PITTSBURGH -- Ivan Nova is doing his part to improve baseballs pace of play.The right-hander threw a six-hitter to stay unbeaten with Pittsburgh and Jung Ho Kang hit a two-run double to key a three-run first inning as the Pirates defeated Cincinnati 4-1 on Thursday night, extending the Reds losing streak to five games.Nova (12-6) pitched his second complete game in seven starts since being acquired from the New York Yankees in a trade on Aug. 1. He struck out four, walked none, got 15 of his outs on ground balls and retired the first 12 batters while throwing 94 pitches.The game lasted 2 hours, 28 minutes during a season in which Commissioner Rob Manfred has fretted about the average time of major league games.I think my wife and everybody likes it when I get home early, so I try to make it as quick as possible, Nova said with a grin.Nova improved to 5-0 with a 2.53 ERA in seven starts with the Pirates. He has issued just two walks in 46 2/3 innings.Its just more of what weve been seeing from him, said Clint Hurdle, who became the sixth manager in Pirates history with 500 wins. It was a really nice mix of pitches and pitching. No walks again. Its the manual there of how you want to get it done in a quick and efficient way.Kangs double opened the scoring and he came home on a single by Francisco Cervelli as the Pirates took an early 3-0 lead against Dan Straily (11-8).Kang is 7 for 13 with seven RBI in four games since being activated from the disabled list on Monday after missing 15 days with a sore left shoulder.Hes in a good place, Hurdle said. Hes seeing the ball well, looking really good in the field.The Pirates, still on the fringe of the National League wild card race, won their second straight following an eight-game losing streak. They began a stretch of 15 consecutive games against teams with losing records.The Reds dropped to 57-82, clinching their third consecutive losing season and 14th in the last 17 years.Josh Harrison hit two doubles for the Pirates. David Freese and Cervelli had two hits each.Zack Cozart singled in the Reds lone run in the sixth. Andrew McCutchen countered with an RBI single in the bottom of the inning.Straily gave up three runs and seven hits in five innings. He struck out six and walked three.I wasnt exactly where I wanted to be -- but they had three hits (in the first) inning that were probably a foot away from a glove. Total, Straily said. So thats just kind of the way it happened.TRAINERS ROOMReds: CF Billy Hamilton (strained oblique) missed his fourth straight game with a strained oblique and stayed behind in Cincinnati to receive treatment. ... RHP Homer Bailey (biceps tendinitis) has not started since Aug. 28 but the Reds hold out hope he will be able to return this season.Pirates: CF Starling Marte (back spasms) missed his third straight game. ... RHP A.J. Schugel (sore shoulder) hasnt pitched since Aug. 30 and there is no timetable for the relievers return.PIRATES SHUFFLE ROTATIONRHP Drew Hutchison will make his Pirates debut Saturday night when he starts in place of RHP Chad Kuhl against the Reds. The Pirates acquired Hutchison from the Toronto Blue Jays in a trade on Aug. 1 and he was 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA in seven games, including six starts, for Triple-A Indianapolis before being recalled TuesdayFrom 2012-15, Hutchison had a 30-21 record with a 4.92 ERA in 76 games, 73 of which were starts, over four seasons with the Blue Jays.Kuhl and fellow rookie RHP Jameson Taillon are having their next turns in the starting rotation skipped as the Pirates attempt to manage their innings pitched. Taillon has worked 149 1/3 innings between the major and minor leagues and Kuhls total is 134 1/3.UP NEXTReds: RHP Tim Adleman (2-3, 4.02 ERA) will start Friday night and the rookie is 0-2 with a 5.63 ERA in his last three starts.Pirates: LHP Steven Brault (0-2, 3.32), also a rookie, will look for his first win in his fifth career start. Cheap Sneakers NZ Free Shipping . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury. Sneakers NZ For Sale . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services. http://www.discountsneakersnz.com/ . Miller reached right to deflect Mikhail Grabovskis attempt with just over 2 minutes remaining in regulation, and then made two more saves in the shootout Sunday to give the Sabres a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals. Cheap Sneakers NZ . -- Chicago Bears cornerback Tim Jennings was selected Monday to his second straight Pro Bowl, while guard Kyle Long made it after a solid rookie season. Sneakers NZ Online . -- Ty Montgomery had 290 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, and fifth-ranked Stanford held on to beat No. CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Panthers plan to play Sundays game against the Minnesota Vikings at Bank of America Stadium despite violent protests taking place in the city.More than that, they want to play unless the protests stemming from a Tuesday shooting escalate over the next couple of days as they did Wednesday night.I think it would be good for the city, coach Ron Rivera said on Thursday.The protests began Tuesday night after a black Charlotte police officer shot and killed Keith Lamont Scott, who also is black, in an apartment complex parking lot about 15 minutes from Bank of America Stadium.The protests moved within a few blocks of the stadium on Wednesday night, turning violent with gunshots, vandalism and police setting off tear gas bombs in an attempt to break up the protesters.Rivera said he has faith that city leaders will get the protests under control soon. He has no reservations about the safety of his team or having his wife at the stadium.The team issued a statement Thursday that said: We are in contact with government officials, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and the NFL. We are continuing to monitor events as we prepare for Sundays home game.Carolina shut down its open locker room to reporters early on Thursday and had outside linebacker Thomas Davis and Greg Olsen serve as team spokesmen.Both agreed the game should be played on Sunday.This game absolutely should be played Sunday, Davis said. I look at football as a way to bring people together ... I hope people know that violence is not the answer. Its not the way to solve this