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BARCELONA, Spain -- Chris Froome has some unfinished business when the Spanish Vuelta starts on Saturday.The Kenyan-born British rider enters the grand tour as the undisputed favorite after winning his third Tour de France title, followed by a bronze medal in the individual time trial at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.The Vuelta is a race I really enjoy and where I guess you could say I have unfinished business, Froome said. Its already been a great summer for both myself and the team, but the Vuelta is another big challenge for us.While Froome has put his stamp on the Tour, the one title that has consistently eluded him is the three-week Vuelta.Not that he hasnt come close. In four appearances, Froome has twice finished runner-up.The now 31-year-old Froome made a name for himself as an up-and-coming talent when he came second to Juanjo Cobo in 2011. In 2014, he was edged out by Alberto Contador.Froome gave it another shot last year in search of a rare Tour-Vuelta double, but was forced to withdraw after breaking a bone in his right foot after crashing during the 11th stage.Froomes Sky team, which helped him dominate the Tour in June, will be without both Mikel Landa (hip injury) and Nicholas Roche (illness).Jacques Anquetil (1963) and Bernard Hinault (1978) are the only riders to win both the Tour and the Vuelta in the same season, and they did so when the Vuelta was still held in the spring.Here is a look at the course and Froomes toughest competition:---THE ROUTEBesides again offering a route fashioned for climbers, the 71st edition of the Spanish Vuelta will avoid the hot southern sun with action taking place in the greener north before the last week in the Mediterranean region of Valencia.The race begins on Saturday with a 27.8-kilometer (17.2-mile) team time trial in Ourense and concludes 3,315 kilometers (2,059 miles) later with the traditional arrival in Madrid on Sept. 11.In between, riders face 12 hill and mountain stages.The race will feature a trip into France on the 14th stage for a climb to the lAubisque peak used in the Tour.The tough course and stiff competition is bound to make for some aggressive racing, Froome said.---CONTADORIf Froome has a rival at the Vuelta, it is three-time winner Alberto Contador.But the Spaniard has had a disappointing summer after crashes and a fever forced him out of the Tour and sidelined him from the Olympics.I will fight for the victory, Contador said. We will go day by day and I hope to have more good luck than I have had recently. I just hope for a better start than the one I had in the Tour.This will be the seven-time grand tour winners last race with his Tinkoff team.---QUINTANAThe biggest threat to Sky as a team should come from a Movistar squad led by Nairo Quintana and Alejandro Valverde, although the Spanish outfit was unable to muster much of a challenge during this summers Tour.Quintana has twice finished second to Froome at the Tour, and the Colombian climber won the 2014 Giro dItalia. He arrives at the Vuelta after wins this year at the Tour of Catalonia and the Tour of Romandie.The 36-year-old Valverde, who won the 2009 Vuelta, will be completing a demanding season after having finished third at the Giro, sixth at the Tour de France, and competing for Spain in the Olympic road race. China NFL Jerseys . 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Go inside the numbers and matchups that will decide the showdown Wednesday night between the Cubs and Dodgers in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series, and then vote for which team will win at the bottom of the page.What we learned in Game 3Rich Hill threw six shutout innings, Jake Arrieta didnt, and now the Cubs date with destiny appears a little less certain than it did after Miguel Montero hit that home run way back in Game 1. The Cubs have played 100 postseason games in their history and this was the first time theyve been shut out in back-to-back games. -- David SchoenfieldInside the pitching matchupWhen John Lackey is on the mound: The veteran righty is making his 22st career postseason start, tied with Whitey Ford for sixth most all time. In his Game 4 start against the Giants in the division series, Lackey struggled with his control, throwing only 39 percent of his pitches in the strike zone, his second-lowest rate in any game this season. He lasted only four innings and 74 pitches, giving up seven hits and three runs.Lackeys stuff remains as good as ever even though he turns 38 in a few days, as he recorded a career-high strikeout rate of 24.1 percent. He comes at batters with a four-seam fastball, slider, curve and occasional changeup. The fastball sits 91-92 that he moves around all quadrants of the strike zone. The slider sits 82-84 with a late break that dives off the outside corner to righties. Thats certainly his go-to wipeout pitch, especially to righties, who hit .122 with a 37 percent strikeout