Cubs Win Streak Goes Up in Flames

"Well sport, I have to hand it to you. When you go down, you go down in flames." So maybe I am the only one who saw "Tin Cup," but that line makes me laugh everytime, and watching the Cubs Saturday that was all I heard.

It started with a Mike Fontenot error off of Corey Hart's bat, and before you knew it the Brewers were off and running again. The Brewers scored four runs in the first inning Saturday afternoon, one day after scoring five in the first. Unlike Friday though, they didn't stop.

Even after the Cubs came right back in their half of the first with two runs of their own, the Brewers scored 3 in the second, 2 in the third, 1 in the fifth and seventh, and 2 more in the ninth for a total of 13 on the day. It was a hitting display that showed why the brewers have a 7.5 game cushion atop the NL Central.

As for the Cubs, nothing went right on this day. Sean Marshall could only last two innings and the bullpen was forced to work extensively for a second consecutive day. The hitting was also held down for most of the day as Ben Sheets went eight innings and limited the Cubs to 4 runs on 6 hits, while striking out 11. The runs though were given up in the first and sixth innings, but Sheets was able to settle down with the huge lead and cruise for most of the game.

- Rocky Cherry was recalled from Triple-A Iowa prior to Saturday's game. Despite constant talk of getting to 12 pitchers, Billy Petrick optioned instead of a position player.

- Lou Pinella used the blow out to get some of his regulars out of the game and get some playing time for Daryle Ward, Jacque Jones, and get some rest for Soriano, Lee, and Rameriz.

- Jason Marquis goes to the hill on Sunday to try and win another series for the Cubs, but also to try and get the pen some rest. Chances are, another pitcher will be added Sunday or Monday after all of the work the bullpen has gotten lately.

(Photo courtesy Mark Pritchard)

Japanese Baseball, Kind of Like Figure Skating

When a player in the major leagues records 132 hits in 225 games, and has a lifetime batting average of .224, you can almost guarantee he won't be arounf long. However, as you can learn from Carl "Tuffy" Rhodes, they play baseball in more places than the United States.

Tuffy in MLB played between 1990 and 1995, with his best shot at regular playing time with the Cubs in 1994 when he had 269 at bats in 95 games. He hit .234 that year with 8 home runs, but is best known in Cubs lore for hitting three home runs on opening day. Since his time in the majors ended in 1995, Rhodes has spent 11 years playing in the Japanese leagues. On Saturday, Tuffy had three hits, including a single in the seventh that was his 1,500 career hit across the Pacific. Also this year, Rhodes recorded his 1,000th RBI and currently sits on 1,043.

Rhodes now sits behind Leron Lee holds who holds the record for most hits by a foreign player in Japanese baseball, with 1,579. Rhodes is second is likely to break the record this year too add to his collection. He tied Sadaharu Oh's single-season record of 55 homers in 2001 and Rhodes' 383 homers are the most hit by any foreign player in the history of Japanese professional baseball.

With all of the players starting to flock from Japan to the United States to play, there have been numerous comparisons between the leagues skill levels. It makes you wonder how a guy who couldn't stick around in MLB can continue to play so well in a league that has been called "comparable" to MLB. I guess, you just have to tip your cap, to him, and let him enjoy his flowers.

Where to Find the Cubs Today....

TV: Game of the Week on Fox, 2:55PM

RADIO: WGN 720

Ben "In Between The" Sheets (9-3, 3.17 ERA) vs. Sean Marshall (4-2, 2.44 ERA)

Cubs look to keep the win streak alive and try and guarantee a series win. Sean Marshall has been good since his call up, but the Brewers rake left handed pitching, so a duel is likely out of the question.

Friday's 5-4-3

Angels 9 Orioles 7 Aubrey Huff hit for the cycle in this loss. We are still unsure of how much oxygen he was actually given in the dugout afterwards.

Mets 6-5 Phillies 5-2 If you can't figure it out, the Mets won both of the games in the double header. The Mets hit 5 home runs in the double dip, two by Carlos Beltran, as the Mets seem to be putting an awful June in the past and looking to close the first half strong.

Yankees 2 A's 1 The A's continue to falter as they struggle to put any type of offense together on most days. Mike Mussina pitched well and the Yankees get a second straight game.

Pirates 3 Nats 2 The Nationals gave up three runs in the last three innings including a game winning sac fly, as the Pirates showed some fight in coming back for the win.

Red Sox 2 Rangers 1 All Boston needed was to get home to end their skid. Papelbon blew a gasket on a close play in the ninth and then nearly blew the save, but was able to nail it down eventually.

Indians 2 D Rays 1 Who was that on the mound for Tampa, and what have they done with the real Edwin Jackson? Jackson went deep again and held the powerful Cleveland line up to one run. However, Ben Francisco hit his first career home run to walk off for the Indians.

Twins 11 Tigers 1 In what should have been a pitchers duel between Santana and Verlander, Joe Mauer decided to make his presence known. Mauer hit a grand slam and walked twice as the Twins offense exploded against Verlander and the Tiger bullpen.

Braves 12 Marlins 3 This is the Chuck James the Braves saw last year, and expected this year. The Braves offense also continued to pound the ball after their troubles last weekend in which they scored 1 run in five games.

Cards 4 reds 2 Troy Percival made his return to baseball with a win for the Cardinals as they managed three late runs against the Reds bullpen.

Royals 8 White Sox 1 As a Cubs fan all I can do is laugh at this point. The White Sox hold a .5 game lead on the Royals, and are in danger of falling into last place. either way, the Royals still have more wins, 34 to 33.

Astros 9 Rockies 8 Brian Fuentes is now on suicide watch. Seriously, the Rockies have lost eight straight, and Fuentes has blown saves in four straight opportunities.

D Backs 4 Giants 3 Bonds creeps one closer and the Giants lose again. Bonds homer tied it in the eight off of Livan Hernandez, but the D Backs eeked one out in extras.

Mariners 5 Blue Jays 3 Seattle seems to be a team of streakers, but not that kind. They have won six in a row, there third win streak of 4 or more this month. They also have a six game losing streak as well.

Padres 7 Dodgers 6 The Padres used a six run fourth inning to pace themselves and get the win in this NL West showdown. The Dodgers tried to chip away at the lead, but they came up one run short against Trevor Hoffman.

Lucky Number 7

Riding a six game win streak and the first place Brewers coming into town, this seemed like the time for the Cubs to make a move. However the second the game started, the Cubs Rich Hill looked to be completely overmatched. A walk, hit, hit-by-pitch, hit, sac fly, and home run, and suddenly the Cubs were down 5 runs without even getting to bat.

From that point forward the Brewers never reached third base. Hill settled down , but was forced to throw som many pitches, 94, that he only lasted three innings.

The Cubs offense was equally overmatched for most of the game. Yovani Gallardo pitched six strong innings for the Brewers and gave up only two earned runs. This was not to be unexpected however, since the Cubs struggle against any starter whom they have never seen before. The Cubs were also able to add a run in the 7th on a Mike Fontenot single that scored Felix Pie.

That set-up an dramatic ninth inning, that was really unexpected with Francisco Coredero coming in to try and shut the door for the Brew Crew. After back to back one out singles by Soriano and Fontenot Derek Lee put a charge into one that resulted in a sac fly RBI that cut the lead to one. On the very next pitch, the first to Aramis Rameriz, he lined a ball into the teeth of the wind that landed halfway up the bleachers for a walk-off home run, and the Cubs seventh straight win.

- The walk-off home run for Rameriz was his second of his career, and first since 2001.

- Despite constant chatter that the Cubs were to make a roster move to get to 12 pitchers, there was no move made before the game.

- Cordero, the NL saves leader with 30, blew only his third save chance of the year, with the other two coming in his personal "House of Horrors" during a road trip to Texas earlier this year.

(Photo by Phil Velasquez of Chicago Tribune)

Self-Appointed Coach Charged With A Felony

Brent Kowalkoski was charged with felony criminal trespassing today, for his stunt during the Cubs/Rockies game on Monday. I still maintain that, after Howry gave up a homer to Troy Tulowitzki, Kowalkoski was going out to make a pitching change since Piniella wasn't. What sucks for Kowalkoski is that if it weren't for White Sox fans, he would be charged with a misdemeanor. However because of those scumbags on the southside actually attacking a coach and an umpire, this Cubs fan above is charged as a felon. Either way, stay off the fucking field.

Acting like a Sox Fan, Cubs Fan Gets Felony Charge [Chicago Tribune]

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Where to Find the Cubs Today...

TV: WGN-TV Channel 9, 1:20pm


RADIO: WGN 720


Yovani Gallardo (1-0, 2.70 ERA) vs. Dick Hill (5-5, 3.13 ERA)


The Brewers take a break from the Young and the Restless to play a couple of baseball games this weekend. A series win may not make or brake the seaon for either team, but it will make a statement for sure.

(Photo Courtesy of MLB.com)

Thursday's 5-4-3

Marlins 9 – Pirates 7: Scott Olsen struck out his first 5 batters and ended the game with 10 in total. Kevin Gregg picked up his 15th save in as many tries on the season.

Dodgers 9 – Dbacks 5: Randy Johnson came off the disabled list and didn’t pitch well. He should have stayed on the DL. FYI, he was on the DL with a “strained muscle in his buttocks.”

Phillies 8 – Reds 7: Jimmy Rollins went 4 for 6 and Chase Utley had 2 homers & 4 RBI as the Phillies hold off the Reds in a pitcher’s duel.

Cardinals & Mets PPD: What’s a guy to do when it’s raining out? Get absolutely shitfaced. Tony LaRussa started out with some Franzia, moved over to a couple Zimas, then drove to the liquor store to pickup some Mike’s Hard Lemonade, then drove around some more, then ended the night with back-to-back Prairie Fires and blacked out.

Astros 8 – Rockies 5: This game had a lot going on in it: Craig Biggio hit his 3000th career hit (also went 5 for 6 in the game), there were 6 homers, Troy Tulowitzki homered in the 11th to give the Rockies a lead, but then Rockies closer Brian Fuentes gave up a walk-off grand slam to disgusting fatass Carlos Lee.

Indians 4 – A’s 3: Jason Michaels hit a 3 run homer in the 7th & Joe “JoBo” Borowski closed the door for his 22nd save on the season.

Tigers 5 – Rangers 2: Kenny “Pinetar” Rogers picked up his second win since coming off the DL. Rogers went 6 innings, giving up only one run. In some pretty shocking news, Sammy Sosa collected his 62nd RBI on the season.

Twins 8 – Blue Jays 5: Frank “The Big Skirt” Thomas hit his 500th career homer, but the Blue Jays couldn’t hold onto an early 4-0 lead.

Yankees lead the Orioles 8 to 6: Rain delays this game until July 27th, where it will be resumed then. Nobody is going to remember about this game a month from now, so I’m hoping somebody kept good notes.

White Sox 5 – Devil Rays 1: We Are Chicago Baseball (33-42; 1-5 vs. the Cubs) completed a 4 game sweep over the DRays. Paul Konerko hit 2 homers and Javier Vazquez gave up one run in 7 innings, struck out 10 batters.

Wednesday's 5-4-3

Tigers Rangers PPD. Seriously it was only a little rain, get out there and play.

Brewers 6 Astros 3 Damian Miller hit a walk off homer in the 11th. I guess when things like this happen, it might really be your year.

Royals 1 Angels 0 How do you get 10 hits in a game and not score? I don't even think you can say the Royals scattered the hits, there were so many.

Mariners 2 Red Sox 1 A great ptched game by Dice K. However, Manny Ramirez proves how much they need his bat in the line up by showing how awful a defender he is in the 11th. Ichiro scored the game winner, cause thats what he does.

Orioles 4 Yankees 0 Roger Clemens got no run support, but seriously who cares. Keep adding to that loss total fat ass.

Padres 4 Giants 2 Greg Maddux was a perfect fit for San Diego. He wins yet again (7-4, 3.66 era) and the Padres manage to keep Bonds homerless for an entire series. Pretty good seeing as how San Diego has given up the most home runs to him.

Reds 9 Phillies 6 Ryan Howard became the quickest player to 100 Home Runs with a shot that went 510 feet. Jamie Moyer had a no no through 5 and they gave up 9 runs after that. Might be time to rework your bullpen.

A's 13 Indians 7 A day after have a victory snatched from them, the A's came out thumping. Jack Cust had a home run and 5 RBIs. Now I get why Piazza may come back off the DL and catch.

White Sox 5 D Rays 3 break up the White Sox, that is three in a row. Too bad they are doing this when it means absolutely nothing. Buerhle got the win and supposedly an extension is close.

Pirates 7 Marlins 5 A paid attendance of 200 people (Ok so maybe a few more than that, but not much) saw the Marlins struggle with the Bucs for the second straight day. Seriously, you shouldn't be losing these games.

Mets 2 Cards 0 This game was called in the sixth inning. David Wright accounted for the lone runs with a home run in the 1st inning. Tough loss for Reyes, he is now 0-10 on the year, but was pitching well.

Braves 13 Nats 0 The Braves had 22 hits, in one game. The offense is awake and raring, but you have to wonder if it was the Braves offense or Nats pitching that was responsible.

D backs 2 Dodgers 1 Brandon Webb was spectacular. So was Derek Lowe. LA had their chances late, but were unable to capitalize, where as the D Backs scored early and let Webb cruise.

Cubs Sweep Again!

The Cubs winning streak is now at 6 games, with the Cubs sitting one game under .500. The problem is the Cubs can’t gain any ground on the Brewers because they just keep on winning. This can all change starting on Friday, as the Cubs take on the Brewers for a 3 game set at Wrigley.

Carlos Zambrano picked up his 9th win of the season, going 6 innings and giving up 2 runs. Big Z struck out 8 and was helped out by early offense by the Cubs. Mark DeRosa hit a 3 run homer in the 3rd off of Jason Hirsh. DeRosa, filling in for Aramis at 3rd, made a couple great plays and went 2 for 4 at the plate, scoring twice. Mike Fontenot would follow up DeRosa’s 3 run bomb with a solo homer off of Hirsh in the 4th inning. Fontenot went 3 for 4 on the day, extending his hitting streak to 10 games and raising his average to .408 for the season. The guy can rake. It’ll be interesting to see how the rest of the league pitches to Fontenot now. With DLee/Ramirez/Floyd hitting behind Fontenot, opponents simply can’t just pitch around him. I encourage pitchers to keep feeding him fastballs because I’m enjoying the Fontenot hitting clinic right now.

Billy Petric got his first major league work in, going 1.2 innings and giving up 2 runs. The baby-faced reliever looked good, except for one pitch to Garrett Atkins, who homered. Will Ohman came then came in, threw 2 pitches, and I hope embarrassingly cashes his paycheck this week. Although I’ll take 2 pitches and see him get paid for it, then throw 30 pitches, actually earn his money, and get rocked. Carlos Marmol shut the door with a clean 9th for his first save. Dempster is going to have a tough time getting his job back after watching Marmol through this season so far.

Cubs Win again, 6-4.


- Cubs continue their clutch hitting, with 4 RBI after two outs.

- A win on Friday & the Cubs will match their longest winning streak since 2005 (May 27th – June 2nd).

- Cubs/Barrett Divorce update: Cubs are 6-2 since the trade.

- Carlos Zambrano is now 4-1 since the “new season” started. He has lowered his ERA, which was once in the high 5s, to 4.20 on the season.

- Big weekend set as the first place Brewers come to town on Friday. With both teams clicking on all cylinders right now, it should be a great series.

Where to Find the Cubs Today......

TV: WGN-TV Channel 9, 1:20pm

RADIO: WGN 720

Jason Hirsh (3-6, 5.06 ERA) vs. Carlos Zambrano (8-6, 4.27 ERA; 3-1 since "New Season" started)

Jason Hirsh looks to help the Rockies avoid the sweep and also impress his father, actor Judd Hirsch. Carlos Zambrano looks to continue his recent stretch of pitching lights out, and the Cubs go for consecutive sweeps and a six game win streak.

***Judd may not really be Jason Hirsh's father, that is only speculation on our part.

(Photo courtesy of TVGuide.com)

Tuesday's 5-4-3

Orioles 3 Yankees 2 Scott proctor walked in three in the ninth, including the last batter to force in a win. Corey Patterson was three for three and scored the winning run.

Pirates 3 Marlins 2 Dontrell Willis was out dueled by Paul Maholm, seriously. Dan Uggla flexed his muscles for his 16th home run, but it wasn't enough.

Phillies 11 Reds 4 Homer Bailey didn't make it out of the second inning, and the Phillies hung an 11 spot on the Reds. Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and Shane Victorino all homered in the win.

