ST. LOUIS (AP) — Pinch-hitter Jon Jay delivered a two-run double in the eighth inning and right fielder Shane Robinson threw out the potential tying run at the plate in the ninth to help the St. Louis Cardinals hold off the San Diego Padres 4-3 Thursday night. Jhonny Peralta hit an early two-run homer for the Cardinals, who moved ahead of Pittsburgh into second place in the NL Central. St. Louis remained two games behind division-leading Milwaukee.

The Natural Resource Commission of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources approved the 2014-14 migratory game bird hunting seasons during its monthly meeting on Thursday (Aug. 14th).

In the north zone, the seasons for ducks, coots and mergansers is Oct. 4-19 and Oct. 25-Dec. 7, the youth waterfowl season is Sept. 27-28, Canada goose and brant season is Sept. 27-Jan. 2, White-fronted geese is Sept. 27-Dec. 9 and light geese is Sept. 27-Jan. 11.

In the south zone, the seasons for ducks, coots and mergansers is Oct. 4-8 and Oct. 18-Dec. 11, the youth waterfowl season is Oct. 11-12, Canada goose and brant season is Oct. 4-Jan. 9, White-fronted geese is Oct. 4-Dec. 16 and light geese is Oct. 4-Jan. 16.

In the Missouri River zone, the seasons for ducks, coots and mergansers is Oct. 4-8 and Oct. 25-Dec. 18, the youth waterfowl season is Oct. 18-19, Canada goose and brant season is Oct. 11-Jan. 16, White-fronted geese is Oct. 11-Dec. 23 and light geese is Oct. 11-Jan. 16.

Commissioners also approved reducing the daily bag limit for canvasbacks to one. A statewide special September Teal season is Sept. 6-21. The daily bag limit is six with a possession limit of 18 of green-winged, blue-winged and cinnamon teal only. No other ducks may be taken.

Special September teal season shooting hours are different than regular duck season hours. Teal season shooting hours are sunrise to sunset. The migratory game bird hunting regulations booklet is available online at www.iowadnr.gov/hunting.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – The Chiefs broke camp on the campus of Missouri Western on Thursday as they prepared for their second preseason game, and will resume practice at their own facility in Kansas City next week. Now, the question becomes whether the Chiefs will ever return to St. Joseph, Missouri.

This was the final year of a five-year contract to take training camp roughly an hour’s drive north of Kansas City. Previously, the Chiefs had held training camp in Wisconsin, and the trend in the NFL has been to move camp to the team facility on a permanent basis.

Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt said he anticipates a decision by the end of the year, and that he will consider input from general manager John Dorsey and coach Andy Reid.

A state conservation officials says hunters stalking deer in and around the state’s largest metro areas have had success in keeping the animals in control. Bill Bunger, a wildlife biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says urban hunts have thinned the herd. “Generally speaking sure, there’s spots where access is still a little bit limited to the deer. And that’s kind of by choice of the people who live in that area. But everywhere where they have been able to put hunters has made a big difference,” Bunger says. Hunters have taken 53-hundred deer from the Des Moines and surrounding metro areas since 1997. Hunters do all their work in urban areas with bows.

“We extend the season a little bit for ’em, it starts a little bit earlier than our regular archery season,” Bunger explains. “And we run it through the gun season — because there are no conflicts with the shotgun hunters of course in town. And we run it a little longer into January as well.” There are also urban deer hunts in eastern Iowa. “Waterloo does hunt, and they’ve done it probably a year longer or so than in the Des Moines area, and they are very much successful over there,” Bunger says. He says Cedar Rapids has had hunts for a number of years and he says they’ve seen an impact with the number of roadkill deer going down.

Residents of urban areas get concerned when the deer population climbs and the animals start eating gardens, hosta and other plants. Bunger says even though the population levels for deer have come down, the cities keep a watch on them and continue the hunts each year. “Deer numbers just aren’t stagnant, so if you walk away from it, they are going to go back up over time. So, it’s just kind of an ongoing process,” Bunger explains. He says most cities have task forces that keep track of the deer population to determine where they should hunt.

“The Des Moines area in particular, they actually with the help of the Army Corps pay for an aerial survey by helicopter every year. Most of the cities as a rule just hunt every year,” Bunger says. He says the cities do look at the populations and maybe determine they’ve harvested enough deer and need to the hunting to other areas. Many of the deer taken are donated to the D-N-R’s “HUSH” or Help Us Stop Hunger program to be distributed through local food banks. Bunger says other cities allow the hunters to take home the animals for their own use.

