do the job.Prior to that, hed been locked in; going 3-1

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. candidly declared two weeks ago that he has too good of a race team to be worried about making NASCARs playoffs.Since then, he has produced underwhelming finishes at Daytona and Kentucky and slipped to 13th in the Sprint Cup standings. Earnhardt hasnt scored a top-10 finish in a month and, yes, he is indeed in danger of missing the championship Chase.With eight races remaining to complete the 16-driver field, Earnhardt ranks third among drivers who have yet to secure a win this season but are ranked high enough to make the Chase. Its not a safe position by any means: Earnhardt has slipped from seventh in the standings since May and has led only four laps since mid-March.Hes not the only driver in a precarious position. Because 11 drivers have so far won races this season, any first-time winners in the next two months will claim the remaining five Chase berths. Among those looking for automatic berths in the Chase are two of Earnhardts Hendrick Motorsports teammates -- Chase Elliott and Kasey Kahne -- as well as 2015 qualifier Jamie McMurray.Ryan Newman, who has made the Chase the last two years without a win, is on the bubble. Austin Dillon, rookie Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson are all eyeing wildcard spots but they could solidify a berth with their first career Cup wins.The chances of some of the bubble drivers over the final two months of NASCARs regular season before the playoffs begin:EARNHARDTNASCARs most popular driver is probably the most puzzling performer this season. After winning seven races the past two years, this is the deepest he has gone into a season without a victory since his 2013 winless campaign. Earnhardts numbers are down across the board. Hes got only five top-five finishes, six top-10s and 53 laps led.He told reporters after Saturday nights 13th-place finish at Kentucky that he is not nervous about his positioning for the Chase.What am I going to do? he asked. Were running as good as we can. Its either going to be good enough or wont be enough. Im not really going to lose any sleep over it, at least at this moment. When we miss the Chase, itll be frustrating and disappointing, but were going to plan on not doing that. Were going to plan on making it.In the coming month, Earnhardt could gain some traction at Pocono, where he has two career victories, finished second in June and has seven consecutive finishes of 11th or better.He has also won at Bristol, Michigan and Richmond, where the Chase field will be finalized Sept. 10. Even if he doesnt get a win, mediocre results at his strong tracks should be enough to get Earnhardt into the Chase.EARNHARDTS TEAMMATESElliott is having a very nice rookie season and has climbed from 10th in the standings in early May to as high as sixth. He is currently eighth, the highest-ranked driver without a victory but three consecutive finishes outside the top-20 weakened his position.What could work against Elliott is a lack of experience at some of the upcoming tracks. Hes yet to run a Cup car at New Hampshire, site of Sundays race, or Watkins Glen. Elliott has only been to Pocono in a Cup car once, same with Indianapolis. But he won Xfinity Series races at Darlington and Richmond, so both tracks are very familiar.Kahne is in much rougher shape at 17th in the overall standings, but seventh among winless drivers.Kahne has only one win in almost three full seasons, and hes not exactly knocking on the door of victory lane. Hes finished in the top-five only twice this season and has yet to lead a lap.Hes likely going to need to steal a win somewhere to have any shot at making the Chase.NEWMANHe is the sneaky driver in this field and has successfully made the Chase the last three seasons. Despite not winning a race since 2013, Newman was runner-up in the championship in 2014 and made it to the second round of the Chase last year. Now hes on another quiet run toward a Chase berth. Newman has climbed from 18th in the standings in May to 12th, and hes ranked only behind Elliott among winless drivers. Also in his favor? Hes really good at Indy, where hes got one career victory and five consecutive finishes of 12th or better.THE YOUNG GUYSNASCAR has high hopes for the future of the Cup Series with fresh talent in Elliott, Dillon, Blaney and Larson. Of that crop, Elliott is having the best year, but the others have shown flashes of stepping it up a notch.Dillon is currently on the Chase bubble at 14th in the standings and only one point below Earnhardt. His season is up one week, down the next, and he needs consistency to maintain his footing.Blaney is ranked 18th in the standings and is probably the longshot for victory lane. He has yet to lead a lap and only has six top-10 finishes, but Ford has turned it up of late and hes got de facto Penske teammates Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano to lean on for assistance.Larson might be the first of the group to get a win, which would be long overdue. He has been erratic since his 2014 rookie campaign, though his drop-offs are much shorter now He was third at Michigan, followed by 12th at Sonoma. Then he was sixth at Daytona, followed by 19th at Kentucky.If hes going to make his first Chase, he either needs a string of top-10 finishes, or to finally get that first win. 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Tuesdays surgery at Atlantas Piedmont Hospital was performed by Dr. Xavier Duralde and Hawks team physician Dr. Michael Bernot. MILWAUKEE -- Zach Davies will go for his sixth victory of the season when he takes the mound Thursday as the Milwaukee Brewers wrap up a three-game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers at Miller Park.Davies has been on an absolute tear the last two months, going 5-0 with a 2.64 ERA in his last 10 starts -- after posting an 8.78 ERA in his first three outings.He set a career high with nine strikeouts his last time out, but took a no-decision after allowing three runs on seven hits and a walk in five innings of work.They fouled off a bunch of pitches, and he had a bunch of strikeouts, too, which ran up his pitch count, manager Craig Counsell said after that outing. Thats a tough middle of the lineup to get through, a challenging middle of the lineup. I thought Zach threw the ball as well as he has in his previous starts.Davies has faced the Dodgers only once before in his career, taking no decision after holding Los Angeles to a run on five hits and a walk with six strikeouts in seven innings at Dodger Stadium earlier this month.Dodgers starter Kenta Maeda has done well on the road this season, going 4-1 with a 2.79 ERA while holding opponents to a .188 batting average.The MLB rookie -- Maeda spent eight seasons with Hiroshima of the Japanese Central League prior to signing with the Dodgers this season -- is looking to rebound after allowing a season-high-tying four runs in five innings of a 6-1 loss at Pittsburgh.ddddddddddddMy job is to go deep into the game and give the team the best shot to win, Maeda told the Los Angeles Times. Yes, it is frustrating to not be able to do the job.Prior to that, hed been locked in; going 3-1 with a 1.52 ERA over a five-start stretch, including a stellar showing against the Brewers on June 19, when he allowed just a run on six hits while striking out eight over 6 1/3 innings but didnt factor into the decision of the Dodgers 2-1 victory.Im proud of him for the way he battled, Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis said after that game. I know he got some insight in the dugout about trying to change some things up mechanically and it showed right away. It speaks to how talented he is, how athletic he is. His fastball command was dominant the rest of the game. Thats huge for us, because Kenta can use his off-speed at will -- and thats really good -- but teams can sit on that.Maeda allowed two hits including a double to Brewers left fielder Ryan Braun in that contest. Braun has terrorized Dodgers pitching this season, going 10-for-25 with five runs, four doubles, two home runs, seven RBI and a stolen base in six games this season.Overall, he has hits in his last 11 meetings with Los Angeles. ' ' '