Indians 8 A's 5 Danny Haren can't get any help. He pitched well again Tuesday night, and the A's bullpen collapsed. The Indians scored 5 runs in the ninth, including Kelly Shoppach's walk off.

Mets 5 Cards 3 Jason Isringhausen blew his second save of the year, but the Cards were able to steal the game back in extras. Brendan Ryan hit his first career home run in the 11th for the win.

Rangers 9 Tigers 6 Jim Leyland's actual post game press conference: "We didn't pitch well, we didn't field well, we it didn't hit well. Good night everybody." Summed it up perfectly.

White Sox 6 D Rays 1 Two in a row for the Sox, and suddenly they are back in the race.......yeah right. All they really did is keep pace with KC to stay out of the cellar.

Braves 6 Nats 2 Andruw Jones, welcome to the 2007 season. He homered and the Braves erupted for 6 runs. Not really a big amount unless you score one 5 runs the previous 6 games.

Twins 2 Blue Jays 1 A night after a pitcher's duel erupted into a who scores last type of game, the Twins pitching showed up. Jeff Cirillo hit a flare to shallow center field that dropped between Vernon Wells and shortstop John McDonald to snap an 0-8 and win it in extras.

Brewers 11 Astros 5 Craig Biggio collected another hit, 2997, and the Astros were cruising until they brought in the bullpen. The pen promptly gave up a 9 spot in the 6th inning that essentialy killed the Astros season. They needed a series win, now they are hoping not to get swept.

Royals 12 Angels 5 Gil Meche finally gets run support!!!!!! Really, that is the story as the Royals got to Ervin Santana and the Angels bullpen to finally help this guy out. Gill improved to 5-6, but with this group it's a decent record.

Mariners 8 Red Sox 7 Richie Sexson hit a meaningful home run for once, as he put the Mariners up for good in the 6th with his 2 run shot. The Mariners seemed to have righted the ship as they have won the first two from Boston.

Dodgers 6 DBacks 5 Tony Abreu, really? Late game situations have odd heroes sometimes, and Abreu's home run in the 10th made him one Tuesday night. The Dodgers took over first place with the win, Arizona is .5 games back.

Padres 3 Giants 2 Kevin Kouzmanoff hit his 6th home run of the year to centerfield in the 10th and gave the Padres the win after Scott Linebrink gave up the tying run in the 8th inning. trevor Hoffman keeps adding to his saves record with yet another one.

Wrigleyville is Getting Giddy; Cubs Extend Winning Streak to 5

The Cubs offense came alive again as they overcome a so-so outing by Ted Lilly to win their 5th in a row, and now 15 out of their last 23 games. The offense jumped on the Rockies early, scoring 3 in the first. The scoring in the first was highlighted by a bomb by Cliff Floyd. Whenever Cliff connects, the ball is an absolute rocket and you would have to be insane to try to catch that first inning homer without a glove if you’re sitting in the bleachers.

As usual, the Cubs got production out of Mike Fontenot, who played shortstop for the first time this season. Mike had played second base for 15 games, but with Ryan Theriot struggling to hit consistently right now and Mark DeRosa swinging the bat well, the Cubs put DeRosa at second and Fontenot at shortstop. What’s been great about Fontenot and Theriot is their willingness to play multiple positions. Theriot has played 2nd, 3rd, & short this season, with Fontenot now playing short & 2nd. With Mark DeRosa able to play 2nd, 3rd, 1st, and RF, Lou Piniella and the Cubs can mix & match their lineup any number of ways and still be effective.

But also as usual, the Cubs didn’t make it easy on the fans. With an 8-4 lead and Carlos Marmol on the hill in the 9th, the Rockies made it 8-5 on a Cory Sullivan single and actually brought the winning run to the plate with nobody out. Marmol then struck out Troy Tulowitzki & Matt Holliday before departing for Will Ohman. With Todd Helton up at the plate, Ohman only needed 2 pitches to pick up his 1st career save, getting Helton to pop out to end the game. Can we get a 10-0 win today, to at least give our blood pressure a rest today?

In other news, it looks like Jacque Jones will remain on the club for a few more days. The Marlins were in on a deal with the Cubs, but Florida wanted the Cubs to pay most of Jones remaining salary to make the deal complete. The Tribune Company wasn’t having any of that and Jones will remain on the bench until he’s finally moved. Double-A pitcher Billy Petric (who looks 11 yrs old) was brought up and Ryan Dempster was put on the 15 day DL with his oblique strain. Bob Howry is the new closer, but the Cubs will more likely use a closer by committee until Dempster’s return.

Cubs win, 8-5.


- When will teams learn not to run on Soriano? Soriano picked up his 10th outfield assist of the season when he hosed Troy Tulowitzki in the third, who was trying to turn a single into a double. Tulowitzki turned it into an out instead.

- Every Cub in the starting lineup got a hit, including batting-challenged pitcher Ted Lilly.

- After hitting a bomb in the first, Cliff Floyd was intentionally walked twice in his next two at-bats. Floyd would turn one of those walks into a run, scoring on Koyie Hill’s double in the 5th. Michael Barrett who?

- Clutch hitting has made this Cubs team look a lot better than the squad that was playing in April & May. The Cubs scored 7 of their 8 runs with 2 outs, after scoring 6 runs with 2 outs the night before.

Jacque Not Leaving After All

So the trade fell through, but reports are circulating that he'll be gone by this weekend.

He's Still Hanging Around [Chicago Sun-Times]

Monday's 5-4-3

Indians 5 A's 2 C.C. Sabbathia continues to dominate the American League as he goes the distance again. The Indians only need to get home (25-11) to cure their recent woes.

Braves 4 Nats 1 The Braves finally scored a few runs in a game, and Tim Hudson made them stand up. McCann hit his 6th home run and Tim Hudson improves to 7-5, 3.29 ERA.

Rangers 8 Tigers 4 Jeremy Bonderman hadn't lost in 17 straight starts, but he helped the Rangers with a key error in the 3rd inning. His loss stopped his streak one short of the Tiger record held by Bob Newsom.

Mets 2 Cards 1 Mike Maroth dazzled in his Cardinal debut, but it wasn't enough as the Crads failed to give him any run support. Shawn Green walked off in the 11th, and was promptly pummeled by his teammates.

Brewers 6 Astros 1 In a game the Astros had to have, they looked like a team ready to start rebuilding. Prince Fielder went deep, again, and Ben Sheets improved to 9-3, 3.09 ERA. If Sheets stays healthy, this team looks uncatchable.

Blue Jays 8 Twins 5 Roy Halladay struggled, but stayed in the game long enough to notch a win, as the Blue Jays scored 3 runs in the 8th inning. Frank Thomas was 0-3 and remains at 499 home runs.

White Sox 5 D Rays 4 Casey Fossum should not be in this league. He replaced JP Howell and promptly gave up the lead in the 6th. The Sox needed the win as Kansas City is lurking 1 1/2 games behind them.

Royals 5 Angels 3 The Royals have momentum, granted only slightly. They won for the second straight day, and are 5-5 in their last 10. Also, their young players actually seem to be strating to get it. Mark Teahan, Alex Gordon, and Ryan Shealy all had hits.

Dodgers 8 D Backs 1 Brad Penny is absolutely filthy. There isn't much else to say. He is 10-1, 2.04 ERA, and he was one of the guys they were worried about before the year. Nomar is headed to 3rd base so that James Loney can play first, as of today.

Mariners 9 Red Sox 4 Somebody check Jeff Weaver for drugs. That makes wins in two straight starts, and his ERA is down to 7.71. As for Boston, Jon Lester was not going to start for Schilling while he is on the Dl, but it may be necessary since Julian Tavarez tweaked his back on Monday night.

Giants 4 Padres 3 The Padres rallied for 3 in the 8th inning on a mIke Cameron homer, but the Giants got one right back in their half to send it to extras where they would eventually win it. Bonds didn't homer, but since the Padres are the team against which he has hit the most in his career, chances are he gets one tonight or Wednesday.

Cubs Are Bad For Your Health

The Cubs are responsible for my actions last night. The Cubs are responsible for my broken remote, they’re responsible for the hole I punched in my wall, and they’re responsible for my girlfriend’s black eye. What gives? Why can’t you just be a normal team and win games like normal teams do? The Cubs should have won 8-3 last night, but they decided to give everybody a coronary instead. They blew a decent outing by Jason Marquis, they almost made Mike Fontenot’s 5 for 5 game meaningless (3 singles, 2 doubles), and Scott Eyre & Bob Howry continued to prove they blow something fierce.

Before this all started, the Cubs played a good offensive game against Jeff Francis. One of the most noticeable differences for the Cubs since the start of this season and definitely from last season is the team speed. The Cubs were able to score twice on potential inning ending double plays, but Mark DeRosa hustled down the line twice to beat out the throw and allow the Cubs to get on the board. Mike Fontenot went 5 for 5, with 2 RBI and 2 runs scored & Angel Pagan hit a 3 run homer in the 1st inning. Jason Marquis went 5.2 innings, giving up 3 runs and striking out 5. After 8 innings, the Cubs led 8-3.

Then came the 9th.

Scott Eyre walked the first two batters, which prompted a visit from Lou Piniella. This wasn’t a pitching change meeting, it was more of a “we’re up by 5, throw strikes” meeting**. Eyre then gives up a double to Todd Helton, which plates one. Eyre is done. I’m getting nervous. Bob Howry comes in and picks up where Eyre left off. Bob, however, made it easy for the Rockies by throwing it right done the middle. Back-to-back RBI singles make it 8-6, Cubs hanging on. Nobody out still. Then came what I’m sure everybody watching or everybody at the game saw coming. Troy Tulowitzki hits a missile into the bleachers, 9-8 Rockies. There goes my remote, there goes my heart, and now there goes my liver as I’m drowning myself in beer right now.

Still nobody out. Still no Larry Rothschild to the mound. Still no Lou Piniella to the mound. So like usual, the Cubs fans have to take matters into their own hands. Some clown runs onto the field and makes his way to the mound. What was he going to do? He was obviously going to take Howry out and bring in Marmol. He wasn’t going to hurt Howry or anything like that, he was just out there to make a PITCHING CHANGE. But security didn’t see it that way. When I find it or somebody else finds it on YouTube, I’ll put it up. The “self-appointed” manager that was going to make a pitching change got absolutely crowhopped by security, and the best part is we all got to see it on tv. Normally the cameras pan away, but I’m glad they didn’t. That was a riot.

The “self-appointed” manager got his point across, as the Cubs got out of the inning.

Bottom of the 9th, Mark DeRosa reaches on a duck snort, Koyie Hill singles down the leftfield line, and then Kaz Matsui helps out the Cubs & Ryan Theriot with an error to extend the game for Alfonso Soriano. The hottest hitter in the league then rips a single into right-center and scores two, CUBS WIN! Cubs win, 10-9. WOW.

So as usual, the Cubs continue to toy with us & my girlfriend has to explain to our friends & family that she ran into the door again. Thanks Cubs.

- After the Barrett Trade Update: Cubs are 4-2 since the trade.

- Cesar "I'm Only On the Team for My Defense" Izturis made his 7th error of the season last night. Stroke.

- The Cubs had 6 RBI with 2 outs last night.


**Obviously censored

(fan getting crowhopped by security, courtesy of The Associated Press / Chicago Sun-Times)

UPDATE: (here is the video, courtesy of FanIQ)
UPDATE #2: Not sure who's voice that is announcing over Len & Bob, but he sounds like redneck White Sox or Cardinals fan. I apologize.)

Shooter is Dead?!?!?!

Rod Beck was found dead yesterday in his home in Phoenix at the age of 38. His mullet, fu man chu, and the way he waved his arm back and forth when looking in for the sign gave the former closer a terrifying look. Beck was on the Cubs for two seasons, one of which was a rare postseason appearance for the Cubs (1998).

Beck is probably most famously known for living in a Winnebago just outside of the stadium during the twilight of his career. Rod would hang out with whoever wanted to stop by for a beer after the games. He was a true character. And he was a good closer in his prime.

Rod Beck Dead at 38 [Chicago Sun-Times]

Cubs Sweep Worst Team in Baseball

The theme throughout this latest Cubs/Sox series was great pitching, great fielding, and timely hitting. For the White Sox, they had two out of three. For the Cubs, they covered all three.

The Cubs held the White Sox to 2 runs for the entire weekend, sweeping the southsiders at US Cellular Field for the very first time at that ball park. Alfonso Soriano, who Hawk Harrelson has dubbed numerous times as the worst free agent signing in the history of the game, had a huge series against the Sox. Soriano, who led off Friday & Saturday’s games with bombs, hit another bomb on Sunday in the 7th inning. His homer in the 7th put the Cubs up 2-0, essentially putting the game well out of reach for the absolutely pathetic White Sox offense. Sean Marshall, Carlos Marmol, Will Ohman, and Bob Howry combined for a 7 hit shutout. Sean Marshall recovered from a poor outing against Texas and lowered his ERA to 2.44 on the season in 7 starts.

The game, as usual with the Cubs & Sox, had an unusual play that nobody has ever really seen before. Angel Pagan, who was trying to advance to third on a DeRosa hit to the wall, ran into Juan Uribe who was inexplicably standing on the bag at the time. He was literally just standing on the ball. This is where the unusual rule comes into play. Ed Rapuano, 2nd base umpire, calls obstruction on Uribe. The play, however, is not dead. Instead, in what can only be compared to a defensive offside in football or a penalty in hockey in which the offenders have not touched the puck yet, the Cubs basically have a free play. Now I got stuck having to listen to Hawk & DJ at a southside bar yesterday, so I didn’t get any of this info at the time. Instead, we got to hear Hawk and DJ make absolute assholes of themselves by going on and on and on and on about how “BS” this was that the Cubs were going to get the bases loaded and nobody out, instead of 1 on and 2 out. These are two guys who both played baseball at the major league level. All they did with their rants was continue to prove that they are homer douchebags that don’t have a clue what they’re talking about up there. And the funny thing about the whole “controversy,” it didn’t make a damn bit of difference because the Sox weren’t going to score a run anyways, and the score was 2-0 at the time. I was hoping and hoping that the Sox were able to score 2 runs in the ninth, so that the Cubs would win 3-2, just to piss off Hawk even more. Get over yourself Hawk, Sox blow. Cubs win 3-0 & SWEEP the Sox.

- Alfonso Soriano absolutely hosed Luis Terrero at the plate in the 5th inning. Koyie Hill made a great catch on a tough hop and was still able to block the plate. It’s tough to think that Michael Barrett would have made that play.

- Kenny Williams, GM of the White Sox, said on Sunday that changes were going to be made on his roster. This should kill the rumor of Jacque Jones going to the white sox, as it looks as if the Sox will blow up their roster and start over. You don’t start over with Jacque Jones, unless Kenny and his mustache are that dumb.

- Cubs begin a tough week, playing the hot Rockies and then the 1st place Milwaukee Brewers.

Sunday's 5-4-3....

Twins 7 Marlins 4 Joe Mauer homers twice and Johan Santana pitches like an ace. Justin Morneau should be rejoinging the team near the end of the week after Friday night's collision.

Blue Jays 5 Rockies 0 The Rockies were swept in Canada and that even the worst of it. The were nearly no hit by Dustin McGowan Sunday, with their lone hit coming in the ninth. McGowan still got his first complete game and shutout.

Mets 10 A's 2 The Mets sweep a series at home for the first time since 2006. John Maine continues to be a stable arm in the rotation.

Nats 3 Indians 1 The Indians could not wait to get back home after Sunday's game after they lost two of three to the Nats. They should have lost Saturday night, but the rally saved the embarrasement of being swept.

D Rays 9 Dodgers 4 The Dodgers fell to 5-10 in interleague play with a series loss to Tampa Bay. Edwin Jackson finally picked up a win for TB, his first of the year.

Royals 4 Brewers 3 Tony Graffinino homered to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, you read that right. The Royals though, fought it out and were able to recue the win in the 11th.

Phillies 5 Cards 1 The Phillies scored 5 times after a rain delay and managed to steal a win away from the Cardinals. The reason for the Cards problems after the delay are probably linked to LaRussa's mid game drinks.

Angels 4 Pirates 3 You have to give it to the Pirates, they really do go down fighting. Two of the three games in Anaheim went to extras, too bad they lost all three anyway.

Mariners 3 Reds 2 Griffey Jr. continues to help the Reds by homering twice. yes, I know they lost, but his trade value continues to rise each day.

Red Sox 4 Padres 2 Jake Peavy was roughed up in only 5 innings in this "Battle of Aces." Josh Beckett is the first pitcher to 11 wins.

Giants 7 Yankees 2 Barry Bonds steals a base and doesn't homer and the Giants win. Clemens picthes in relief, but it was his side session day. When he does this as much as Miguel Bautista, then I'll be impressed.