problem.Olsen and Davis noted that the Carolina locker room, a mixture of different races, religious and political beliefs, could serve as an example.On Sundays, when people come and watch us, not only do people see that, but to a bigger level those people sitting in the crowd are from all walks of life, from all backgrounds, from all religious denominations, Olsen said. But for one day, for one afternoon for a few hours, they all come together for a few hours around the Carolina Panthers.Sports have a tremendous ability to bring people together. Sports have a tremendous ability to give people a little bit of reprieve from what for a lot of people not only with whats going on now but a general state of life.The Panthers and the NFL are monitoring the situation downtown. Their primary concern is having enough police to handle the safety concerns of the city and keep the stadium secure.The presence of the National Guard in Charlotte, according to a team source, helps that situation tremendously.Many businesses already have told employees not to come downtown for work unless it is necessary. In fact, NASCAR has closed its Charlotte office for normal business Thursday.During the unrest Wednesday night in Charlotte, windows were broken on the ground floor of the building where NASCAR offices occupy several floors. The building is adjacent to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, which operates the Hall of Fame, said exterior windows were damaged, but the facility will be open as scheduled Thursday.In a statement, Charlotte Hornets chairman and owner Michael Jordan expressed his condolences to the Scott family and asked for calm.In light of the tragic events of the past three days, it is more important than ever that we restore calm and come together, as a community, in peaceful demonstration and conversation, and in constructive and non-violent ways.As part of the fabric of Charlotte, the Hornets organization is committed to working with civic leaders, our elected leaders and law enforcement to foster more trust, transparency and understanding so we can heal and grow together as a community, Jordan said.?Duke football coach David Cutcliffe said he planned to address the situation with his players.?We love the city of Charlotte and its sad and I havent really gone into any detail with the team. I have a Thursday night meeting and its on my agenda tonight. We know a lot of great change has comee in this country through protest and through somewhat even loud voices and I think we always need that.dddddddddddd But what we never need is violence. Just pray for peace. Thats it.San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been kneeling during the anthem for the past month as a protest against social injustice in the United States. While some players around the country have joined Kaepernicks protest, members of the Panthers have not.But safety Tre Boston said recent events have him considering possibly joining Kaepernicks cause.Look how much backlash he took, Boston said. Thats a peaceful protest, am I right? When stuff like this happens in the world ... where are the people that are mad at Kaepernick for taking a knee? Is everybody still mad at him for trying to stand for something that is happening in this world?So do I see myself taking that knee? I dont know. I have to talk to some people and see if thats the best thing for me to do.Protests are anticipated on Sunday. During Wednesday nights protest, a man carrying a megaphone shouted that if quarterback Cam Newton stood during the national anthem, his No. 1 jerseys would be burned.But Newton did post a message on Facebook on Wednesday saluting Kaepernick for making a stand for injustice in this country.Newton typically doesnt publicly address social issues, but he made an exception Wednesday. He spent a majority of his weekly news conference addressing what is happening in Charlotte.Im an African-American, and Im not happy how the justice has been dealt with over the years and the state of oppression in our community, the NFL MVP said. But we also as black people have to do right by ourselves. We cant be hypocrites.And I say that on one voice and also another voice that when you go public or when things happen in the community, its not the fact that things are happening, its the way they are being treated after they happen.The police said Scott exited his vehicle carrying a gun. Scotts family said he was unarmed and sitting in his car reading a book while waiting for his son to come home from school.Protests involving hundreds on Tuesday night turned to violence. Rocks were thrown, police vehicles vandalized and fires set. Sixteen police officers reportedly were injured. The situation escalated on Wednesday night.It could have happened in Atlanta. It could have happened in Los Angeles. It doesnt matter, Newton said. Its embarrassing for things to keep happening, and from what I do know we had an incident that happened in 2013 that had something to do with the police and it went to jury and whatever -- it got washed away in time.Newton was referring to the 2013 fatal shooting of Jonathan Ferrell by Charlotte officer Randall Kerrick. Ferrell, who was black, was shot 10 times by Kerrick, who is white.Kerrick was charged with voluntary manslaughter. A judge declared a mistrial after the jury could not reach a verdict.My big thing is holding people accountable, no matter what the race, no matter what the gender is, no matter what the age is, Newton said. We all have to hold each other accountable.That was the message sent by Olsen, Davis and Rivera on Thursday. Thats why they chose to mix politics with football.This has to be a national discussion, Rivera said. But at the same time we have to do it the right way.All three also agreed they will be able to focus on football on Sunday.The neat thing is when its time to do football theyve done football, Rivera said. But when its times like this that they have some comments, you do hear them talking about it, you hear them pretty open.As Greg and Thomas said, you look at the diversity, where theyre all from, all races and colors, but yet they talk to one another, they care about one another. What has helped made this team strong has been what goes on in that locker room.Information from ESPNs Bob Pockrass was used in this report. ' ' '