(Radio Iowa)

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs offered a preview during recent 11-on-11 training camp practices of what could be in store for unsuspecting quarterbacks this season. Pro Bowl linebackers Tamba Hali and Justin Houston, first-round draft pick Dee Ford and fellow pass-rusher Josh Martin all trotted onto the field at the same time, leaving defensive tackle Dontari Poe as the lone down lineman in a unique scheme designed to create pressure.

Elsewhere in the NFL, similar personnel groups are known as “NASCAR packages” — the idea is that they overwhelm the opposing offense with their speed. “We call it the ‘dog front,'” Hali said. “A bunch of dogs going after (the quarterback).”

MIAMI (AP) — Justin Masterson pitched seven scoreless innings in his best outing since joining the St. Louis Cardinals, and they averted a series sweep by beating the Miami Marlins 5-2 Wednesday. Masterson, acquired in a trade with Cleveland on July 30, allowed three hits — all singles — and no walks and threw only 91 pitches before departing for a pinch hitter.

After recording only six outs in his previous start, he lowered his ERA to 6.00 in three outings with the Cardinals, and 5.14 overall this year. The 6-foot-6 right-hander improved to 2-1 with St. Louis and 5-6 overall. He also earned his first career RBI in the sixth with a two-out single.

Nathan Eovaldi allowed four runs, two earned, in six innings.

AMES, Iowa (AP) – Even Iowa State knows that it probably won’t win the Big 12 this year.  The Cyclones just want to win a bowl game. Iowa State went to three bowls in its first four years under coach Paul Rhoads. But the Cyclones lost seven straight Big 12 games and finishing 3-9 – by far their worst mark for Rhoads.

Iowa State has predictably been picked to finish ninth in the 10-team league, ahead of only Kansas. But Rhoads has set the bar at a postseason victory, which the Cyclones have achieved just once under Rhoads and three times in school history.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – Most coaches only get one chance to turn around a program. Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz is poised to revive the Hawkeyes for the third time in 12 years. Many dismissed Ferentz and the Hawkeyes after a 4-8 finish in 2012. But Iowa answered its critics with eight wins last season, including victories at Minnesota and Nebraska and a trip to the Outback Bowl.

A veteran roster and a favorable schedule should put Iowa in position to contend for the inaugural Big Ten West title in 2014.

If the tackle box out in your garage is rusted through, busted up or has otherwise seen better days, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources wants to see it. The DNR says it will accept photos of Iowa’s ugliest tackle boxes for a contest to run this August on Facebook, with the winner receiving a new tackle bag and lures courtesy of the Des Moines Chapter of the Izaak Walton League and Mid-Iowa Bassmasters.

Ugly tackle box photos can be submitted to photos@dnr.iowa.gov by Aug. 18th. The DNR will post photos from selected finalists to the DNR’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/iowadnr, at 8:30 p.m. Aug. 20, where Iowans can then vote for the ugliest tackle box in the state.

The photo with the most Facebook likes, comments and shares will win the new tackle box and gear, valued at $100. Official contest rules are available on the DNR website at www.iowadnr.gov/portals/idnr/uploads/files/Uglytackleboxofficialrules.pdf

Photo entries will also be posted to the DNR’s Pinterest boards at www.pinterest.com/iowadnr.

The Des Moines chapter of the Izaak Walton League of America provided the tackle box for this contest. Learn more about the group and its work to improve outdoor recreation and protect natural resources at http://desmoinesikes.com.

The lures were provided by the Mid-Iowa Bassmasters. Learn more about the group’s stewardship efforts and work to promote fishing in central Iowa at http://www.midiowabassmasters.org.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has scheduled four public meetings to discuss proposed changes to the state fishing regulations for 2015. One of the hearings will take place 6:30-p.m. Sept. 2nd, at the Lewis and Clark State Park Visitor Center, (21914 Park Loop) in Onawa.

The DNR is proposing a series of rule changes to make the regulations easier to understand, to protect lake improvements, remove duplicate language in the Iowa code and to enhance fishing opportunities.

The proposals also include: allowing the DNR to manage walleye populations in the same manner as it does bass by posting length limit signs at lakes; removing hand fishing as a legal means of take for all rough fish; establishing a paddlefish season on the Missouri and Big Sioux rivers; and removing duplicate trotline or throw line language in the Iowa Administrative code.

At the hearing, persons will be asked to give their names and address for the record and to confine their remarks to the content of the proposed amendments. Any persons who intend to attend the hearing and have special requirements, such as those related to hearing or mobility impairments, should contact the DNR and request specific accommodations.

Any person may submit written suggestions or comments on the proposed amendment through Sept. 4, 2014. Written materials should be addressed to Martin Konrad, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 502 East Ninth Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50319-0034, by fax at 515-281-8895 or by email to martin.konrad@dnr.iowa.gov.