The Alpine director of the U.S. Ski Team has a healthy — and extremely confident — Lindsey Vonn for the world championships next week in Beaver Creek, Colorado. One of the best slalom skiers in teenager Mikaela Shiffrin, too.And dont forget Ted Ligety, who won three titles at the 2013 world championships in Austria.Still, Patrick Riml is holding out hope that his unbelievably strong team includes one more familiar name — Bode Miller.It all depends on how much Millers surgically repaired back improves by next Wednesday for the super-G or Feb. 7 for the downhill.However, Riml is prepared to give the six-time Olympic medallist until the last possible moment to see if the back can hold up to the rigours of racing.Well see how it shakes out, how Bodes feeling day by day. Then, well make a call, said Riml, who announced his roster Wednesday and included Miller on the squad. Were very fortunate to have Bode being able to ski, with his track record over the last decade-plus. Its very awesome for us to have him on the team.Miller has yet to compete in a World Cup race this season after having a herniated disk repaired in November. And while his race status for Beaver Creek remains uncertain, hes showing signs of improvement.The 37-year-old Miller recently turned in solid training runs in Wengen, Switzerland, and Kitzbuehel, Austria, before electing to skip the races.He may be known for taking plenty of risks in a competition, but hes playing it safe with his back. This is the event hes been eyeing all along as Miller made his eighth team for the world championships, which are held every two years.(The training runs) show he has to get more mileage under his belt, to get back in form and closer to the top, Riml said. Every day is an important day for Bode to get back on snow and get the feeling back.Thats hardly the case for Vonn, whos already in top form as she enters the world championships in her hometown with a head of steam. She recently surpassed the 35-year-old record held by Austrian great Annemarie Moser-Proell for most World Cup wins.I always believed Id be back on top eventually, said Vonn, who now has 64 World Cup victories after taking a super-G race in St. Moritz, Switzerland, last Sunday. I didnt know how long it would take.This is as healthy as Vonn has been heading into a major event in quite some time. The 30-year-old blew out her right knee in a super-G race at the 2013 world championships in Schladming, Austria. She then hurt her knee again, keeping her out of the Sochi Olympics.In Sochi, Shiffrin became one of the stars for the U.S., winning the Olympic slalom crown. She also won the event at the 2013 world championships.I know I can perform under pressure, said Shiffrin, whos from nearby Eagle-Vail, Colorado. The more pressure I have, the more liberated I feel.Ligety has a tall order in front of him to duplicate what he did two years ago at worlds, when he won the super-G, giant slalom and combined.___The mens roster:Will Brandenburg, Spokane, Washington; David Chodounsky, Crested Butte, Colorado; Tommy Ford, Bend, Oregon; Travis Ganong, Squaw Valley, California; Jared Goldberg, Holladay, Utah; Tim Jitloff, Reno, Nevada; Ted Ligety, Park City, Utah; Nolan Kasper, Warren, Vermont; Tim Kelley, Starksboro, Vermont; Bode Miller, Franconia, New Hampshire; Steven Nyman, Sundance, Utah; Brennan Rubie, Salt Lake City; Marco Sullivan, Squaw Valley, California; Andrew Weibrecht, Lake Placid, New York.The womens roster:Stacey Cook, Mammoth Mountain, California; Hailey Duke, Boise, Idaho; Lila Lapanja, Incline Village, Nevada; Julia Mancuso, Squaw Valley, California; Megan McJames, Park City, Utah; Alice McKennis, Glenwood Springs, Colorado; Paula Moltzan, Lakeville, Minnesota; Laurenne Ross, Bend, Oregon; Mikaela Shiffrin, Eagle-Vail, Colorado; Resi Stiegler, Jackson Hole, Wyoming; Lindsey Vonn, Vail, Colorado; Jackie Wiles, Aurora, Oregon. 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"It wasnt as easy as the scoreline indicates," said Djokovic, who has won in Dubai on four occasions. Russell Martin Youth Jersey . At this rate, the Flyers captain is set to be remembered more for a fantastic finish.MIAMI -- The Miami Marlins proved they can win the close ones, too. After scoring 18 runs in their last two wins, the Marlins found that winning a tight game can be just as enjoyable. Giancarlo Stanton and Casey McGehee hit consecutive run-scoring singles off David Carpenter during a two-run rally in the seventh inning that led the Marlins to a 5-4 win over the Atlanta Braves on Thursday night and a three-game sweep of the NL East leader. "Honestly, I like wins, I dont care how we get them," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "9-0 is fun, but a game like tonight, 5-4, where youre putting guys in some situations they havent been in and see how they respond, thats fun too." Miami has won six straight home games for the first time at Marlins Park, which opened in 2012. It is the longest home winning streak for the team since the Marlins won eight in a row from June 20 to July 1, 2009. With the Marlins trailing 4-3, pinch-hitter Reed Johnson singled off Ian Thomas (1-1) leading off the seventh and took second on Christian Yelichs single. Derek Dietrich lined out, and Carpenter relieved and gave up the back-to-back hits. "Weve done a really good job in putting ourselves in situations to have a chance late in games," McGehee said. "Fortunately, tonight we were able to get some hits that were big." Mike Dunn (3-3) pitched a hitless seventh, and Steve Cishek got four outs for his sixth save in seven chances to complete the Marlins first series sweep of Atlanta since 2009. Cishek relieved with two on and two outs in the eighth, walked Andrelton Simmons, then struck out pinch-hitter Ramiro Pena and pitched a perfect ninth. The Marlins bullpen allowed one hit in three shutout innings. Cishek admitted being a bit nervous between the eighth and ninth innings. "I was pacing around the dugout," he said. "I wanted the offence to get more runs, of course, but I was just trying to stay focused and stay sharp mentally and make sure I was ready to get back out there and get the job done..dddddddddddd." The Marlins swept Atlanta at home for the first time since June 13-15, 2006. "Its huge for us," Redmond said. "These guys keep battling and keep pushing forward and moving on and really picking each other up playing with a lot of energy out there." Garrett Jones had a home run for the Marlins. Evan Gattis and B.J. Upton homered for the Braves. Marlins starter Henderson Alvarez allowed four runs and eight hits in six innings, giving up multiple homers in a game for the first time since Sept. 24, 2012. Atlanta starter Ervin Santana gave up three runs and five hits in six innings. The last time the Braves lost three straight was Sept. 15-17, 2013. "The way they scored in the seventh inning, they got a couple balls to drop and they got some ground balls that got through the infield off of Carpenter," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "We had some opportunities. Now we take a flight home and stop this losing streak." Miami led 2-0 in the third when Justin Heyward, batting with one on, grounded softly to Jones at first, who tossed to Alvarez covering the base. Heyward was initially called out by first base umpire Jim Reynolds, but the call was reversed by the review umpire in New York when a replay showed Alvarez missed the bag and the tag. Upton followed with a three-run homer. Adeiny Hechavarria hit an RBI grounder in the fourth, but Gattis homer put Atlanta back ahead in the sixth. NOTES: Upton has hit safely in 15 of the last 18 games in which he has had an at-bat. ... Braves RHP Gavin Floyd is expected to be activated by Sunday and initially pitch out of the bullpen. . McGehee got his 300th RBI in the first inning. ... The Marlins finished April with an 11-4 home record, a 2.40 home ERA and a .307 home batting average. They ranked first in the majors in home wins. ... The Marlins nine-game homestand continues Friday with the opener of a weekend set against the Los Angeles Dodgers. ... Atlanta returns home Friday to play a weekend series against San Francisco. ' ' '