DBacks 8 Orioles 3 The Orioles lost Sunday, but their trip West wasn't a failure. They went 4-2, broke a 9 game skid, and fired a manager. Ok, so maybe it was a wash.

Astros 12 Rangers 9 Craig Biggio is now 4 hits from being a platoon player. Also, Hunter Pence is running away with the NL Rookie of the Year, he homered again.

Tigers 5 Braves 0 The Braves get shutout again. Four times in five games, and now they are tumbling in the NL East. The Tigers showed why they have the best offense in baseball all weekend, but their pitching isn't half bad either.

Cubs Win, Clinch Season Series

All it took was getting into the White Sox bullpen, and for the second day in a row the Cubs pulled out a win. Ryan Theriot laid down a perfect squeeze bunt to bring home the go ahead run against Bobby Jenks in the ninth inning for the win.

The game was a pitchers duel all the way as Javier Vasquez and Rich Hill battled for most of the afternoon. The only runs before the bunt both came in the first inning as Soriano homered, and Scott Podsednik manufactured a run with a single, stolen base, and RBI groundout.

Most of the excitement came after Ozzie was forced to go to Jenks in the eight inning. After getting out of small jam, Jenks came back out for the ninth inning. After a Cliff Floyd singled, Angel Pagan pinch ran for him. Then Daryle Ward was able to stroke a liner into the gap to get Pagan to third, setting the stage for The Riot. After swinging away on the first pitch, Theriot laid down a beauty on cutter heading in on his hands to score Pagan.

- Jacque Jones did not play, and is still rumored to be traded. All I can say is I hope so.

- Mark DeRosa was a late scratch because of a reaction to the medication he is taking for migraine blindness he has been experiencing. That allowed Theriot to crack the lineup despite being 0-16.

- Carlos Marmol pitched another good inning Saturday and lowered his ERA to 0.96. If he continues at this pace, he'll be the closer before you know it.

- A funny line overheard from Jake Peavy about Michael Barrett's run in with AJ last year: "So he got into a fight with AJ. Who doesn't want to fight that guy?"

Saturday's 5-4-3

Cards 8 - Phillies 3: Phillies end 6 game winning streak with loss. Chris Duncan & Juan Encarnacion had 3 RBI a piece. Tony LaRussa then probably got drunk. Probably drove.

Blue Jays 11 - Rockies 6: Frank "The Big Skirt" Thomas hit his 498th career homer.

Rangers 7 - Astros 2: Texas claims the "Silver Boot Trophy," as they have clinched a season series victory over Houston. Silver Boot? What is this, college football?

Tigers 2 - Braves 1: Verlander is unhittable right now & Bobby Cox tied the all-time ejections mark by getting booted from the game.

Giants 6 - Yankees 5: Bonds doesn't homer, Giants win. ARod blasts a homer in the 9th to tie the game, but the Giants scrape a run across in the 13th for the victory.

Indians 4 - Nationals 3: Nats blow 3-1 in 9th, lose as usual.

Twins 11 - Marlins 1: The Marlins apparently had some sort of german shepard pitching, as they get completely blown out by the Twins.

Brewers 7 - Royals 1: Cubs can't gain any ground as the Brewers beat the Royals again.

DRays 4 - Dodgers 3: Dioner Navarro hit a homer in the 7th to give the DRays a victory over the Dodgers. It was his first homer in awhile, going 216 at-bats without one.

Mets 1- A's 0: Paul Lo Duca was thrown out of this game and Lo Duca proceeded to throw his catcher's equipment onto the field. Enjoy your suspension.

Angels 10 - Pirates 1: Angels score early & often. Vlad hit his 14th homer of the season.

DBacks 7 - Orioles 4: Eric Byrnes hit a homer that's estimated at 467 feet. Test him. Now.

Padres 6 - Red Sox 1: Sickly looking she-male Khalil Greene hit two homers.

Mariners 9 - Reds 1: Raul Ibanez hit a grand slam & Richie Sexson hit two solo homers in an easy win over the Reds.

Where To Find The CUBS Today...

TV: Comcast Sports Network - 12PM

RADIO: WGN 720

Rich Hill (5-5; 3.22 ERA) vs.
Javier Vazquez (3-5; 4.35 ERA)

With a win, the Cubs will wrap up a season series victory over the Sox. Hopefully the rain holds up to let them play.

Go Cubs!

Zambrano Dominates, Cubs Take Opener

Carlos Zambrano, pitched so well against the White Sox Friday, and since his "new season" began a few weeks ago, that you have to wonder where this guy was all year. He dominated. It almost looked like a man among boys.

The Cubs jumped out of the gate right away as Alfonso Soriano battled Mark Buerhle with an at bat that would make any lead-off hitter proud. Pitch after pitch he battled until he finally launched a ball that landed 5-6 rows short of the walk way behind the bleachers. A few batters later Aramis Ramirez showed why the Cubs missed his bat while he was on the DL, as he launched another solo home run to right.

That was what Zambrano needed. He hit the mound with a lead, and pitched like those two runs would be enough. Zambrano's line (8IP, 3H, 1ER, 1BB, 12K) was impressive, but doesn't tell the whole story. He struck out 7 of the first 9 he faced, and the lone run was a Paul Konerko solo shot in the 7th inning.

Mark Buerhle pitched well only giving up the two solo shots in the first, in seven innings. The Cubs added three runs in the 9th inning on singles by Ramirez and Felix Pie, and Ryan Dempster came in to nail it down even though it was not a save situation at after the runs scored.

- Ramirez came back of the DL, but is easing back into the game by being the DH all weekend.

- Jacque Jones pinch ran for Ramirez in the 9th inning as a precaution. Lou is finally realizing that Jones only needs to get into the game when not hitting or fielding at all.

- Any AL team hoping Zambrano becomes a free agent should not bother. Carlos let it be known he was very disappointed he was unable to bat due to the DH.

- Soriano's home run Friday gave him 13 HR and 26 RBIs. Typical of a lead off hitter, but the Cubs might be better served getting some guys on base ahead of him.

Friday's 5-4-3

Phillies 6 - Cardinals 0: Anthony Reyes is now 0-9. Maybe now he'll bend the brim of his cap. Tool.

Marlins 5 - Twins 4: Justin Morneau left the game after spitting up blood following a play at the plate where he ran into Miguel Olivo. It looked like it hurt a little bit.

Nats 4 - Indians 1: Brandon Watson, who had a 43 game hitting streak in the minors, went 2 for 4 for the big club and led Washington to a rare victory.

Blue Jays 9 - Rockies 8: Brian Fuentes blows a save, a day after I make the comment that the Rockies pitching has done really well this season.

Mets 9 - A's 1: Tom Glavine picks up his 296th victory in a Met's romp.

Dodgers 6 - Devil Rays 3: Elijah Dukes was designated for assignment. If you live in the Tampa area, please don't walk around alone at night. Dukes is one crazy ass man.

Tigers 5 - Braves 0: Kenny Rogers throws a gem in his first game back off the DL. Did anyone check his hand for pinetar?

Brewers 11 - Royals 6: The Brewers continue to win. Cut it out already. Let's get real. You're Milwaukee. You're getting bullshit career years out of guys like Corey "I Wear My Sunglasses At Night" Hart.

Rangers 11 - Astros 3: Sosa hits number 601 in a Rangers victory.

Orioles 7 - DBacks 1: Miguel Tejada ends his consecutive games streak after fracturing his wrist a couple days ago.

Angels 5 - Pirates 4: Pirates blow 3-0 lead, lose in extras, continue to suck something fierce.

Reds 16 - Mariners 1: Junior returns to Seattle and his team puts on an offensive clinic. Aaron Harang picks up win #8.

Red Sox 2 - Padres 1: Matsuzaka outduels Greg Maddux. Michael Barrett went 2-4 (RBI).

Yankees 7 - Giants 3: Usual line out of San Fran: Barry Homers, Giants lose. Barry hit no. 749.

Jacque Strap Going To The White Sox???

If Jacque Jones is traded to the White Sox, this season will be considered a successful. Rumors are circulating that the Cubs are shopping Jones & apparently the Sox are interested. With Darin Erstad getting injured once again on Friday, the Sox will need another outfielder. The Sox young guys haven't produced when on the big club (Owens, Sweeney, Anderson) and Jones could be an option. I don't see this happening, however, because Jones still has another year left on his contract and it looks like the Sox could be opening up shop on the squad. Kenny Williams has some decisions to make and if he decides to blow up the team, he won't want Jacque Jones around.

Jones on the move? [Chicago Sun-Times]

Where to Find the Cubs Today....

TV: WGN (Len & Bob) or Comcast Sportsnet (Hawk & DJ) 3:05 pm

RADIO: WGN 720 (Pat & Ron) or WSCR 670 (Who Cares)

Carlos Zambrano (7-6, 4.53 ERA) vs. Mark Buerhle (4-3, 3.45 ERA)

The Cubs begin their weekend trip into the hillcountry today. Not suprisingly, the weekend will bring the wide array of trash talk from both sides of tow. However, at least most Cubs fans can say this is the only "Cell" they have ever visited. Enjoy.

(Photo courtesy of White Sox Public Relations Department)

News You Already Know: Cubs Fans Drink A Lot

When you sell out almost every game, have a ballpark in an area of the city that's mostly 21-40 year old people, and have the most famous bleachers of any park in the world, it's not really going to be a surprise to find out that Cubs fans drink a lot. A study has found that Wrigley Field has the highest per capita sales of any stadium in Major League Baseball. It's said that this is the case because of the beer sales that go on at Wrigley. Wrigley isn't called the "World's Largest Beergarden" for nothing.

Hey, the Cubs are #1 at something!

http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/439101,CST-NWS-ballfood22.article

Rangers Solve Cubs, Take Series

Squandered opportunities. It’s a common phrase coming out of the Cubs dugout lately, and Lou Piniella is not happy about it. The Cubs managed 13 hits Thursday, but managed only 5 runs against the Rangers as they stranded 13 runners on base in the series finale.

The struggles began when the Cubs loaded the bases in the 2nd inning with nobody out. Theriot hit a fly ball that wasn’t deep enough, Soriano popped out, and Fontenot flied out to end the inning. The Cubs would then proceed to leave two on in the 3rd, two in the 6th, two in the 7th, innings in which they had opportunities to score.

Ted Lilly also struggled, giving up 5 runs in seven innings. The damage was done on back to back home runs in the 2nd inning and an RBI single in the third. From there, Lilly was able to settle down somewhat and keep the Cubs in the game until the offense brought them all the way back. Bob Howry was unable to keep the offense in check though, as he gave up three hits in 1 1/3 innings, including the game winner to Frank Catalanotto.

- The Cubs fell to 5-4 in interleague play this year with the Crosstown Series this weekend remaining.

- Sean Gallagher was optioned back to Triple-A to make room for Aramis Ramirez. Ramirez was on the DL and is to be activated before Friday’s game.

- Rob Bowen made his first start as a Cub, going 1-3, 2BB 1 RBI. Also, Daryl Ward returned to the line up playing first base while Derek Lee was the DH.

- The Cubs fell to 7 games under .500 with the loss. If the Cubs were ever to get on a hot streak, now is the time. The Cubs play 9 of their 16 games before the All Star Break in Chicago, with a trip to Pittsburgh and Washington the only games outside the Windy City.

(Photo courtesy shereejwilson.com)

Thursday's 5-4-3

Rockies 4 – Yankees 3: Here come the Rockies? The former Blake Street Bombers suddenly have a pitching staff. The Rocks are a major league best 20-7 since May 22nd and are only 3.5 games out of the NL West. Rockies’ Closer Brian Fuentes picked up his 20th save. Roger Clemens was denied his 350th victory.

Orioles 6 – Padres 3: Miguel Tejada, suffering from a wrist problem, batted in the first inning and just bunted to get his at-bat over and quickly get into the dugout. This allowed him, since he started and batted, to extend his consecutive games streak. Should this count? Shouldn’t he have to play 5 innings??? I think this is a bush league way of extending the streak. Also, in his first game with the Padres, Michael Barrett went 0 for 4 (3 strikeouts).

Dodgers 8 – Blue Jays 4: Jeff Kent and his powerful redneck mustache propel the Dodgers to win in Toronto. Russell Martin, who was born in Toronto, hit a bases clearing double in the 8th to rally LA.

Mariners 3 – Pirates 0: Felix Hernandez struck out 9 and Pittsburgh was shutout for the 8th time this season. Ichiro extended his hitting streak to 16, and he’s gotten at least one hit in 41 out of his last 43 games. He’s pretty good.

600? Really?

What was your reaction? Rangers fans gave him a standing ovation; Cubs fans more than likely booed and not just because it was hit against them; baseball fans as a whole ignored the accomplishment, and probably brought up steroids Those were a few of the choices baseball fans had on Wednesday as Sammy Sosa hit his 600th home run against the Cubs, the team that was apart of for the majority of his career.

Six hundred. Whether you write it out or just say it, that number looms huge in baseball lore. Only five people can ever say that they have hit 600 or more home runs (although that list figures to grow with the likes of Ken Griffey, Jr., Alex Rodriguez, possibly Albert Pujols down the road) and on Wednesday night Sosa became the second consecutive guy to join who has a giant cloud over his head. The gentleman before him was obviously Barry Bonds, and we all know how that has injected steroids into every baseball conversation.

There is a problem with steroids being apart of Sammy Sosa’s run at a 600th home run though. Despite all the speculation and all the rumors he has never been clearly linked to the drugs. Bonds has BALCO, Mark McGwire has Adnro, even Jason Giambi has admitted to a Grand Jury that he used Human Growth Hormone. Sosa, though has a corked bat and his sudden inability to speak English.

The suspicion has been there with Sosa since the Home Run chase with Mark McGwire in 1998 that brought baseball back to the forefront of the sports world. However, no one was willing to talk about it. That show of power by the two sluggers captured America and made baseball relevant after the strike of 1994. Baseball was being watched again, talked about again, and attendance began to climb.

Fast forward to the BALCO grand jury in 2003, and the involvement of Jason Giambi and Barry Bonds. Then there was the hearing on Capital Hill that had Sosa not speaking except through a lawyer, McGwire not wanting to “talk about the past,” Rafael Palmero who would eventually be suspended for taking steroids after the implementation of a new Steroid Policy by MLB. All of this fueled the speculation that not only was steroids a problem in the nineties, but that it was rampant.

The problem for Sosa is, without a shred of evidence, his milestone event, an event that has only happened four times before in history, has been trivialized. The other problem is Sosa himself, and his me first attitude. He was offered a major league guaranteed contract with Washington in 2006, said the money wasn’t enough and went back to the Dominican Republic. However, he returned this year to Texas because of the whispers he wasn’t Hall of Fame worthy, and make no mistake that is why he returned.

Sosa was the Cubs franchise for so long, and he was the face of baseball. On Wednesday night though, a night in which MLB announced Jason Giambi would be the first player to cooperate with Senator Mitchell’s steroid investigation, Sammy was a side note, an after thought. There will always be a speculation, “Did he or didn’t he?“ Regardless, he accomplished something children dream of doing from the time they realize how to swing a bat. Did you cheer, boo, bring up steroids, or maybe you didn‘t even notice?

Where To Find the Cubs Today..

TV: Comcast Sports Net, 1:05PM

RADIO: WGN 720

Theodore Lilly (5-4, 3.69 ERA) vs. Vincente Padilla (3-8, 6.57 ERA)

The Human Rain Delay is Steve Trachsel, but the Cubs face Vincente Padilla today, who is just as bad. Hopefully they can wait patiently in the 90 Degree heat, and win yet another series.

Sosa Hits # 600

Sammy Sosa joined an exclusive club Wednesday night, hitting his 600th career homer. Sosa joins Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth, and Willie Mays as the only players to ever hit at least 600 homers. Something like this would normally be bigger deal, but with the cloud of steroid suspicion forever over Sammy’s head, the night just didn’t have the same feeling as Ripken breaking Gehrig’s game streak or Mark McGwire hitting #62. If Sosa never did steroids, it’s a shame last night wasn’t a big deal. If he did, then the lack of enthusiasm is justified. Either way, 600 is a lot of homers. Congrats to Sammy.


In game 1 without Michael Barrett, the Cubs continued their sloppy play defensively and made 3 errors. The Cubs errors led to 2 unearned runs. The only bright spots of the game were Alfonso Soriano going 3 for 4 (solo homer) & Koyie Hill getting his first homer as a Cub, a two-run shot in the 7th. For Soriano, that homer was his 10th solo homer (12 homers total) of the season. A change needs to be made to get him more at-bats with runners on. Other those homers, the Cubs couldn’t get anything done offensively against lanky Kameron Loe. Hopefully the Cubs can get it together today and win the series. Cubs lose, 7-3.

