whitecaps run to the post-season took a hard hit when FC Dallas blew open a tie game with two goals in the final minutes for a 3-1 victory Saturday night.OAKLAND, Calif. -- Sonny Grays fastball wasnt as sharp as it usually is, and the Oakland Athletics young pitcher even had a quirky replay go against him. A rediscovered curveball, stellar defence behind him and timely hitting on offence made it all a moot point. Grey allowed four hits over seven innings to bounce back from his worst start of the season and the As beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1 on Thursday night. "The idea is to really get that (curve) going again because I think the last five or six starts its been OK, but it hasnt been a big factor for us," said Gray, who walked three and struck out five. "We did some things a little different this week and I was able to find that again and get it going, especially early in the game." Gray (8-3) was knocked around in his previous start when he was tagged for five runs in five innings against Miami on June 28. He was much sharper this time around and got some help from Oaklands defence which turned three double plays, including one in the eighth after Josh Tholes leadoff single. Jose Reyes hit a fly out to deep right and Oaklands Brandon Moss made a strong throw back to first baseman Nate Freiman, who tagged out Thole trying to get back to the bag. "Hes still a little spotty with his fastball," As manager Bob Melvin said. "That kind of makes him at times who he is, too. He can paint you on two pitches and then miss by a foot. His curveball was a big factor today." Grey might have been in line for a shutout were it not for an odd replay in the second inning. After Toronto loaded the bases against Gray with one out, Anthony Gose hit a grounder to Freiman. Freiman appeared to tag Munenori Kawasaki as he ran for second base, but umpire Vic Carapazza ruled Freiman missed the tag and Kawasaki was safe. Freiman then threw to catcher Stephen Vogt, who stepped on home plate for a forceout with Edwin Encarnacion, the runner on third, approaching. Toronto manager John Gibbons requested the review, arguing that Kawasaki was out and that Encarnacion should be allowed to score because there would have been no force play at the plate. After a delay of 4 minutes, 27 seconds, the call was overturned and the Blue Jays were given a 1-0 llead.dddddddddddd "We cant put runners back," crew chief Bill Miller said. "We have to go with what happened on the field, and what happened on the field was (Vogt) tagged home plate but he did not tag the runner. Unfortunately that was in direct relation to the call on the field at first base." Melvin immediately came out to argue and the As played the remainder of the game under protest. It didnt matter. Freiman doubled in Brandon Moss in the bottom of the inning, and Vogt scored on a passed ball to put the As up 2-1. Craig Gentry singled off Toronto starter R.A. Dickey (6-8) in the eighth and scored on John Jasos double. Alberto Callaspos sacrifice fly made it 4-1. "We just didnt get anything going offensively," Gibbons said. "They outplayed us, pure and simple." Dickey, who beat the As on May 24, when he allowed two runs over 8 1-3 innings in his best outing of the season, lost his fourth straight start. The knuckleballer struck out six and walked three. The loss drops the Blue Jays into a first-place tie with Baltimore in the AL East. Its the first time since May 21 that Toronto has not held sole possession of the top spot in the division. Dan Otero pitched the eighth and Sean Doolittle worked the ninth for his 12th save. NOTES: Dickey had not lost four straight starts since 2004. ... As slugger Yoenis Cespedes went 0 for 4 to snap a 15-game hitting streak. ... Oakland 3B Josh Donaldson (lower back stiffness) was held out of the starting lineup for a second straight game. ... The As activated LHP Eric OFlaherty from the 60-day DL and designated LHP Jeff Francis for assignment. OFlaherty underwent Tommy John surgery last year and hasnt pitched in the majors since May 17, 2013. ... The As reached agreement on a 10-year lease extension with the Oakland Coliseum. As part of the deal, the As will pay $10 million for the installation of new video scoreboards as well as other upgrades to the aging facility. ... Toronto OF Colby Rasmus was held out of the lineup after injuring his right wrist running into the wall during the series against Milwaukee. ... Oakland LHP Tommy Milone (6-3) faces Toronto RHP Marcus Stroman (4-2) on Friday. 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