Nova, Polanco lead Pirates to 7-1 victory over Astros (Yahoo Sports)

Ivan Nova has developed a pre-game ritual since coming to the Pittsburgh Pirates from the New York Yankees in a trade on Aug. 1. The right-hander walks up to right fielder Gregory Polanco in the dugout just before the first pitch and asks him to hit a home run. ''He hit two for me today,'' Nova said with a smile.