- Jacque Jones went 0 for 3, with 2 strikeouts. He left 3 guys on base. He’s now batting .234 for the season. Stay hot, Jacque.

- Mark DeRosa left the game with blurred vision. Coincidence that he had “blurred vision” when he made that nice error? I guess we can give him the benefit of the doubt.

- Felix Pie continues to struggle, going 0 for 4 and now has a batting average of .237 for the season.

- When the sure-handed Derrek Lee makes an error, it’s just not your night. It was his first error of the season.

Wednesday's 5-4-3

Marlins 5 White Sox 4 Ozzie actually is not at fauklt here. He went to Jenks early, but he hasn't had consistent work. however, when you give up a home run to a journeyman, you deserve to lose.

Brewers 7 Giants 5 Bonds (o-1) pinch hit, but that wasn't enough. The brewers get a sweep, and the Giants have lost 6 straight.

A's 5 Reds 3 Danny Haren (9-2, 1.78 ERA) gave up three runs, but his offense managed to help him out for once. Jack Cust and Shannon Stewart homered.

D Backs 7 D Rays 4 James Shields drops his second straight start, and the Diamondbacks win the last two games to take the series from Tampa.

Tigers 8 Nats 4 The Nats were absolutely the happiest people in D.C. to see the Tigers leave. They were pounded again, for the third straight day.

Indians 10 Phillies 6 Eight runs in one inning? I know things snowball, but you can't be a good team when you can't stop the bleeding.

Blue Jays 12 Dodgers 1 Frank Thomas and Matt Stairs each homered, and then Roy Halladay showed why he is/was the second best pitcher in the AL (J. Santana) for the last few years.

Twins 6 Mets 2 Tori Hunter is setting up his next contract as he homered yet again. The Mets on the other hand are looking to keep everyone in the NL East thinking they have a shot. They have now lost 4-14 in June.

Red Sox 11 Braves 0 Julian Tavarez pitched stellar. Big Papi, Manny, Coco Crisp, JD Drew, and Eric Hinske all went yard.

Cards 7 Royals 6 Whoever this Ryan Ludwick character is, he is pretty good. He homered again in the 14th to give the Cardinals a win. Kip Wells was forced into action late for the win, as LaRussa drunkenly used all his pitchers earlier.

Angels 8 Astros 4 The Astros should be contending in the division, but their bullpen blew yet another lead. Brad Lidge is headed to the DL.

Mariners 7 Pirates 0 Jeff Weaver finally got a win.......I'm speechless.

Orioles 7 Padres 1 The Orioles got a win! The Orioles got a win! Still not enough to entice Joe Girardi.

Barrett Traded!

The Cubs have officially sent Michael Barrett, and cash to cover some of his salary, to the San Diego Padres for back up catcher Rob Bowen and minor league OF Kyler Burke (currently hitting .211 BA at A-ball). MLB had to approve the deal because it was over a million dollars.

The Cubs believe that Koyie Hill can be an everyday catcher with the way he has been handling the pitching staff of late. Also, they believed that eventhough Barrett was putting up decent power numbers, that a change was needed in light of the recent flare ups with Carlos Zambrano and Rich Hill.

This seems like a bad deal all around for the Cubs since they lose some pop in the order, and are now essentially carrying only defensive catchers. Barrett was to be a free agent at the end of the year, but in the NL Central the Cubs would have been better off keeping Barrett's bat in the line up as long as possible. Also, it was well known that the Cubs management were getting fed up with his base running snafus and defense that was in a steep decline from past seasons.

As a Cubs fan you can only hope that this is just a first step in Jim Hendry's plan to get the Cubs better in a bad division. There is no way the Cubs can carry J. Jones, Cesar Izturis, and two defensive catchers and expect to win. The bullpen may need another arm or two, and the outfield situation (good bye Jacque) needs to also be tweaked, so hopefully Hendry is just beginning. If not, Hendry will be looking for another job, and Cubs fans will be wondering how they could let a winnable division slip away.

Lee’s Got Your Suspension Right Here

Derrek Lee’s decision to appeal his suspension has helped the Cubs win so far. Lee went 2 for 5, with the game winning RBI double in the 6th inning off of some clown named Joaquin Benoit. However, Lee’s suspension appeal ruling is looming and it looks like Lee will most likely have to sit out against the White Sox this weekend. Aramis will be back for the series, but I’m sure rust will be an issue. Although with the way the Sox bullpen throws, Aramis should have no problem getting back into mid-season form.

The main story of the night was the bullpen. Sean Marshall pitched 4+ innings, giving up 3 homers and 4 runs total. Marshall was not sharp like his previous 5 starts. Turning to the bullpen for some much needed support, Carlos Marmol, Bob Howry, and Ryan Dempster combined for a 5 inning perfect stint, striking out a combined 9 hitters. All 3 were throwing easy gas and the Rangers’ hitters had no chance. The most impressive performance was Carlos Marmol. Marmol went 3 innings, striking out 5. He’s looking like a mainstay in that ‘pen for quite awhile, and he’s without a doubt the Cubs’ closer of the future. Cubs win, 5-4.

- Could Jacque Jones finally become a team player? No way, but last night was a start as he successfully put down a sacrifice bunt for what was probably the first time in his career.

- Ryan Dempster picked up his 16th save last night, striking out all 3 hitters he faced. If he keeps this up, I guess I’ll have to stop calling him Ryan Dumpster.

- Sammy Sosa went 0 for 4 (3 k’s) in his first game against the Cubs. Sammy certainly never gets cheated, as he swung as hard as he could to try and get homer # 600. “I’m an aggressive guy. I’m not a guy that’s going to go out there and swing like a girl.” It's 2007, Sammy. There are plenty of girls who could have made better swings than you last night. Take Khalil Greene for instance.

- Mike Fontenot went 2 for 3 and scored twice. His batting average is now at .378 for the season.

- Several players made comments that there were more Cubs fans at the game then Rangers fans. It’s really no surprise because who would actually admit to being a Ranger fan? Are there any actual Rangers fans out there??

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Tuesday's 5-4-3

Phillies 9 Indians 6 Ryan Howard goes yard, and the Phillies try to stay some what hot.

Tigers 15 Nats 1 The Tigers looked themselves in the mirror and realized they were playing the Nationals on Tuesday. Needless to say, the bats woke up quickly.

Dodgers 10 Blue Jays 1 Brad Penny looks good even in Canada. Penny improved to 9-1 with a 2.12 ERA. Russell Martin also continues to show why he should be an All-Star.

Twins 9 Mets 0 Vintage Johan Santana. Mets continue to have a June Swoon, although they lead the NL East.

Red Sox 4 Braves 0 The Red Sox snag the second game of the battle of "Boston" teams. Tim Hudson was pretty good, Josh Beckett was just better.

Marlins 7 White Sox 5 The sox manage four in the first to pick up John Danks after he gave up three. Then the D-Train leaves with arm stiffness. Dan Uggla recues a win though. Seriously. how big are those arms?

Brewers 6 Giants 2 Everytime the Giants seem to rebound they lose a few games, 5 in a row actually. Ben Sheets is looking like a pitcher the Brewers always thought h would be, till he injures himself in the send half.

Astros 9 Angels 5 Hunter Pence is ridiculous. Seriously, three more hits last night.

Cards 5 Royals 1 The Cards picked up Tomo Ohka on waivers before the game. Moves like that drive a manager to drink.

Pirates 5 Mariners 3 Tom Gorzelanny improves to 7-4, 3.01 ERA. If it wasn't for Hunter Pence he may be talked about as Rookie of the Year.

Rockies 3 Yankees 1 Four runs?? A Yankee team on a roll, and all they could manage was 1 run in hitter friendly Coors? Boston just went out and bought a humidor.

Reds 5 A's 2 Homer Baily is looking as good as advertised, and Griffey, Jr. is looking like a guy hoping to get traded to a contender. All of the sudden he has 19 HRs and it is still the middle of June.

Padres 12 Orioles 6 The Human Rain Delay (Steve Trachsel) couldn't stop the slide. The Orioles have now lost 9 in a row. Joe Girardi please stay away, for your sanity.

D Backs 10 D Rays 8 Chris Young hit another walk off home run, and the Diamondbacks become the last team in MLB to beat the Devil Rays. They were 0-7 previous. The Big Unit hits the shelf with a herniated disc, but might return next week to pitch through it. That is how winnable the NL West might be this year.

Where to Find the CUBS Tonight

TV: Comcast Sports Net, 7:35 PM

RADIO: WGN 720

Sean Marshall (3-2, 2.12 ERA) vs.
Robinson Tejeda (5-7, 6.49 ERA)

The Cubs finally get a shot a Sammy Sosa. Despite the bad blood that has existed since his departure, I wouldn't be suprised to see a lovefest in Texas though. Sosa goes for home run 600, while the Cubs try to get a few wins against the worst team in the American League.

(Photo Courtesy of Action Images / Jessica Rinaldi)

Monday's 5-4-3

Indians 10 Phillies 1 Ryan Howard homered, but that was all the Phillies could muster against Cliff Lee. That's right, Cliff Lee gave up one run.

Braves 9 Red Sox 4 Curt Shilling just doesn't look right since his near no-no. He couldn't throw a fastball over 88 MPH.

Tigers 9 Nats 8 Todd Jones said that his job was to come in with the lead, and end the game with the lead. Well, Todd you gave up 3 runs to the Nationals and nearly blew a save, again. Look for Detroit to inquuire about Eric Gagne.

Mets 8 Twins 1 The Twins seem to be a team that could play well in the NL with their style of play, but with John Maine getting a good start for once, they had no shot.

Brewers 5 Giants 4 Prince Fielder is ridiculous. He homered yet again, and the Brew Crew are rolling once again.

Royals 5 Cards 3 Adam Wainwright pitched stellar against KC last time out, but of course this time he didn't. Edmonds and Eckstein to the DL, again.

White Sox 10 Marlins 6 Jim Thome homers and the Sox finally win a game. Jermaine Dye left with an injured quad, which will hurt his trade value if it is serious.

D Rays 10 D Backs 2 The Diamondbacks have never beaten the Devil Rays in seven tries. It continued last night, but I doubt it lasts through this series.

A's 6 Reds 1 Kyle Loshe pitched for Cincy. Not much to say beyond him still being in a pitching rotation.

Angels 10 Astros 9 Chone Figgins was 6-6 including a game winning triple in the ninth. It's not a good way to start a road trip for the Astros when you blow a 9-4 lead with three innings to go.

DLee Gets 5 Games For Fight

Once again, Major League Baseball screws up. Despite throwing the first "punch," Derrek Lee did not start that fight on Saturday. Chris Young is responsible for the start of that fight and Chris Young should be suspended for 10 games, if Derrek Lee is getting 5 games. 10 games for a starting pitcher is actually 2 starts, so the numbers are always a little skewed in these terms. (5 position games = 1 pitching start). By suspending both for the same amount, MLB is saying that both players are equally responsible for saturday's fight. All we have to say is Bull-fucking-shit. Chris Young hit Lee with intent. It was no accident. Young had a no hitter at the time and was absolutely dealing. And all Cubs fans (and all Cubs players) are getting sick and tired of major league baseball letting Cubs opponents do whatever they want. And what's it all for? Are the Cubs players talking trash? Do the Cubs play dirty on the field? No. It's all about Soriano hitting bombs off opponents. It's all about MLB teams having to deal with a Cubs team that might actually be good now. And with the Cubs fighting back, it's all about the Cubs not being the lovable losers that roll over when they get pushed around. But Major League Baseball won't let them fight back and this garbage is getting old. Teams around the league can now see as long as you start the fight, you can get away with it because the team you're fighting CAN'T FIGHT BACK. It's a joke.

Lee is appealing the suspension, giving the Cubs a break until Ramirez returns on Friday. When Aramis returns, Lee will most likely begin serving his sentence.

Vote Early, Vote Often

Vote, vote, vote, and then vote some more. With more and more teams getting into fights because of Soriano's "antics" (see: non-stop dongwork), let's make sure he's in the starting outfield at the All-Star game.

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2007/index.jsp

Hill Pitches Batting Practice, Cubs Get Throttled

To say that Rich Hill didn’t have his best stuff would be an understatement. For 3 innings, it seemed like Rich Hill was yelling out to the Padres’ hitter what was coming before he threw it. Mike Cameron hit two homers off Hill & Adrian Gonzalez added another as the Padres romped on Sunday afternoon. I would have to agree with Bob Brenly, who mentioned several times that Hill may have been tipping his pitches, because every thing hit off of Hill was a rocket. The hits & outs were crushed and Lou Piniella had no choice but to take Hill out after 3 innings. Sean Gallagher then came in and picked up where Hill left off, giving up a homerun to the sickly looking Khalil Greene. That dude needs to eat once in awhile. I can’t see Gallagher staying on the roster too much longer, as a trip back to Iowa is probably best for the Cubs and for the struggling Gallagher (9.53 ERA).

As for the hitting, Greg Maddux carved the Cubs up, giving up 3 runs in 6 innings. Jacque “King of the Meaningless Hits” Jones went 2 for 4 with an RBI. I say meaningless because his RBI came when the score was 9-2, Padres up big. If the Padres were up 3-2, Jones would have whiffed on 3 pitches. The Cubs never got anything going and lose big, 11-3.

- Clay Rapada was sent down to Iowa after Sunday’s game to make room for Daryle Ward. Daryle Ward will see some significant playing time when he returns because Derrek Lee will most like be suspended today. If you don’t remember which one Daryle Ward is, he’s the fat dude.

- The Cubs have an off day today before heading to Texas for a 3 game set against the Rangers starting on Tuesday. Ranger’s DH Sammy Sosa’s next homerun will give him 600 for his career.

(picture courtesy of the Associated Press)

Sunday's 5-4-3

Indians 5 Braves 3 The Braves tried to rally late off of the Cleveland bullpen, but Joe Borowski help tough.

Rangers 11 Reds 4 Adam Dunn hit two home runs, but that wasn't enough for the Reds to pull out a win. The Rangers are now 1/2 game back of Cincy to get out of MLB's cellar.

Nats 4 Blue Jays 2 In what would have been the battle of Canada a few years ago, the Nats avoided the sweep on Sunday. Frank Thomas passes Edgar Martinez for most HRs by a DH.

Tigers 7 Phillies 4 Verlander gave up a hit, and a few runs, a start after his no hitter, but was good enough to win. The Philly bullpen blew yet another lead after Adam Eaton went 6 1/3.

Pirates 8 White Sox 7 The Pirates scored 7 runs with two outs in the game. The White Sox ended 6 game trip at 1-5, and have lost 17 of 21.

D Backs 6 Orioles 4 Brandon Webb wins yet again as Arizona sweeps Baltimore. The Orioles have now lost 8 in a row.

Red Sox 9 Giants 5 Bonds creeps closer to Hank Aaron, but the Giants get swept.

Astros 10 Mariners 3 Seattle loses for the fifth straight time after a five game win streak. Craig Biggio didn't play and remains 12 hits from 3,000.

Royals 5 Marlins 4 The Marlins are in a tough decision and can't afford to drop games like these.

Twins 10 Brewers 9 Joe Nathan picks up a cheap win after blowing a save in the 9th. Prince Fielderhit an inside the park home run on a ball that Lew Ford lost in the Metrodome ceiling.

D Rays 7 Rockies 4 Scott Kazmir settled down after giving up three early runs, and the D Rays were able to squeak out a win late.

Cards 10 A's 6 Who in the hell is Ryan Ludwick? He had 5 RBIs for the Cards as they managed to steal a series from Oakland on LaRussa's return to his old stomping grounds.

Angels 10 Dodgers 4 I still don't get how this is a battle of Los Angles. The Angels will always play in Anahiem.

Yankees 8 Mets 2 Arod goes yard again, and the Yankees prove to be the hotter New York team at the moment. Thankfully, the rest of the country won't be forced to watch this until next year.

Where To Find the CUBS Today...

TV: WGN - 1:20PM

RADIO: WGN 720

Richard Hill (5-4, 2.81 ERA) vs.
Greg Maddux (5-3, 3.86 ERA)

Same story as last sunday... Somebody on the Padres needs to get hit in the face with a pitch today. It's only fair. But the umpires will botch this as usual. So the only solution for the Cubs is to put up 20 on the Padres today. And Soriano needs to homer and literally walk around the bases. If you get mad at Soriano for watching his home run, DON'T GIVE UP A HOMERUN!

Nine Round KO Goes To Padres

Saturday may have been the ugliest one run loss the Cubs have suffered all year long. On a day when Carlos Zambrano's no hit bid should have been the story everyone is talking about, the Cubs were once again subjected to answering questions about why they would rather hit others, instead of the ball.

The fisticuffs were sparked by two of the most reserved guys, according to many of the players on their respective teams, when Chris Young's pitched tailed in and plunked Derek Lee on his left hand. As Lee picked himself off the ground and started to first he said something to Young, who responded and also pointed to first base. Whatever was said sparked a benches clearing brawl that lasted several minutes and saw ejections for both of the combatants along with Padres pitcher Jake Peavy and Cubs' coach Gerald Perry.

As for the actual game, Carlos Zambrano pitched a complete game loss in which he allowed his first hit with one out in the eighth inning. Marcus Giles broke up the no-no with a hopper up the middle that hit off of Zambrano's mitt, but the Cubs would turn a double play to end the eighth. The key decision in the game was Pinella letting Carlos go back out for the ninth inning despite having already thrown 107 pitches. Of course, in that ninth inning Zambrano allowed one more hit, a Russell Branyan 3-2 pitch that was lifted into the jet stream and into the left field seats.

The Cubs bats were also missing in this game as they also only managed two hits themselves and had only one good scoring chance in the fifth inning. Ryan Theriot doubled and stole third, but was gunned down trying to score on a fly ball to shallow right field off of the bat of Carlos Zambrano. From their Cubs seemed to be thrown off of there game with D. Lee out of the game.

- Marcus Giles hit in the 8th inning was not his best of the day. He actually was able to tackle Chris Young after the initial wave during the benches clearing brawl. That may not sound great, but Marcus is 5ft 7in and Chris Young is 6ft 10in.

- Mark DeRosa moved from 3rd to first after Derek Le was ejected. Ryan Theriot moved from shortstop to 3rd, and Cesar Izturis went into shortstop and hit in Lee's third spot. The first and only time Cesar will ever hit 3rd for the Cubs.

- Derek Lee will almost certainly be suspended a few games, but thankfully Daryle Ward is expected to be activated from the DL Tuesday. That means everyone can shift back, and Cesar will head back to the bench.

- The umpires once again failed at their basic duties Saturday. There was no way to say the brawl wouldn't have been started anyway, but letting Lee walk past Young unaccompanied after a pitch that was shoulder/head high was not smart. Hopefully MLB looks at this as well.

- Finally, despite the tough loss, the Cubs have a chance to have a 5-2 homestand as well as win another series. It would be 3 of 4 series wins, with the fourth being a 4 game split in Atlanta.

(Photo courtesy of Associated Press)

Saturday's 5-4-3

Yankees 11 - Mets 8: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Blue Jays 7 - Nationals 3: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Braves 6 - Indians 2: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Red Sox 1 - Giants 0: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Angels 3 - Dodgers 0: Chris Young is a douchebag.

White Sox 6 - Pirates 1: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Astros 9 - Mariners 4: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Phillies 6 - Tigers 3: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Dbacks 8 - Orioles 4: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Marlins 9 - Royals 8: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Reds 8 - Rangers 4: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Rockies 10 - DRays 5: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Cardinals 15 - A's 6: Chris Young is a douchebag.

Where To Find The CUBS Today...

TV: WGN - 12:05PM

RADIO: WGN 720


Carlos Zambrano (7-5; 4.89 ERA) vs.
Chris Young (6-3; 2.34 ERA)

- Cubs go for 4 wins in a row!
- Zambrano looks to improve to 3-0 since Fisticuffs '07 took place

Lilly Carves, Cubs Cruise

Ted Lilly lasted eight innings Friday, one start after being ejected two hitters into a start in Atlanta. Lilly was able to scatter one run on six hits, and Ryan Depmster came in to nail down his 15th save.

Mike Fontenot drove in three runs, including a two run home run in the sixth inning to put the Cubs up for good. Fontenot got the start because of David Wells recent struggles against left handed hitters, but the way that he is swinging the bat since his recall from Triple-A, there is no reason to sit him down at anytime in the future. The offense was limited to Fontenot though, as Derek Lee went 4-4 with three doubles (tying a career high) and Alfonso Soriano hit a moon shot that still hasn't landed yet.

The real story of the game however was Lily's mastery. He came out wanting to show that his recent struggles, minus the ejection of course, were the project of a mini slump, not a regression of his skills from earlier in the year. The lone Padre run was accounted for after a fan reached over the basket in right field and knocked the ball of course and Cliff Floyd was unable to catch it. Other than that Lily pitched beautifully and was crucial in the Cubs improving to 4-1 on the homestand.

- Henry Blanco was expected to learn about a possible rehab assignment Friday, but the pain in his neck hasn't responded to the cortisone. It may be several weeks, or longer, before Blanco can even think of a return.

- Jake Peavy took offense to Soriano's home run trot in the 6th inning. He told local papers he would have hit the next guy in the ribs after Soriano's show boating. Soriano took a few steps backward toward first after hitting his home run.

- Cubs fans don't learn anything. Besides the interference on the ball hit to right field, a fan in left field also reached out to catch a ball that Derek Lee hit. It was ruled a double, and since it was unable to land, the umps actually made the right call. The only good news is both fans were ejected.

Friday's 5-4-3

Tigers 12 - Phillies 8: Despite giving up 5 runs & 9 hits in 6 innings, Jeremy Bonderman got the win and improved his record to 7-0 this season.

DBacks 7 - Orioles 3: DBacks scored 7 runs combined in the 8th & 9th to pull out the victory. In other DBack news, Randy Johnson went on the 15-day DL.

Braves 5 - Indians 4: It's a tale of two nights for the Braves. After blowing the lead last night in the 9th, the Braves take the lead in the ninth and Bob "I Definitely Look Like I'm From Wisconsin" Wickman closed the door this time.

Mets 2 - Yankees 0: Clemens pitches good, but Oliver Perez pitches better. The loss snaps the Yankees 9 game winning streak.

Red Sox 10 - Giants 2: Dustin Pedroia had a homer & 5 RBI in a Red Sox romp.

Pirates 4 - White Sox 2: The White Sox blow & I'm loving every second of it. Maybe now they can take down those "We Are Chicago Baseball" billboards around the city & suburbs.

Blue Jays 7 - Nationals 2: Roy Halladay is good. The Nationals are not. He improves his record to 7-2 this season.

Rangers 7 - Reds 6: Sammy Sosa hit his 599th career homer in a Ranger's rare victory.

Astros 5 - Mariners 1: Am I the only one who thinks Lance Berkman looks like Phil Mickelson?

Royals 6 - Marlins 2: Gil Meche, KC's big money man, pitched like he's worth it and improved his record to 4-6.

Brewers 11 - Twins 3: With the win, the Brewers remain 5.5 games ahead of the Cubs.

Rockies 12 - Devil Rays 2: Garrett Atkins homered for the second straight day in a blowout.

A's 14 - Cardinals 3: After the game, LaRussa went to some of his old favorite watering holes and just got completely shitcanned. And then he drove.

Dodgers 2 - Angels 1: The Crips beat the Bloods, successfully defending their turf. The Crips & Bloods will meet again tomorrow for a rematch.

Where To Find The CUBS Today...

TV: WGN 1:20PM

RADIO: WGN-720

Teddy Lilly (4-4; 3.96 ERA) vs.

David "Boomer" Wells (3-3; 4.76 ERA)

Ted, can you stick around a little longer in this start? Thanks.

Cubs win, So all Hail Cesar?

So the writers of this particular blog have nothing but contempt for a particular middle infielder that plays in Wrigleyville. We have bashed him and bashed him, and wouldn't you know it, "our bad." At least for a day, anyway. Cesar Izturis, he of the .253 batting average, delivered a one out double down the left field line in the 8th inning Thursday afternoon that drove in the tying and go ahead runs.

The day started out promising enough before the game even started when the Cubs were told that Jeff Weaver was in fact going to be the starter for Seattle. Weaver (0-6, 12.46 ERA heading into Friday) was just what the Cubs needed to try and sustain their decent start to June. They jumped him early, too.

A first inning that included a double by Alfonso Soriano, triples by Pie and Fontenot, and a single by Cliff Floyd had the Cubs out in front and ready to pile it on all day. Then all of the sudden the bats went cold. Weaver settled down and was suddenly hitting spots that he hadn't hit since his time in Detroit a few years ago. Before you knew it he had cruised through the sixth only allowing the runs in the first.

On the other hand Jason Marquis was also pitching to make those three runs stand up. In his first start since his debacle in Atlanta over the weekend Marquis allowed one hit in his first five innings before the wheels fell off. He hit Weaver, walked Ichiro, an error by DeRosa scored a run, another walk, and a doubler to the gap and suddenly it was 4-3 Mariners.

That set the stage for Izturis. Walks to DeRosa and Fontenot and a sacrifice by K. Hill, set up the game winning hit from one of the more unlikely players on this team. A Bob Howry 1-2-3 ninth and just like that the Cubs win another series and are now 3-1 at home this week.

- J. Jones and Barrett were both given days off again Thursday. Barrett may return to the line-up this weekend, and Jones may get a few more 'mental health' days. Really that has to be code for: Murton is at Iowa, Pagan hits lefties, and every pitch Floyd connects on may injure someone. Jones looks to be the odd guy out, finally.

- Ryan Dempster was given the day off on Thursday. It had to do with pitching in 4 consecutive games. He will be available all weekend.

- Bob Howry got the win with a stellar 1 1/3 innings of work. He has not allowed a hit in over ten innings. Now if only he could show scott Eyre how to do the same thing.

Thursday's 5-4-3

Padres 7 – Devil Rays 1: Justin Germano picks up the victory, now making his record 5-0 on the season. They now travel to Wrigley for a 3-game weekend set.

Angels 9 – Reds 7: Gary Majewski didn’t record an out, but he did manage to give up 3 runs and pick up the loss for the Reds. Immediately after the game, the Reds filed another grievance against the Nationals for not telling the Reds this time that Majewski blows.

Yankees 7 – Dbacks 1: Yankees extend winning streak to 9 games. A-Rod went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI. It’s alive….

Brewers 6 – Tigers 5: Closer Francisco Cordero had another rough outing for the Brewers, but was still able to finish with a save. Cordero gave up 2 runs, but luckily for him and his team, he was up by 3 when he entered. Ben Sheets picked up the win (7-3).

A’s 6 – Astros 5: “I didn’t want to mention it to anyone out there because I was hoping for the best, but when we collided I heard something snap, so I knew it wasn’t good.” That’s a quote from fat Carlos Lee, who slid into Adam Everett on a shallow pop fly, breaking Everett’s right leg. And to top it off for the Astros, the disgusting pig Carlos Lee didn’t even make the catch. Fatass.

Indians 3 – Marlins 2: Joe Borowski had another shaky ninth, but managed to close the door and pickup his 19th save of the season.

Rangers 6 – Pirates 0: Former high school teammate of mine, Tom Gorzelanny, took the loss after giving up 5 runs in 7 innings to the Texas Rangers. I can’t say for sure, but I have a feeling Tom was a little pissed off that his teammates managed 0 runs against the worst team in the Majors and a pitcher named Kameron Loe.

Rockies 7 – Red Sox 1: Garrett Atkins went 3 for 5, including a grand slam, to give Josh Beckett his first loss of the season (9-1).

Nationals 3 – Orioles 1: Nationals complete their first road sweep since June of 2006 against Milwaukee. Parade is planned for noon today.

Royals 17 – Cardinals 8: Kip Wells had another strong outing (1.1 innings, 6 runs, 4 walks) and dropped his record to 2-11 this season. Kip, pitching like this is only going to drive your manager to drink. Or is it drink and then drive?

Twins 3 – Braves 2: Tim Hudson outduels Johan Santana for 7 innings, but Bob Wickman blows his 3rd save of the season and picks up the loss. Hudson, that’s what you get for plunking Soriano.

Where to Find the CUBS Today....

TV: WGN-TV

Radio: WGN-720 AM

Jason Marquis (5-3, 3.01 ERA) vs. Jeff Weaver (0-6, 12.46 ERA)

Jeff Weaver has been nothing close to a major league pitcher this year, and hopefully this continues.

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Wednesday's 5-4-3

Phillies 8 White Sox 4 Aaron Rowand didn't even start, but his 5 RBI's were enough for the win.

Blue Jays 7 Giants 4 The Blue Jays used a 5 run fourth inning to steal the last game of this three game set. Aaron Hill and Matt Stairs each had 2 RBI.

Indians 7 Marlins 3 Three ejections, six runs and two costly errors, all in the 6th inning helped the Indians rally for a win in South Florida.

Pirates 8 Rangers 1 Ian Snell pitched his first career complete game, and the Pirates assured themselves of a series win over the worst team in baseball.

Brewers 3 Tigers 2 A night after a no hitter, the the Brewers managed 11 hits with the key shot being Bill Hall's first home run since the beginning of May.

Yankees 7 DBacks 2 The Yankees were left for dead two weeks ago, but now they have won 8 in a row. Rod is hot once again also, as he hit his MLB best 25th home run.

Rockies 12 Red Sox 2 Curt Shilling pitched a one hitter in his last outing, so most baseball fans should have seen this one coming. Shilling's line from last night 5IP, 9 H, 5ER, 1BB.

Angels 6 Reds 3 Your MLB leader in wins is......John Lackey? He is the first to 10 wins, and the Angels are now 24-9 in their last 33 games.

Padres 9 D Rays 0 Jake Peavy has found his groove this year as he went 7 innings and struck out eight. The Padres snapped an season worst 4 game skid.

A's 7 Astros 3 Houston's bullpen problems continue as they gave up 5 runs in the 8th inning. Dan Wheeler got the loss, but you would thing Phil Garner might be close to losing his job if this continues.

Cards 7 Royals 3 Adam Wainwright gave up one hit to the Royals in eight innings. It was his best start of the year, and if the Cardinals are going to get back in the Central they'll have to win games like this.

Twins 6 Braves 0 Carlos Silva pitched a complete game shutout. If the Braves have any serious play-off aspirations, they better get a healthy Chipper Jones going, and maybe even an extra bat in the line-up.

Dodgers 9 Mets 1 The Mets scored early, and the Dodgers scored often. Nine times in their last four at bats to be exact. Wilson Betemit hit his seventh of the year to put LA ahead for good in the 5th.

Nats 9 Orioles 6 The Nats have won the first two in this battle of DC (yes I know Baltimore isn't DC, but it is close) and are poised for a sweep. Felipe Lopez had a bases clearing triple in the 11th to pull out the win.

Marshall Wins Again

Sean Marshall continues to prove he belongs in the starting rotation. With Marshall in as essentially the Cubs #5, the Cubs rotation is starting to look like a formidable staff in the NL. And with Marshall in the mix, it almost makes you forget that the Cubs actually tried Wade Miller in their rotation to start the season. In 5 starts, Marshall has had 5 good outings, good enough to win all 5 games. A lack of run support has cost Marshall two games, but Sean is now 3-2 this season, with a terrific ERA of 2.12. The Cubs were able to give Marshall just enough run support, as he went 8 innings and only gave up 2 runs on 7 hits. Marshall was also very efficient on the mound , getting 16 of his 24 outs via the groundball. Only two mistakes were made (Richie Sexson homer, Ichiro triple) by Marshall & the Cubs got just enough offense to pull out a victory of the Seattle Mariners.

Offensively, Mike Fontenot had another good game and is making a strong case to be the everyday second baseman for the Cubs for the rest of this year. Fontenot had a clutch two out single in the 5th, scoring Derrek Lee & Mark DeRosa that put the Cubs up for good. With Theriot at short and Fontenot at second, this would force Izturis to almost never see the field. I can’t begin to tell you how happy that makes me. Cesar Izturis is this year’s Neifi Perez, except with less offense. Neifi Perez would have that one game a week where he would get 3 hits, causing Dusty Baker to play him everyday. Cesar gives you that one day, but it happens once a month.

Ryan Dempster, pitching for a 4th consecutive day, came in the 9th for 1-2-3 easy Save. If the WGN radar gun was right and for the sake of argument we will assume it was, Dempster was throwing gas last night, hitting 96 mph with his fastball. Uneventful 9th innings keep me sane. Cubs win, 3-2.

- Soriano went 0 for 5 last night. He remains hitless since he was plunked by Tim Hudson Saturday night.

- Jacque Jones went 0 for 0, as he was not in the lineup for last night’s game and Jones not playing was a major factor in the Cubs win. Cliff Floyd, hitting 4th and playing rightfield, went 1 for 4 with an RBI.

- Cubs look for the series win against a struggling Jeff Weaver.

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Where To Find The CUBS Tonight...

TV: WGN 7:05 PM

RADIO: WGN 720


Sean Marshall (2-2, 2.08 ERA) vs.
Miguel Batista (7-4, 5.48 ERA)


(This game needs to be over in two hours.... Our favorite show, Rescue Me, has it's season premiere tonight at 9PM)

Cubs Continue to Toy With Us

Tuesday’s game vs. the Mariners was another classic case of the Cubs beating themselves & not taking advantage of great scoring opportunities. This season is putting so much undue strain on my ticker.

The Cubs started the game off right by scoring 2 in the 1st inning off of Jarrod Washburn. Pagan ripped a double, scoring Alfonso Soriano & then Derrek Lee singled to score Pagan to quickly make it 2-0 before Washburn recorded his first out. The lead, however, did not last long. Rich Hill allowed a run in the 2nd on a balk. Yeah, that’s right. A balk. Hill then gave up a bomb to Jose Guillen in the third to make it 2-2. And then the worst run of them all, even worse than the balk. In the top of the 4th, Hill gave up a single to pitcher Jarrod Washburn, scoring Johjima to give Seattle a 3-2 lead. A hit to the pitcher? C’mon Rich, you’ve got to be kidding me. If Raul Ibanez or Ichiro are going to beat you, I can live with that. But Jarrod Washburn?

After scoring in the 1st, the Cubs offense decided to take a 7 inning break. And it’s not like Washburn was dealing, as he walked 5 over 6 innings of work. In the 8th inning, with Sean Green now in the ballgame for Jarrod Washburn, Michael Barrett hit a single up the middle, scoring Derrek Lee to tie the ballgame at 3. Mark DeRosa then came up and stroked a double, to put runners at second & third and nobody out. An intentional walk to Cliff Floyd loaded the bases for Ryan Theriot. Brandon Morrow got Theriot to chop one to third and Michael Barrett was forced out at the plate. At this point, the blood pressure has risen somewhat, but I remain calm as Felix Pie walks to the plate with one out and the bases loaded. But it turns out that Felix never needed to bring a bat with him to the plate, as he never swings it and strikes out looking on a fastball down broadway with the count 3-2. You can’t hit a sacrifice fly if you DON’T SWING THE BAT! Now I’m breathing heavier and I’m starting to look for something to throw. But then I realize that the Cubs still have a chance as there’s only two outs and scrappy Mike Fontenot is up. George Sherrill gets Fontenot to whiff on 4 pitches. I feel myself turning into the Hulk. I have a barstool over my head and I’m screaming uncontrollably at this point.

Skip to the 13th, the Cubs give up 2 runs, all after two outs, and now trail 5-3. The Cubs threaten in the bottom half of the 13th, by putting runners on every base with two outs for Koyie Hill. Remember yesterday how I said I would prefer an unhittable Carlos Zambrano and batting challenged catcher to a good hitting catcher and hittable Zambrano? It only took one day for that to bite me in the ass. Koyie looked overmatched by J.J. Putz and weakly grounded out to first to end the game. Cubs lose a heartbreaker, 5-3.

- Jacque Jones went 1 for 2 (1 whiff, looking of course). His rare hit raises his batting average to .233. Stay hot, Jacque. Stay hot.

- All Hail Cesar! 0 for 3, 4 left on base. Stay hot, Cesar.

- Richie Sexson went 0 for 6 for Seattle and is now batting .194 for the season. Can you imagine a lineup featuring Sexson, Jacque Jones, and Cesar? That’s a pitcher’s wet dream.

- Will Ohman picked up his 4th loss of the season. Stay hot, Will.

- Carlos Zambrano came into this game as a pinch hitter, striking out. But he at least went down swinging. (Hint hint: Felix)

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Tuesday's 5-4-3

Yankees 4 D Backs 1 Brandon Webb can do most things for you, as your staff ace. However, when you can only manage to score 1 run in Yankee Stadium, chances are it won't be enough.

Phillies 7 White Sox 2 Jermaine Dye and Paul Konerko go back-to-back in the first and the Sox manage just 5 hits the rest of the way. No wonder the offense is worst in baseball.

Nats 7 Orioles 4 The Nationals were predicted to finish with close to 120 losses this year, but don't tell that to Daniel Cabrera.

Marlins 3 Indians 0 Carmona was dealt his first loss in over a month, and the Marlins won this rematch of the 1997 World Series. The only thing still the same is the team names though.

Red Sox 2 Rockies 1 This is why we have interleague play. So that we get these match-ups that people can't wait to see. Ok, I started laughing too. The Red Sox improve to 19 games over .500.

Pirates 7 Rangers 5 Kevin Millwood is a man suited for neither league as the lowly Pirate offense touches him up for 5 runs in 4 1/3. No wonder he hits the DL after every few starts.

D-Rays 11 Padres 4 Neither Greg Maddux nor Scott Kazmir figured in this decision as the D Rays scored 8 times in the 7th and 8th innings to pull out the win.

Reds 5 Angels 3 The Reds may have the worst record in the NL, but they continue to fight it out every night. The loss continues a disturbing trend for the Angels who continue to let winnable games get away.

Tigers 5 Brewers 0 Justin Verlander pitched the first Tiger no-hitter since Jack Morris and his wonderful steech back in 1984. Verlander walked 4, but got beautiful defense all night including a stellar doube ply in the eight that was started by Nefi Perez, of all people.

Astros 5 A's 4 Brad Lidge has pitched lights out since he was demoted into the middle of the pen. So well that he got the closer's job back, and promptly blew a save. Maybe that Pujols homer in the playoffs two years go really did kill his toughness.

Royals 8 Cards 1 The Cards played a game that would drive a manager to drink, and maybe drive. As a team trying to climb back into the NL Central, you cannot score 1 run against the Royals and expect to win.

Dodgers 4 Mets 1 In the only intra-league game in baseball, John Maine was unable to hold down a potent Dodger line-up. What esle can you say when you give up a home run to the opposing pitcher.

Twins 7 Braves 3 The Twins used a 5 run fourth and a nice outing by the recently called up Kevin Slowey to snag a victory at home.

Giants 3 Blue Jays 2 The Giants have now won two straight t home after returning from their 10 game trip. The Giants had lost 5 straight home decisions prior to these wins.

Where to Find the CUBS Tonight...

TV: Comcast SportsNet

Radio: WGN 720-AM

Rich Hill (5-4, 2.71 ERA) vs. Jarod Washburn (5-5, 3.94 ERA)

Ichiro makes his first appearence at Wrigley Field since joining MLB. The Cubs try to change the ways at home where they are a putrid 12-17 this year.

(Photo courtesy of collectingichiro.com)

Big Z & the Silent T's

Len Kasper is starting to worry us. Len had yet another “Chip Carey” moment last night, going on & on about how Mike Fontenot & Ryan Theriot both have last names where the last letter “T” are silent. It went on for what seemed like hours. It’s only a matter of time to where Kasper is in full “Chip Carey Mode,” where he tells the same Sandy Koufax/perfect game against the Cubs story & gets truly excited when the Cubs lose. Len, please look in the mirror and decide if you really want to become Chip Carey.

Ok, now onto the game. The “Silent T’s” started the scoring off in the 2nd inning off of Woody “The Milf Hunter” Williams. (If you get that reference, you probably spend too much time on certain parts of the internet like me). Mike Fontenot hit a double and then scored on a Ryan Theriot single. I really like these two up the middle, mostly because it keeps Cesar Izturis off the field. They never get cheated at the plate and they’re strong enough defensively to start everyday. When Barrett is in the lineup, these two will be perfect for the 7th & 8th spot in the lineup as a setup to Soriano to get some plate appearances with runners on.

The Cubs scored again in the 3rd on a Carlos Zambrano homer. Zambrano now has as many homers as supposed “left-handed power bat” Jacque Jones. Zambrano, however, didn’t just contribute with the bat. Big Z went 8 innings, throwing 128 pitches, and only yielding one unearned run in the 8th. Zambrano struck out 8 and scattered 3 hits. I don’t know what it is, but Zambrano is starting to pitch like the Cy Young candidate he thought he would be this season. Maybe it’s the weather, maybe it was the fight, maybe he fixed his mechanics, who knows. Big Z was dealing last night and that’s huge for the Cubs.

In the 9th, Lou went right back to Ryan Dempster, who struggled Sunday night against the Braves. With one out, Dempster walked Lance Berkman to bring up Carlos “Cubs Killer” Lee. It wasn’t a matter of “if” Lee would hit a homer, it was just a matter of how far it would actually fly. The near-sellout crowd for the makeup game held their collective breath as Dempster grooved one to Carlos Lee, but Carlos hit into a game ending double play. Thank you Fat Carlos, Dempster needed this one. Cubs win, 2-1.

- Jacque, which I found out from my cousin Ryan is actually French for “strike out,” went 0-3 (1 Jacque) and left 2 on base. This lowers his average to .230 for the season. If Hendry is forcing Jacque into the lineup to perhaps showcase Jacque and work a trade, it’s not working. The guy can’t hit. But keep putting him in the lineup. And keep batting him FOURTH.

- The big winner of the Zambrano/Barrett fight? Koyie Hill. For some reason, Zambrano has pitched well to Koyie Hill and this should keep him on the roster for the rest of the season. Sure Koyie is batting .067, but I’ll take an unhittable Carlos Zambrano over a good hitting catcher right now.

- Carlos Zambrano now has 12 career homeruns, which puts him one behind Fergie Jenkins on the all time list for Cubs pitchers. Not exactly Bonds chasing Aaron, but it’s a homerun record I think Zambrano would like to have one day.

- Ichiro comes to town tonight for the first time. I’m sure the RF bleachers will have some fun with him this week.

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Monday's 5-4-3

Phillies 3 White Sox 0 Javier Vasquez gave up solo home runs to Jimmy Rollins, Pat Burrell, and Ryan Howard, the latter of which hit his 428 feet. The good news is Juan Uribe, seen celebrating with Harold Baines, was able to to handle the Dominican Republic shooting case. It only took $25,000, so I would assume all of his future shootings will happen outside of the US, to keep costs down.

Mariners 8 Indians 7 The sea gulls invaded Cleveland today and helped the Indians rally from an early 7-0 hole, only to lose 8-7. Raul Ibanez was 4-4, 2hr, 5 RBI and a single short of the cycle for Seattle. Also, if Steve Phillips of ESPN ever happens to read this, they have been and always will be sea gulls. If you spent as much time looking for reputable baseball players as you did for birds actual names, you would still be a GM.

Dodgers 5 Mets 3 Three early runs against should have been enough for El Duque, but Randy Wolf was able to get into a groove and hold the Mets there. The Dodgers then scored 3 in the 4th and 2 in the 6th to send the Mets to their 7 loss in 8 games.

Giants 4 Blue Jays 3 Barry Bonds hit his 747 home run Monday night off of Josh Towers to creep within eight of Hank Aaron. Bonds defense lacked any range, even for him, and Dave Roberts struggled to cover left and center as the Blue Jays scored early because of doubles to left by Alex Rios and Aaron Hill in the first. However, the Bonds homer and a CG from Matt Morris was enough for the win.

Where to Find the Cubs Tonight..

TV: Comcast Sports Net Plus 7:05 PM (CLTV in most Areas)

RADIO: WGN 720

Carlos Zambrano (6-5, 5.38 ERA) vs. Woody Williams (2-8, 5.79 ERA)

Zambrano tries to rebound for the second straight start. Tonight's game is a make up game from April 11th.

(Photo courtesy of the Cubs.com)

Jim Wolf is a Disgrace; Dumpster Blows Save

With two outs in the bottom of the first inning last night, Ted Lilly plunks Edgar Renteria with a 2-0 pitch. Instead of acting like a man and taking his base, Renteria starts crying and walking towards the mound. Michael Barrett, veteran fighter, stepped in front of Renteria to prevent anything from happening. What Barrett should have done was start brawling with Renteria, tag a now shirtless Zambrano, and then two of them give Renteria a wishbone.

So the benches should be warned again, right? The Cubs have now retaliated for Soriano’s beaning and this should be the end of it, right? Wrong. Home plate umpire Jim Wolf then decides, out of the blue, that Lilly is ejected from the game. Are you kidding me? So let me get this straight. Alfonso Soriano can hit 3 home runs, completely embarrass the Braves pitching staff, get pegged the next day by a washed up tool, and the Cubs don’t get to do a single thing about it??? That makes sense. Jim Wolf should be suspended for being so stupid. And then Wolf has the balls to say he knew that was going to happen, that’s why he kicked out Lilly. Oh yeah, is that right Wolf? Ever thought to SAY THAT TO ANYBODY? Being a douchebag is one thing, being a douchebag and insulting everyone’s intelligence is another thing. If you “knew” that was going to happen, how come the benches weren’t warned before the game? If you “knew” that was going to happen, how come you didn’t tell Renteria when he was coming to the plate? If you “knew” that was going to happen, how come you didn’t PREVENT IT BEFORE IT HAPPENED? You know why he didn’t prevent? Because Jim Wolf is full of shit. So if you knew this all along, Jim Wolf, you know what that makes you? AN ACCESSORY. Hopefully Bud Selig comes down hard on you. Next time, shut your mouth and do your job. You warn the benches AFTER Lilly pegs Renteria. Now the score is settled. All order would be restored.

It ends there, right? Wrong again. Renteria, attempting to steal second, decides to slide when he’s almost past the base already. Oh, and he had his arm out, clothslining Mike Fontenot. Renteria was then immediately ejected from the game for his bush league antics. Wait, what’s that? He wasn’t? ARE YOU SERIOUS? Second base ump Jim Joyce, what were you thinking? I'm guessing he didn’t know Renteria was going to do that. He must not have the psychic powers that Jim Wolf has been blessed with.

As for the rest of the game, Ryan Dumpster blew the lead in the 8th and the Cubs lost 5-4. Lou might have to re-arrange the order of his bullpen. Bob Howry has been throwing smoke lately and would be a good option as the closer right now.

- Mike Fontenot crushed his first Major League homer, an absolute bomb off of Buddy Carlyle. But his biggest at-bat, bases loaded and nobody out in the 8th, ended in a double play. Fontenot hit a rocket to third, who went catcher to first on the double play.

- Jacque Jones went 0 -2. His average now sits at .234. Keep playing him Lou.

- Soriano-Pie-Lee went 0-12, with 7 left on base today.

- Cubs play a rainout makeup game at Wrigley vs. the Houston Astros tonight.

(photos courtesy of the Associated Press)

Sunday's 5-4-3

Tigers 15 Mets 7 Tom Glavine just doesn’t look right. Then again, facing a stacked Tigers line-up will do that to you.

Yankees 13 Pirates 6 A-Rod goes deep twice, and the Yankees have suddenly won six straight.

D-Rays 9 Marlins 4 The Devil Rays take the first series in the Battle of Florida. Also, Elijah Dukes looks to be headed out of town soon. It’s easier to obey the restraining order that way.

Reds 1 Indians 0 C.C. Sabbathia pitched nine great innings, but was unable to score from second on a single to left in the eight. The decision to not run for him then came back to haunt the Indians in the 12th.

Rockies 6 Orioles 1 Ryan Spilborghs went yard twice and J. Hirsch won for the first time in nine starts and the Rockies are back to a game within .500.

Cards 9 Angels 6 Todd Wellemyer faired a little better than his last start, and Albert went yard twice as the Cardinals managed to steal the last game of the weekend.

White Sox 6 Astros 3 The White Sox finally managed to win a game for Mark Buerhle, the 100 of his career, in his seventh attempt. The win snapped the White Sox 5 game skid.

Royals 17 Phillies 5 Jamie Moyer looked his age Sunday, as the Royals put up runs early and often in an absolute laugher. For once though, the Royals were on the winning side.

Twins 6 Nats 3 The Nats beat Johan Santana, but can’t get past Boof Bonser. No wonder people struggle to understand this game.

A’s 2 Giants 0 The A’s sweep all three from their Bay Rival, and Barry is in yet another slump.

Mariners 4 Padres 3 Trevor Hoffman gave up an unearned run in the ninth as the Mariners rallied to win late for the second night in a row.

Blue Jays 11 Dodgers 5 Roy Halladay versus Jason Schmidt. So of course their were sixteen combined runs scored. Troy Glaus hit two home runs in the win.

D Backs 5 Red Sox 1 The Battle of Aces proved that Matsuzaka still has a bit to learn in MLB. That, or the Red Sox need to help him out in his starts a bit more.

Brewers 9 Rangers 6 The Rangers rallied in the ninth to force extras, but Geoff Jenkin’s three run homer in the 12th inning stopped the Brewers three game mini slide.

Where To Find The CUBS Tonight....

TV: ESPN 7:05 PM (This sucks, I hate ESPN)

RADIO: WGN 720


Theodore Roosevelt Lilly (4-4, 3.98 ERA) vs. Buddy Carlyle (1-1, 4.50 ERA)


Hopefully the Cubs retaliate for the Soriano beaning by laying one into Andruw Jones' face tonight. It's only fair.

Saturday's 5-4-3

Yankees 9 - Pirates 3: Roger Clemens makes a successful debut in the '07 season. Clemens gives up 3 runs in 6 innings.

A's 6 - Giants 0: Danny Haren lowers his league leading ERA to 1.58 with 7 shutout innings.

Tigers 8 - Mets 7: The Mets' comeback falls short as Todd Jones and his fu man chu pickup save #16 on the season.

Astros 3 - White Sox 2: Pathetic White Sox offense continues to struggle. Bobby Jenks, who hadn't allowed a run in 11 straight outings, gives up an RBI single to Lance Berkman in the 9th to pickup the loss.

Devil Rays 7 - Marlins 2: James Shields improves to 6-0 on the season, throwing 7 strong innings.

Rockies 3 - Orioles 2: Rockies win in the 10th in this big interleague rivalry matchup.

Phillies 4 - Royals 0: Jon Leiber throws a complete game shutout, as he strikes out 11 Royals. Leiber actually started off the game by striking out 6 batters through 2 innings.

Nationals 3 - Twins 1: Johan picked up his 6th loss of the season. And it was against the Nationals. I'm in shock.

Indians 8 - Reds 6: 6 homers in this game. Hey, nobody answered me before. What happened to Drew Carey?

Angels 9 - Cardinals 3: Angels pound out 18 hits to beat up on Cards. LaRussa said after the game that he was getting the first couple rounds tonight.

Texas 4 - Brewers 3: The Brewers were up 3-0 in the 9th over the worst team in MLB, with the league's most dominant closer this season coming in, Francisco Cordero. Game over, right? Rangers score 4, win ballgame. Baseball makes sense yet again.

Red Sox 4 - DBacks 3: Papelbon picks up save #14 in the 10th inning.

Mariners 6 - Padres 5: Mariners recover from 5-1 deficit to win. JJ Putz picked up his 17th save of the season.

Blue Jays 1 - Dodgers 0: Zzzzzzzzz

Cubs Score Early, Implode Late

Jason Marquis received what every visiting starting pitcher wishes for on Saturday night, when the Cubs scored four runs before he even took the mound. An inning and two thirds later, Marquis could only watch from the dugout after giving up 6 runs, 4 hits, and three bases on balls.

The offense jumped out to the early lead for the second straight night, aided by a Soriano hit by pitch, a Felix Pie walk, and RBI singles by D. Lee, Mark DeRosa, and recently called up Mike Fontenot. From there the offense scuffled and was unable to mount any serious run scoring opportunities, especially after Michael Barret was caught in a rundown in the top of the third inning. With runners on 1st and 2nd with one out Fontenot grounded sharply to second, but was able to be the relay throw to first and stay out of the double play. Barrett was either not paying attention, or thought he suddenly had wheels, as he rounded third trying to score on the play, and was easily caught in the rundown to end the inning.

The real story on the night though, was the pitching. Despite Marquis' inability to get out of the second inning, the bullpen seemed to be well rested from the week that saw Cubs' starters going deep into games. However, recent call up Sean Gallagher gave up two runs in his three and two thirds innings and Scott Eyre walked the lead off hitter in the sixth, who would eventually score.

- Plate umpire Tim Tschida issued warnings to both benches after Soriano was hit in the 1st inning. The warning had little effect as Sean Gallagher was hit and Izturis was thrown behind later in the game. Hopefully the Cubs will retaliate at some point during the finale.

- A. Jones homered off of Marquis in the first, improving to 8-11, 5HR off of Marquis lifetime.

- The Cubs win streak was snapped at three, but a win Sunday in Atlanta would extend their series win streak to 2.

- The Cubs will miss John Smoltz for the second time in a week, as he will be skipped due to innflamation in his right shoulder. Buddy Carlyle was recalled from Triple-A Richmond to take his spot.

Where To Find The CUBS Tonight....

TV: WGN 6:05PM

RADIO: WGN 720

Jason Marquis (5-2; 2.84) vs. Tim Hudson (6-4; 3.09)

Current Series: Cubs 2-0

Season Series: Tied 3-3

Marshall Good, Soriano Better

Alfonso Soriano opened the game with a bang Friday night, when he hit the first pitch of the ball game over the right field fence for a home run. It was the first of three consecutive solo home runs for Soriano off of Lance Cormier, Atlanta's starter.

Soriano wasn't lone offensive support by any means. Michael Barrett and Felix Pie each had two hits and a stolen base, Barrett also had a solo shot in the fourth, as every position player had at least one hit.

The other story of the night was Sean Marshall, who improved his record to 2-2 since being recalled from Triple-A, with both wins coming this week. Marshall had pitched well against the Braves Sunday in picking up the win, and Friday he looked like he knew where he had left off. The Braves managed only four hits and one run off of Marshall in six innings, and he was only forced to throw 94 pitches. By the time Marshall was pulled the Cubs were cruising with a 6-1 lead.

- The lead-off home run was Soriano's third as a Cub, and 35th of his career.

- The Cubs improved to 4-1 on their current road trip, assuring themselves of finishing over .500, with two left in Atlanta this weekend.

- Cliff Floyd was placed on the bereavement list as he headed to Chicago to care for his ailing father. Mike Fontenot was recalled. Floyd cannot return until Monday at the earliest.

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Friday's 5-4-3

Rangers 9 - Brewers 6: Rangers piss away 7-1 lead, but hang on to improve the league's worst record.

Astros 5 - White Sox 2: Astros avenge '05 World Series loss with 3 run win. At least that's what the douchebags on ESPN say. Houston fans are just glad Dan Wheeler didn't blow today's save opportunity.

Royals 8 - Phillies 4: 6 run second inning propels Royals to rare victory. Tony LaRussa celebrated by getting drunk and then driving.

Nationals 8 - Twins 5: The Nationals did all that they could to blow an 8-0 lead, but the Twins ran out of innings and the Nats win.

Angels 10 - Cards 6: Angels pound Cardinals' bullpen into submission. Keep the women and children out of the way, Tony's going drinking tonight!

Reds 4 - Indians 3: Griffey homers in the battle of Ohio. Speaking of Ohio, what ever happened to Drew Carey?

Orioles 4 - Rockies 2: Trachsel gives up two over 6 innings, picking up the victory. One of the runs was because of a Trachsel balk.

Mets 3 - Tigers 0: Mets hold the Tigers to 4 hits. Sheffield blames loss on the submissive Latinos.

Yankees 5 - Pirates 4: Yanks win again on a Jeter walk off single. A-Rod booed during celebration for not getting the game winning hit, even though he never came to the plate.

Marlins 14 - Devil Rays 8: Marlins score 12 unanswered runs to whoop the DRays. DRay catcher Dioner Navarro left the game on a stretcher after taking a ball to the throat. After seeing the replay several times, it looked like it hurt an awful lot.

Red Sox 10 - Diamondbacks 3: Josh Beckett is now 9-0 this season. He's due for a DL trip with blisters real soon.

Mariners 6 - Padres 5: Raul Ibanez went 4 for 6, including the game winning homer in the 11th.

A's 5 - Giants 3: At one point, Giant pitcher Noah Lowry was playing rightfield after several injuries to Giants players forced Bruce Bochy to throw Lowry out there. Needless to say, the Giants lost.

Dodgers 4 - Blue Jays 3: Dodgers blow the save in the 9th, fall behind one run in the 10th, and still manage to get the win on a walk off Saenz homer.

Where To Find The CUBS Tonight...

TV: Comcast Sports Network - 6:35PM

RADIO: WGN 720 - 6:35PM

Sean Marshall (1-2, 2.25 ERA) vs. Lance Cormier (0-1, 18.00 ERA)

Current Series: Cubs 1-0

Season Series: Tied 3-3

Thursday's 5-4-3

Pirates 3 - Nationals 2: Jason Bay hit an opposite field homer in the top of the 9th off Chad Cordero to win it for Pittsburgh.

Rockies 7 – Astros 6: Dan Wheeler blew his 2nd save of the season, giving up a game winning single to Troy Tulowitzki in the 9th. Dan Wheeler is now officially on Roy Oswalt’s “People To Kill” list.

Phillies 6 – Mets 3: Billy Wagner blows his first save in 32 chances as the Phillies come into Shea and sweep the Mets. Freakshow Antonio Alfonseca got his third save in 4 days. Finally somebody who didn’t blow a save.

Reds 5 – Cardinals 1: The Cardinals were dominated by Kyle Lohse. You read that right. Kyle Lohse. To ease his pain, Tony LaRussa proceeded to get drunk and then drive his car.

Giants 5 – Diamondbacks 4: Bonds still stuck on 746. Oh wait, you don’t care? Me neither.

Padres 6 – Dodgers 5: More blown leads in the 9th. Dodgers were leading 5-1 going into the bottom of the ninth, Padres sweep the Dodgers with a comeback win. Jonathan Broxton gave up 5 hits before getting his first out in the 9th. Manager Grady Little probably should have taken him out.

Indians 8 – Royals 3: The Royals suck. Plain & simple.

Devil Rays 5 – Blue Jays 3: With this win, the Devil Rays have now won consecutive road games for the first time in over a year. The Blue Jays have to feel good about that.

Red Sox 1 – A’s 0: Curt Schilling gave up his first hit with 2 outs in the ninth to Shannon Stewart. Schilling shook Jason Varitek’s slider sign, wanting to “throw the heat,” and Stewart hit his heat into the outfield for a single. Schilling has apparently never seen “Bull Durham.” You don’t shake off your catcher when you have a shutout in the 9th.

Yankees 10 – White Sox 3: A-Rod hit a grand slam in the 9th to put this game out of reach. The White Sox, with one of the worst bullpens in baseball, showed why they have one of the worst bullpens in baseball. The 6 runs they gave up in the 9th killed any chance of finishing the comeback. The win gave Yankee Manager Joe Torre his 2,000th win. In celebration, Tony LaRussa proceeded to get drunk and then drive.

Tigers 11 – Rangers 4: The Rangers now have the worst record in baseball (21-39). They’ve lost 12 out of the last 15. Manager Ron Washington continues to talk about staying positive, but that’s just the weed talking.

King of the Hill

One mistake was all Rich Hill made Thursday night, and Andruw Jones hammered it the other way for a solo shot leading off the second inning. After that, Hill was fantastic with the only threat coming in the bottom of the fourth when the Braves had first and third with two outs. Matt Diaz would strike out, and Hill would cruise from there.

Hill (5-4) seemed to have the Braves number all night as he tied his career high with 11 strikeouts in eight innings, and allowed only four hits, while walking one. Ryan Dempster came in for the ninth and was able to nail down his 12th save in 13 chances by completing a 1-2-3 inning.

The Cubs offense got off to a hot start as Alfonso Soriano lead off the game with triple off the wall in right center, and was driven in by Felix Pie. However, after a walk to Derek Lee, a Matt Murton strikeout, and a Michael Barrett double play the threat was over. The Cubs tallied a run again in the second when Soriano singled in Theriot, but that was all the offense they could muster against Chuck James who settled down quickly.

- Hill improved to 2-0 against the Braves this year, with both wins coming at Turner Field. He received a no decision June 3rd in a 5-3 Cub loss, at Wrigley.

- Aramis Rameriz has been diagnosed with severe case of patella tendonitis. A decision on whether to place him on the DL will be made Monday after seeing how he responds to treatment.

- Angel Guzman will not throw for at least two weeks after an MRI revealed a strained medial side of his right elbow.

- Lou Pinella returned from his four game suspension for Thursday’s game, but said there is no connection between his outburst and his team's hot streak. Either way, this team seems to be finding a balance.

Where To Find The CUBS Tonight...

TV: Comcast Sports Network - 6:35PM


RADIO: WGN 720 - 6:35PM



Rich Hill (4-4, 2.89 ERA) vs. Chuck James (5-4, 3.78 ERA)



Current Series: 1st of a four game set in Atlanta


Season Series: Cubs are 2-3

Wednesday's 5-4-3

Twins 8 Angels 5 Nick Punto homered for the first time all year, as the Twins snapped a 4 game losing streak. Punto credited his show of power to “that last biscuit” he at for breakfast.

Orioles 9 Mariners 5 The Orioles gave the Mariners a taste of their own medicine by scoring 5 runs in the 5th inning Wednesday to overcome a 4-0 hole. Jay Gibbons snapped an 0-22 slump with two hits.

Indians 4 Royals 3 The Indians loaded the bases in the 9th but could only push across one run in the loss. Octavio Dotel registered his second save since returning from the DL.

D-Rays 6 Blue Jays 2 A day after a one of the worst losses of recent memory, Scott Kazmir and the Tampa bullpen combined to give up 2runs on 9 hits. The bullpen was quoted as saying the turn around was due to their arms finally arriving after a delay in customs.

Yankees 5 White Sox 1 The White Sox continue to say "the bats will come alive," but they wasted yet another opportunity against the Yankees. Abrue homered again and seems to be heating up, while C. Wang has been locked in and dealing. It was the first complete game for New York in 2007.

Tigers 10 Rangers 0 Gary Sheffield clubbed two home runs off of Kevin Millwood and the Tigers cruised to an easy victory. Also, Nate Robertson was placed on the 15 day DL with a tired arm.

A’s 3 Red Sox 2 Joe Kennedy stymied the Red Sox offense, giving up only two runs on 7 hits in 7IP. The Red Sox have now lost 4 straight.

Marlins 7 Braves 4 The Marlins scored 5 times in the first three innings against Kyle Davies, to take the final of the three games set. Aaron Boone hit a two run homer.

Nationals 6 Pirates 5 In a game that only a parent would love to watch, the Nationals hung on to win after conceding a 4 run lead in the 8th inning. C. Guzman scored the winning run on a wild pitch.

Phillies 4 Mets 2 The now have Mets their first three game losing streak of 2007. Aaron Heilman gave up a three run homer to Jimmy Rollins in the 7th. It was Rollins first home run in over a month.

Cards 6 Red 4 The NL Central is warned, Albert Pujols is heating up in a big way. He homered again last night, when he deposited a go-ahead 2 run shot off of Arroyo. It was his 12th of the year.

Rockies 8 Astros 7 More of the same for the Astros as the bullpen blew another lead. Brad Hawpe’s 2-run triple in the 7th capped a four run inning for the Rockies. The Astros have fallen 10 games under .500, and things are not looking up.

Dbacks 1 Giants 0 Chris Young’s solo shot in the 6th accounted for the only run, and Brandon Webb showed why he is one of the games best.

Padres 5 Dodgers 2 Greg Maddux pitched 6 2/3 for win 338 and Hoffman nailed down save 500. Despite earlier rumor that Hoffman wanted a new song for this record moment, “Hells Bells” by AC/DC was played. It had been reported he was to enter to MC Hammer’s “You Can’t Touch This.”

2007 Draft: June 7th - 8th

The 2007 Major League Baseball draft starts tomorrow. This year, the first round is actually being televised. I'm not really sure why. It's not like football or basketball, where we've actually seen the players who are about to be drafted. If one of the talking heads of ESPN say so-and-so is going to be great, I guess I have to take their word for it because I've never heard of almost any of these players. The fact is, with 50 rounds of the draft in total, you'll never hear from almost any of these players ever again. The Cubs have the 3rd pick tomorrow, thanks to sucking something awful last season. Take a look at some of the Cubs' First Round picks from the past. The baseball draft is such a crap shoot.

- '03 Ryan Harvey: still in the minors; obviously hasn't lived up to hype
- '01 Mark Prior: Had the great '03 season, then injuries/lack of heart derailed his career
- '00 Luis Montanez: Who?
- '99 Ben Christensen: Claim to fame will always be purposely beaning and blinding an Evansville player who was standing on deck
- '98 Corey Patterson: Booooooooooooo! Sorry, just a natural reaction when I hear that name.
- '97 Jon Garland: Won World Series with Chicago.........White Sox.
- '96 Todd Noel: Dead. Kidding, I have no idea.
- '95 Kerry Wood: You know the story.
- '93 Brooks Kieschnick: Bad hitting outfielder; then became good hitting, terrible pitcher
- '89 Earl Cunningham: I have his Score rookie card; it's worth 5 cents
- '87 Mike Harkey: Injuries killed his career; now the pitching coach on Ryne Sandburg's staff in Peoria
- '85 Rafael Palmiero: The last time the Cubs made a great pick in the 1st round; too bad he spent his prime with the Rangers/Orioles; His mustache alone was valuable; Oh yeah, he also took steriods

So as you can see, its pointless to rely on first round picks as the "future," or don't let the Cubs draft players for you. Either way, I'm not paying that much attention to the draft tomorrow. Wake me up when one of them actually makes the Show.

(photo courtesy of MLB.com)

Cubs Win Series Over First Place Brewers

The Cubs got some quality pitching out of Carlos Zambrano and it carried them to a 6-2 victory over the Brewers today. Zambrano struck out 9 and only made one mistake, a two run homer off the bat of Prince Fielder. Besides the homer, Zambrano was in complete control today. With all the attention this past week on Zambrano for his dugout fracas with Michael Barrett, it was good to see Zambrano get down to work on this surprisingly good offense in Milwaukee. Now it's time to see if Zambrano can become consistent, one of his main problems so far this season, and carry this over into his next start on Monday vs. the Astros.

The offense today was carried by the rookie phenom, Felix Pie. Felix had another solid day at the plate, going 3 for 5 with a homer and 3 runs scored. Pie's 3-run homer in the second inning, off of Jeff Suppan, turned out to be the game winner. With two outs, Felix went deep to give the Cubs and Carlos Zambrano a 4 run lead. This allowed Loco Zambrano to calm down and just pitch. Loco also chipped in with a 2 for 3 day at the plate with an RBI.

- The Cubs have now won 3 out of the last 4 games. This was the first series win for the Cubs since they won 2 out of 3 against the White Sox.

- Jacque Jones went 0 for 4 (1K) and left 3 on base today. But keep putting him in the lineup. His average is now .236 for the season. But keep putting him in the lineup.

- Aramis Ramirez left the game with a "knee strain" and he's "day to day." Considering the source is the Cubs and their history of trying to cover up injuries, I wouldn't be surprised to see Aramis walking around in a brace/cast tomorrow.

- Zambrano's 2 for 3 day raises his season average to .296 for the year. That's 60 points higher than Jacque Jones. But keep putting him in the lineup.

- Cubs now travel to Atlanta for a 4 game series with the Braves.

- Besides a rainout makeup game next monday, the Cubs don't play another divison opponent June 29th. (3 game set with the Brewers at Wrigley)

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Where To Find The CUBS Today...

TV: WGN 1:05PM

RADIO: WGN 720

Carlos Zambrano (5-5, 5.62) vs. Jeff Suppan (7-5, 3.71)

Current series: 1-1

Season Series: 4-4

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Tuesday's 5-4-3

Marlins 1-5 Braves 3-1 The two teams spent close to twelve hours at Turner Field, played 18 innings, combined for 21 hits, and left exactly the same way. 1 win, 1 loss.

Pirates 7 Nationals 6 Shawn Chacon pitched well in his third start (2-0), and the Pirates used a five run 3rd inning to even their road record at 14-14.

Phillies 4 Mets 2 Pat Burrell may have become the first base runner to slide into a base (third) twice on one play and be called out, without ever actually advancing to that base. When asked about it, Charlie Manuel replied he was just happy to see Pat actually made it on base for once. Chase Utley drove in 3, including an 11th inning go ahead home run.

Cardinals 4 Reds 3 The Cardinals win again on a So Taguchi RBI single in the ninth. Gary Bennett suffered a “contusion to the back of the skull” after being hit by a pitch in the second inning. Ouch.

Astros 4 Rockies 1 Lance Berkman hit his second double of the year (yes I said second as of June 6th) to score two in the 6th, and Luke Scott added a two run homer for insurance in the 9th as the Astros won for the third time in two weeks. Berkman also was ejected in the 8th for arguing balls and strikes, but returned to the field after the benches cleared in the 9th. No punches were thrown, but a suspension is likely.

Dbacks 4 Giants 3 The Big Unit seems to have healed completely from off season surgery (6IP, 7H, 2R, 8K). However, it took a Chris Young solo shot with one out in the tenth to propel the DBacks to the win.

Padres 1 Dodgers 0 Brian Giles RBI single in the eight was one of only two Padre hits, but it was enough to beat the Dodgers. Shortly after Giles hit, Trevor Hoffman recorded his 499th successful save. Maybe for his 500th AC/DC will actually play in person as he strolls in from the pen.

Indians 1 Royals 0 C.C. Sabathia improved to 9-1 despite the Indians offense producing one run on five hits.

Blue Jays 12 D Backs 11 The Tampa bullpen allowed six runs in the ninth inning, including three straight walks (2 IBB, 1 BB) to end the game. Toronto was able to rally after Roy Halladay had a sub-par outing (3 1/3IP 12H 7ER 1BB 1SO) and allowed back to back homers for the first time in his career.

Yanks 7 White Sox 3 Alex Rodriguez homered for the second time in three games, and the Yankees bats awoke for 17 hits against Chicago. Tyler Clippard pitched well, and the Yankees have reclaimed sole possession of 4th place in the AL East.

Rangers 7 Tigers 4 Nate Robertson did not retire a batter as the Rangers scored six in the first and made it stand up despite Texas starter John Rheinecker allowing 12 base runners (seven hits, four walks and a hit batter) in three innings pitched.

Angels 5 Twins 1 The Twins West Coast trip may eventually be what ended their season as they dropped another one to fall to 1-4 on the trip. The offense has disappeared of late, as they managed only 3 hits against K. Escobar.

A’s 2 Red Sox 0 Daisuke Matsuzaka yeilded two runs, including an Eric Chavez solo shot, and was hung out to dry by the Red Sox offense which managed only 3 hits all night. The Red Sox have now lost three in a row and four out of five, but still have a comfortable AL East lead.

Mariners 5 Orioles 4 For the second time in as many games, Ichiro sliced a go-ahead two out double to cap a four run Mariner rally to wim. The only difference was Seattle didn't wait as long as Monday, scoring their four runs in the 7th inning Tuesday night.

Lilly Pitches Batting Practice; Cubs Comeback Falls Short

In back-to-back outings now, the Cubs starting pitcher has struggled with the command he had earlier in the season. But unlike Jason Marquis on Monday night, Ted Lilly wasn’t able to get out his jams. Lilly served up 3 homers to Tony Graffanino, Corey Hart, and Ryan Braun and took the loss. It would be one thing to give up homers to JJ Hardy, Prince Fielder, or Geoff Jenkins, but Tony Graffanino? C’mon Ted. We’ve seen you pitch better than this. Ted never got things going, constantly falling behind hitters, and it cost him and the Cubs the game Tuesday night. The Cubs fell behind 5-0 and weren’t able to finish the comeback, losing 7-5.

The Cubs offense did make a game of it in the later innings, scoring 2 in the 6th and then 2 in the 8th to trail only by 2, 7-5. With two outs and two on, Soriano stepped up to the plate as the go-ahead run. Ned Yost then called in his closer an inning early to face Soriano. The move worked as Francisco Cordero struck out Soriano to end the threat. Soriano struck out 3 times last night, with the biggest one coming in that 8th inning. Cordero shut the door in the 9th for his 22nd save. Cordero’s ERA for the season is a stupid 0.36.

- Derrek Lee had a rough night. He looked just awful at the plate, going 0 for 4 (2 Ks) with 2 left on base. Lee didn’t make one good swing the entire night. Trammell might have to consider giving Lee a day off today, that’s how bad he looked.

- Cesar Izturis, who is now tied with Jacque Jones as “Cubs Player I Hate The Most,” when 0 for 3 (2 Ks) with 4 left on base.

- I forgot to comment on this yesterday, but what is that thing on Geoff Jenkins’ chin? And how many birds live inside of it?

- Claudio Vargas is borrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrring. Pitch the ball already. This guy makes Steve Trachsel look like Mark Buerhle or Greg Maddux out on the mound. If Damian Miller wanted to fight Vargas after the game, I would completely understand. In fact, he would receive some sort of medal for doing so.

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Where To Find the CUBS Tonight...

TV: WGN - 7:05PM

RADIO: WGN 720 - 7:05PM



Theodore Roosevelt Lilly (4-3, 3.52 ERA) vs. Claudio Vargas (3-1, 3.90 ERA)

Monday's 5-4-3

- Giants 8 Phillies 1 Barry Zito seems to be adjusting to the NL finally, but Barry Bonds (0-4, 2K) may want to stick to no day games after a night game.

- Devil Rays 4 Royals 2 James Shields improved to 5-0 for Tampa, while Gil Meche (3-5 3.00) pitched well in yet another defeat. Despite his record, Meche has said he feels like he made the right decision in signing in K.C. I guess $55 million will do that.

- Marlins 6 Braves 4 The Braves left nine men on base, and struggled to put anything together as Tim Hudson dropped his record to 6-4.

- Dodgers 6 Pirates 5 Derek Lowe was hit pretty hard in the 7th and 8th innings, by the Pirates and his own fists, but the Dodgers hung on for their second straight in Pittsburgh.

- White Sox 6 Yankees 4 The White Sox bullpen tried to implode after taking over for Jon Garland with 1 out in the 9th, but was able to nail down a win despite giving up 3 runs.

- Angels 16, Twins 3 Gary Matthews, Jr. had 5 RBIs , including a Grand Slam, as the Angels scored a weeks worth of runs in one game.

- Mariners 7 Orioles 4 The Orioles jumped out to a 4-1 lead early, but the Mariners chipped away until scoring 4 with two out in the 8th . Ichiro had the go ahead RBI double.

- Oakland 5 Red Sox 4 The A’s bullpen cost Danny Haren yet another win by giving up two runs in the ninth, but Eric Chavez walked off in the bottom of the 11th to end a 225 minute marathon.

Soriano Starting to Earn That Guap

Nights like yesterday show why this guy is getting such a ridiculous amount of money. Soriano went 5 for 5, including a bomb that sealed it for the Cubs last night. With the Cubs up 1 & two guys on, Matt Wise threw one in Soriano's wheel house and Alfonso didn't miss it. Actually, he destroyed it. The homer put the Cubs up 4 and the bullpen took care of the rest, which hasn't happened too often so far this season.

Jason Marquis pitched very well, considering he didn't have anywhere near his best stuff. Marquis was in a jam every single inning, but the defense made the plays when he needed them the most. Aramis Ramirez made a great diving play to his left to prevent at least one run, Cesar Izturis & Mark DeRosa turned a great double play to say another run, and Marquis & Barrett turned a big double play with the bases loaded & nobody out to prevent a big inning from happening.

The game, however, wasn't without the usual Cub mistakes. Michael Barrett picked up his eighth passed ball on the season (EIGHT!!!) & the infield botched a pop fly to the mound in which 5 players stood in a circle and watched it hit the ground. Somebody needs to take charge out there and that somebody needs to be Barrett. After all that's gone on in this last week and all the struggles he's had at the plate this season, now is the time for him to contribute to this team as a leader, and a vocal leader at that. He needs to patrol the diamond and get this fielding unit in shape because the errors are going to continue to cost the Cubs in one run ballgames like they have so far this season.

- Prince Fielder is a bear of a human. His 20th homer of the season last night proves that.

- Over the last two games (2-0), the Cubs are batting 13 for 24 with runners in scoring position.

- Jacque Jones had another stellar game. 0 for 4, with 2 LOB. I hate this guy, can you tell?

- The Cubs are now 2-0 with Lou watching from the Cubs suite upstairs.

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Where To Find The CUBS Tonight...

TV: Comcast Sports Network - 7PM

RADIO: WGN 720 - 7PM

- Jason Marquis (5-2, 2.93 era) vs. Dave Bush (3-5, 5.64 era)

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Cubs Win As Lou Watches From Padded Room

The Cubs finally put the kibosh on their losing skid, beating the Atlanta Braves today, 10-1. The hitting came alive as the Cubs knocked out 3 homers, including a first inning grand slam from Mark DeRosa. It's good to get a win before the big Milwaukee series (who would have thought we'd ever say that), but let's get real here. The Braves starter today was Lance Cormier, who was making his season debut after an injury sidelined him up until now. If the Cubs don't hit well off him today, call up the entire Iowa Cubs team and let them finish the season.

Today marked the ending of the first third of the '07 season for the Cubs. After 54 games, the Cubs sit right now at 23-31. For this NL Central Divsion, 90 wins should win the division and should win the division comfortably. So where does that put the Cubs? The Cubs will need to go 67-41 in the final 108 games in order to finish with 90 wins. That's a .620 winning percentage. But the silver lining in this situation is that 90 wins won't be necessary in this poor division. As long as the Cubs can take care of things with teams within the Central, who knows. The Cardinals, who won the NL Central Division & World Series last year, won 83 games last year.

- Felix Pie was recalled from Iowa and started in centerfield today. There was room for him on the roster when the Cubs put Daryle Ward on the DL, with rumors circulating that Ward slipped going for fourths in the team's postgame buffet.
- Sean Marshall finally got some run support in his third start on the big squad. His record is now 1-2, but he's pitched well enough to be 3-0.
- The Cubs open a big series at Wrigley Field North tomorrow night. Although with the Brewers doing well, it probably won't be 90% Cubs/10% Brewers fans as it has in the past.

(picture courtesy of the Associated Press)

Lou Blows A Gasket; Cubs Skid At 6

Well, it was only a matter of time. Lou Piniella wigged out something awful during today's game, much to the delight of the sell-out crowd. Lou can only bottle in so much & when we lets go, wow, does he let go. The funniest part about the whole thing is that Angel Pagan, who was called out trying to advance on a wild pitch, was actually out. The third base ump, Mark Wegner, made a nice call. Maybe Lou was just letting him know that by kicking dirt at him 6 times, kicking his hat another 4 times, and by dropping a profanity-laced tirade on him for about 5 minutes. Some just say, "Nice job," while others kick dirt and let them know what they did with their mother last night. Obviously Lou is in favor of the latter. And boy, did we enjoy it.

- Jacque Jones had another terrible game. This guy is a joke. He left another 4 guys on base and lowered his sparkling batting average to .242. I'd say it's time to trade this guy, but who on earth would actually want him?

- UofI football coach Ron Zook sang the 7th inning stretch today & did a terrible job. Why? I couldn't care less about his singing, but he actually had a CHEAT SHEET in his hands while he was singing. Although now this brings up a bigger question.... are you surprised that he needed a cheat sheet to sing or that he can actually read?

- Michael Barrett did not start & wasn't used as a pinch hitter in the game at all. He was shown in the dugout when the game started with shades on to cover his black eye perhaps. But as the game went on, Barrett was nowhere to be found in the dugout anymore. That's because he spent some of the game in the bullpen, maybe to stay out of the sights of Zambrano. I'm not going to speculate, but maybe he's afraid of Zambrano. I'm terrified of getting beat up by Zambrano and I know that there's no chance I'll ever be in the same room as him. That's true terror.

- Rich Hill hit a nice RBI triple, I mean double. Those are so sweet wheels, Rich.

(picture courtesy of the Associated Press)

Hank White on the DL

Sad news to hear that Henry is on the DL. I'm not sad because he's a great player and the Cubs will miss him. He's not. He's terrible. If the Cubs could have a DH, I would put Zambrano in to bat for Blanco. I'm sad because Cubs fans will be without his mullet for over two weeks now.
What makes Blanco's injury so intriguing is that he's going on the DL with a neck problem. How did he get this neck problem? Some may say it's the strain of playing such a physically demanding position. Some may say it could be from taking foul balls off the gourd so many times a year. Some may say he's faking to get out of being around this train wreck we call the "Cubs" any longer. But the real reason?

His "AC Slater" like mullet.

Just look at that thing. It's a surprise his head hasn't just snapped off his neck because of it. But I must say, it is a thing of beauty. I hope Henry recovers soon, but not at the expense of getting rid of the mullet. It may cause injury, but it just looks so damn good.

Fisticuffs!

Hey Hey! The Cubs finally showed some fight yesterday & it was long overdue. Sure it was against each other, but who cares? Maybe this will fire the rest of the team up and this will be the rallying point of the championship season? Stop laughing. I just re-read what I wrote and I can't stop laughing either, give me a second...

So was this the nail in the coffin on the season? Did this fight kill the Cubs 2007 championship? Absolutely not. The season was pretty much buried when the Cubs blew a 5-1 lead against the Mets, a Mets team that had their "Loser lineup" in that day. No Reyes, no Wright, and no Beltran until the 9th.

So what does Lou do from here? What does Hendry do from here? Do they fine Barrett? Do they fine Zambrano? Do they suspend & fine? Do they trade one or the other? None of the above. You have MTV or A&E come in with camera crews, you set up Barrett & Zambrano in a studio apartment together in the city, and you film them 24/7 so Cubs fans can get some sort of entertainment this season. Barrett's temper, Zambrano's temper, a tiny apartment, and throw in Zambrano screaming spanish jibberish the entire time and I think we have a hit tv show. It will, at the very minimum, divert our attention from Jacque Jones striking out again with runners in scoring position.

And do you think Lou is regretting leaving the booth right now? Welcome to the Cubs.

(photo courtesy of the Associated Press)