rate against it. Of course, the Dodgers will stack the lineup with lefty swingers, so well see more curveballs and changeups and fewer sliders (although lefties hit just .133 against the slider). --?SchoenfieldWhen Julio Urias is on the mound: The rookie lefty becomes the youngest pitcher to ever start a postseason game at 20 years, 68 days, surpassing Bret Saberhagen, who was 20 years, 175 days when he started for the Royals in the 1984 ALCS.Given his age, the Dodgers monitored his workload carefully, maxing out at 100 pitches in a June start. In his three September starts, he had pitch counts of 89, 78 and 58. Dave Roberts said pitch counts wont be an issue in this game. I think that weve kind of monitored his usage throughout the regular season, but I think right now for me, its not necessarily the pitch count, Roberts said. A lot of it is the stressful innings, too. Its going to be a big game. So if hes throwing the baseball the way we expect, then Im not afraid to push him to help us win a baseball game.Urias, who posted a 2.73 ERA over his final 69 innings, throws an easy 92-93 mph fastball that generated a swing-and-miss rate of 24 percent. He works middle-away to up in the zone to right-handed batters, coming inside (inner third) about 30 percent of the time. He gave up only one home run off his fastball in 202 plate appearances ending with the pitch, so there seems to be some deception here in the delivery. He was known for a great changeup coming up in the minors, but he also throws a slider and curveball. Batters hit .174 against his changeup, but he actually threw his curve a little more often even though batters hit .375/.382/.594 against it. Hell use the slider to come inside to right-handed batters.Given the repertoire, confidence and calmness on thhe mound, everyone thinks hes a future No.dddddddddddd 1 given refinement and health. -- SchoenfieldPlayer in the spotlightAnthony Rizzo. Or pick the Cubs hitter of your choice. Rizzo got his second hit of the postseason, but it was a broken-bat dribbler off Kenley Jansen in the ninth inning of a 6-0 game. The Cubs are hitting .152 against left-handers in the playoffs -- granted, theyve faced Madison Bumgarner, Clayton Kershaw and Hill, maybe the three best lefties in the league -- but .152 is .152. Wheres the offense? -- SchoenfieldDid you know ...According to Elias Sports Bureau, the matchup between Lackey and Urías will be the fifth-largest age gap between opposing starters during a postseason game (17 years, 294 days).It trails matchups between:Jamie Moyer and Ubaldo Jimenez -- Oct. 6, 2007 (21 years, 65 days)Jamie Moyer and Matt Garza -- Oct. 25, 2008 (21 years, 8 days)Dennis Martinez and Bob Wolcott -- Oct. 10, 1995 (19 years, 117 days)Phil Niekro and John Stuper -- Oct. 9, 1982 (18 years, 38 days)--?ESPN Stats & InfoWhat will decide the game Wednesday nightThe Dodgers have a home run in eight straight postseason games, one of five teams with a streak that long in a single postseason in history. If Lackey wants to keep them from continuing that streak, hell have to stay on the outer third of the plate, a target location he has been attacking all season.Lackey pitch location, 2016 regular season:-- Outer third or away, 51.3 percent-- Inner third or inside, 26.2 percent-- Middle third, 22.4 percentThe Dodgers hit 36 home runs and slugged .328 against pitches away, and they hit 66 home runs and slugged .420 against pitches inside. ?--?ESPN Stats & InfoChoosing sides: Who will win??Hes 20, a lefty, Mexican, starting in the playoffs -- I mean, isnt the rise of Urias like Fernandomania all over again? Dont know if he throws a scroogie or breathes through his eyelids like the lizards of the Galápagos Islands, but hes really good. Still, Urias hasnt thrown much lately and command can be an issue. The Cubs flailing offense cant press, but it needs to give Lackey some support. I suspect the bullpens will loom large in this one. It has been a long time since the Cubs dropped three straight so Im taking them. But I dont feel great about it. -- Bradford DoolittleIt cant continue like this at the plate for the Cubs, can it? Theyve seen Urias twice, which is bound to help them, while Lackey was brought in for games just like these. Somehow, someway the Cubs will prevail and tie the series. -- Jesse Rogers?Hardly anybody predicted it would happen this way, but the Dodgers will carry their momentum to a 3-1 NLCS lead with a victory in Game 4. Two dominating starts by left-handers allowed the Dodgers rally for a series lead after losing Game 1. And guess what? The Dodgers have another lefty on tap in Urias, who might be only 20 years old but had the maturity to put together a 2.73 ERA over his final 69? innings of the season.?-- Doug PadillaWhere the series standsThe unknown is what looms ahead in Game 5. We know Jon Lester will go for the Cubs. But who starts for the Dodgers, Kershaw or Kenta Maeda? That decision might rest on what happens in Game 4. -- Schoenfield ' ' '