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PHILADELPHIA -- Freddy Galvis has a handwritten note stuck on his locker reminding him to keep the ball out of the air.Theres no signature. Its simply inscribed (hash)No. 20.Even Mike Schmidt (yes, The No. 20) could agree that if Galvis does put the ball in the air, it may as well soar out of the park.Galvis continued his home run surge, hitting his 19th of the season to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 6-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night.Galvis connected on a two-run shot in the second inning off Steven Brault (0-3) for his 10th homer in the last 32 games. Known more as a defensive whiz since taking over for Jimmy Rollins at shortstop, Galvis has been a bright spot offensively for the Phillies. He already has career highs in doubles, homers, extra-base hits, RBI and stolen bases, though his .239 average and .271 on-base percentage need considerable improvement.I dont know if Im surprised, he said. All I know is, I put in a good workout in my offseason and worked really hard to prove I could play baseball every day.The 26-year-old switch hitter changed his approach early last month after a session with hitting coach Steve Henderson. Galvis kept all his weight on his back leg during his swing and suddenly found the pop that was missing.Galvis had 20 career homers in 322 games entering this season.His newfound power could be enough to overcome his measly OBP.I remember a few years when Jimmy Rollins didnt hit a whole lot, Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. You can live with a guy like that.Tommy Joseph hit his 19th homer for the Phillies. Jeanmar Gomez got the final two outs of the ninth for his 37th save.The Phillies won two of the first three in the four-game series and all but knocked the Pirates out of the hunt in the NL wild card. The Pirates were six games back entering Wednesday and appear set to have their playoff streak end at three seasons. They had the second-best record in baseball behind only the St. Louis Cardinals from 2013-15.Brault allowed nine hits and five runs in 3 2/3 innings. He remained winless in seven career starts.The Phillies have long been out of the playoff picture and -- like so many teams playing out the string -- are looking for any kind of positive to end the season. Galvis has been one. Joseph showed power in his rookie season. Speedy rookie outfielder Roman Quinn has been solid in September.Quinn even threw out a runner at the plate in the ninth to snuff a Pirates rally.We had two outs to play with, Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. We made a bad decision there.The Phillies got a rare boost on the mound from righty Jake Thompson (2-5). Thompson, who won for the first time since Aug. 12, allowed six hits and two runs over six solid innings.Against the Pirates, he was sharp enough in front of a small and lifeless crowd to show how he went 11-5 in the minors this season and was considered valuable enough to be included in last years Cole Hamels deal with Texas.Andrew McCutchen hit his 21st homer for the Pirates.STRIKEOUTS ARE BORINGDouble-A Reading OF Dylan Cozens won the 2016 Joe Bauman award as minor league baseballs home run champion with 40. The award is named for Bauman, who set a professional record in 1954 with 72 home runs for the Roswell Rockets of the Class-C Longhorn League.OPENING UPThe 2017 schedule was released on Wednesday. The Pirates will open April 3-6 at Boston in their first trip there since 2005. The Phillies open the season April 3 at Cincinnati.FLASH A SIGNFormer Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz, traded last month to the Dodgers, thanked fans with a sign of appreciation on a billboard off I-95. The billboard read: I loved playing for you. You will always be in my heart. Thank you, Philly! -- ChoochSTREAK SNAPPEDPhillies LF Tyler Goeddel singled in the second inning to snap an 0-for-21 streak.UP NEXTPirates: RHP Chad Kuhl (3-3, 4.09 ERA) will make his 11th career start. Hes lost each of his last three decisions, though the Pirates have won seven of his 10 starts.Phillies: RHP Jerad Eickhoff (10-13, 3.73 ERA) has pitched six innings in each of his last five starts and six of seven overall. Mel Ott Jersey Large . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Custom Mel Ott Jersey . -- There were so many positives from the Orlando Magics first victory of the season that it was hard for coach Jacque Vaughn to stop praising his players. http://www.customsfgiantsjersey.com/ .Y. -- Vancouver Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo had little trouble picking up his first shutout of the season against a Buffalo Sabres team thats having trouble scoring goals. Custom Giants Jersey China . -- Most satisfying to Russ Smith about No. Custom Giants Jerseys .H. -- Matt Kenseth made it 2 for 2 in the Chase, holding off teammate Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Former Purdue quarterbacks Austin Appleby and Danny Etling will have a famous alum watching from afar Saturday.New Orleans Saints star Drew Brees will tune it to see Appleby and Etling square off when No. 21 Florida plays at 16th-ranked LSU, a game that will help decide the Southeastern Conferences Eastern Division.Ive actually been really happy for both of them, Brees said Wednesday. I had a chance to see both of them play at Purdue. By a twist of fate, they both end up at SEC schools, so, SEC, feel free to come to Purdue to find your quarterbacks. Its just been great to see those guys succeed elsewhere and obviously with two really great programs. So Ill be tuning into that one. That one will be entertaining.Its certainly a unique situation, even with transfers becoming more and more common in college football.Appleby and Etling were once teammates competing for the same job and became close friends. Both lost the starting gig in West Lafayette, Indiana, and ended up transferring to different schools in the same conference.Theyll reunite Saturday about 700 miles south in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.Who would have thought that? Etling said. Its definitely crazy, and whats one more crazy thing to add on top of our season, eh?Their journey to Saturdays game, which was rescheduled and moved to LSU because of Hurricane Matthew in October, actually started three years ago.Etling replaced Rob Henry as Purdues starting quarterback that season. Appleby supplanted Etling the following year, prompting Etling to transfer to LSU. Current Purdue starter David Blough beat out Appleby last season, sending Appleby to the bench and leaving him searching for a new place to play.Etling sat out last year under NCAA transfer rules and replaced Brandon Harris in the starting lineup after two games. Hes 5-2 as the starter.Appleby landed at Florida as a graduate transfer this past spring and has subbed for injured starter Luke Del Rio in three games, two because of a sprained knee and again last week against South Carolina because of a right shoulder injury that could sideline him for the rest of the season.dddddddddddd Appleby is 2-1.Appleby, Etling and Blough remain tight, communicating regularly in a group text. They mostly exchange pleasantries, a good luck here or a congrats there.Its been pretty cool to keep that group together, Appleby said.Although Purdue hasnt had much success in the last decade, the The Cradle of Quarterbacks has been a defining feature of the football program. Brees, Len Dawson, Gary Danielson, Jim Everett, Bob Griese, Kyle Orton and others played at Purdue.One thing about Purdue youll find is theres a lot of pride in the quarterback position, Etling said. It kind of follows you wherever you go. And with that, theres a lot of pressure put on the quarterbacks when you play there. So its a double-edged sword and its fun to be a part of that.Brees has met Appleby and Etling, watching them play in person in recent years. He also spent time with Appleby while they worked out at mechanics coach Tom Houses training facility in Los Angeles during an offseason.Brees has texted with and talked to both quarterbacks periodically.On Saturday, hell be pulling for them to play well -- for themselves and for Purdue.Hes huge for that program, Appleby said. Hes our Tim (Tebow), I guess. Hes obviously a Hall of Famer. What hes done, what he means to that university is huge in the way that hes been around and knows how important it is to be around us kids and support our program has been really, really special.The way he does it is almost more than you would expect for a guy like him.---AP Sports Writer Brett Martel in New Orleans and Baton Rouge contributed to this report.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '