The Chicago Cubs stayed hot on Tuesday night as they opened up a three game series with the Milwaukee Brewers with a 5-4 victory. Awesome win for the Cubs who’s magic number is now four.
I really had my doubts about this game as they had to face off against the Brewers ace C.C. Sabathia. However the Cubs handed him his first loss with the Brewers as they scored four runs on nine hits in his seven innings of action. Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez both had rbi doubles in the game while Alfonso Soriano hit a solo home run off of Sabathia.
Henry Blanco added a rbi single in the eighth inning off of Brewers reliever Brian Shouse.
It was Ryan Dempster picking up the win and improving to 16-6. Dempster tossed six innings and gave up six hits and two runs. Both of the runs he gave up came off the bat of Prince Fielder when he hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning. It was a good outing for Dempster as he only walked one batter and struck out nine.
Carlos Marmol served up a solo home run to Fielder in the eighth inning and then the Brewers scored one more run in the ninth off of Cubs closer Kerry Wood. Wood got out of the jam in the ninth with two runners on base as he struck Fielder out on a off-speed pitch to end the game. Wood now has 31 saves on the season.
Cubs will be hoping for another victory on Wednesday night as they send Jason Marquis to the mound against Ben Sheets and the Brewers. If the Cubs can get another win, the magic number will be two and they will be looking to clinch the division on Thursday afternoon!
For the second game in a row, the Chicago Cubs got a great performance by their pitchers. This time it was Ted Lilly’s turn as he took a no-hit bid into the seventh inning before allowing a hit. Lilly was trying to match Carlos Zambrano who tossed a no-no on Sunday night against the Astros.
Lilly was great in his seven innings of action as he only allowed one walk, one hit, and struck out nine astros. Jeff Samardzija, Carlos Marmol, and Bob Howry all pitched in relief of Lilly and they did not allow a hit either. Between the two games against the astros, the Cubs only allowed one hit and outscored the astros 11-1.
Derrek Lee finally hit a home run as he went deep for a two run shot in the sixth inning. Geovany Soto then followed Lee with a two-run homerun of his own later in the inning. Jim Edmonds also had a home run in the game as he went opposite field for a solo shot in the fourth inning. Aramis Ramirez also picked up a rbi in the game with a rbi sac fly in the first inning.
Great showing by everyone on the cubs roster. Now the Cubs head back home for a three game series against the Milwaukee Brewers. The magic number sits at 6, and if the Cubs can sweep the brewers these next there games that means they will win the division and clinch the division at home on Thursday.
So now we ask you this. Will the cubs clinch on Thursday against the Brewers?!
Holy cow, what a game Sunday night up in Milwaukee for the Chicago Cubs and Carlos Zambrano. Zambrano and the Cubs were taking on the Houston Astros in Milwaukee due to the damage in the Houston area from Hurricane Ike. Zambrano tossed his first career no hitter against the Astros in front of a 98% Cubs crowd.
Zambrano’s no hitter was the first no hitter for the Cubs since 1972 when Milt Pappas no-hit the San Diego Padres. Zambrano had 12 days off in between his starts due to some discomfort in his throwing shoulder but he didn’t have any problems throwing the ball on Sunday night. He was normally throwing the ball over 95 mph and had his slider working great.
Alfonso Soriano got the Cubs on the scoreboard in the top of the first inning when he hit a solo home run off of Astros starter Randy Wolf. The team then scored four more runs in the third inning when Derrek Lee and Geovany Soto both had doubles. Lee finally hit the ball hard and in the air to score two runs while Soto’s double scored one run. Aramis Ramirez also added a rbi single of his own in the third inning.
The cubs are now up 7.5 games in the division on the Milwaukee Brewers and their magic numbers is 7. Ted Lilly will take the mound for the Cubs as they face off in an afternoon game against the Astros at Miller Park in Milwaukee. Hopefully we can watch another Cubs win and keep dropping that magic number!
Wow, what a crazy game Thursday night as the Cubs and Cardinals battled once again in St. Louis. The Cubs held off the Cardinals in the eighth and ninth innings to win 3-2 and extend their lead in the division to 5.5 games over the Milwaukee Brewers. It was a win, but boy was it crazy in the last couple of innings.
Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood both had some problems in the final innings. Both Marmol and Wood gave up two hits but were able to get out of the jams by Cardinals base running mistakes as well as great defensive plays. This was a game where the Cubs got the breaks in the end unlike when they had lost eight of nine games the past few weeks.
Rich Harden was awesome through his six innings of action. Harden gave up five hits and two runs while improving to 9-1 with the Cubs. Hopefully Harden can stay healthy the rest of the year because he gives the team a lot of confidence and of course all of us fans.
Derrek Lee, Ryan Theriot, and Mike Fontenot all had one rbi each for the team. I’m still sitting here wondering what in the hell is up with Lee however. The guy just can’t hit a ball hard into the gaps or over the fence. Sure he almost hit a home run last night but it went just left of the foul pole but then hit a little dribbler in the infield to end the bat. Something is up with Lee as he just isn’t hitting the ball hard or in the air at all.
A win is a win like I have said before and with the Brewers losing we will take every win we can get no matter how ugly it is. Now we have to wonder what in the hell is going on with the Houston series. What we do know is that there will not be games on Friday or Saturday and they hope to play a double header on Sunday and then a single game on Monday. If that is the case, Friday and Saturday will be the Cubs last off days of the regular season.
So what is everyone’s opinion on the Houston series as well as D. Lee sucking it up at the plate?
Finally the Cubs held on for a victory late in the game but boy were things shaky once again. A win is a win however, and with the Milwaukee Brewers winning earlier in the day, the Cubs needed to win on Wednesday night against the St. Louis Cardinals to keep their 4.5 game lead in the division.
Ted Lilly tossed eight inning and only allowed one run on five hits. Lilly was able to last so long in the game because he did not walk a batter and struck out five batters. He even ran over Yadier Molina on a close play at the plate. Even though Lilly was out on the play, it was awesome to see him attempt to knock the ball loose as Molina blocked the plate off.
Kerry Wood was bad once again in the ninth inning however. He allowed a Ryan Ludwick two-run home run that brough the Cardinals within one run. Luckily for Wood and the Cubs he was able to get Josh Fields to fly out to center field to end the game. It was Wood’s 29th save of the season in the game.
Felix Pie got the Cubs scoring started in the second inning when he hit an off-speed pitch to left-center and Kosuke Fukudome scored on the play. It was awesome to see Pie make a contribution as he started his first game in a long time.
The Cubs got a huge break later in the second inning when Felipe Lopez committed an error when he tried to turn a double play. Mark DeRosa and Pie both scored on the error to score the cubs second and third runs of the game. Aramis Ramirez added another run in the second inning when he knocked in Alfonso Soriano with a rbi single to left field.
The Cubs now have Rich Harden coming back on Thursday night as they finish up the series against the Cardinals. The Cubs will really watch Harden’s pitch count but the bullpen is ready to go as Wood was the only reliever to throw on Wednesday night.
Stay positive cubs fans, still up 4.5 games which a good thing!
Wow, another game and another loss for the Chicago Cubs. The Cubs lost to the St. Louis Cardinals 4-3 as the Cardinals pushed across the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning on an excuse me swing by former cub Cesar Izturis. The cubs simply aren’t getting the breaks that they were early in the year.
Wow, I don’t even know what to really blog about as I’m furious with this loss. The cubs were controlling this game until starting pitcher Ryan Dempster gave up a three run home run to Albert Pujols in the sixth inning. I just knew sitting here watching the game that if the Cubs didn’t score in the top of the ninth that the Cardinals were going to come back to win.
Carlos Marmol took the loss as he threw 1 2/3 innings and gave up the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning.
The Cubs were looking good as the were up 3-0 in the game behind two rbi’s from Aramis Ramirez and one rbi from Derrek Lee. Finally the two big guys show up and the Cubs still find a way to lose the game.
So now I sit here watching the Reds / Brewers game. Reds just blew a great opportunity with the bases loaded and one out. Game is tied 4-4 in the bottom of the eighth inning. Say a prayer cubs fans…
I just came across a 2008 TBS playoff commercial on youtube and thought it was pretty funny to pass it on. In the first half of the commercial you will see cubs highlights with Alfonso Soriano, Kosukue Fukudome, and Carlos Zambrano and then the second half consists of takes that were show during the making of the video.
The second half of the video is pretty funny. Mark DeRosa and Ryan Theriot are trying to sing the Bon Jovi song and they have no clue lol! Hopefully this stays up for a while for everyone can view it.
These are the Chicago Cubs we’re talking about. A franchise that hasn’t won a World Series in nearly 100 years. They always break our hearts, why should 2008 be any different? I’ll tell you why - because this is the best Cubs team in years, and the best in the National League, maybe the majors. Up until basically last week, nothing has gone wrong for the Cubs. The rotation has been great (and healthy). The bats have been hot, the bullpen - solid. Zambrano, Harden, and Dempster were the big 3, Lilly and Marquis would pick up the pace at times. Ramirez and Soto couldn’t be retired and Edmonds was the Edmonds of 2004. Kerry Wood and Carlos Marmol were unhittable. The Cubs swept a 4 game set in Milwaukee.
Welcome to September 7th; the Cubs have just lost 7 of 8 and 5 of those to the Reds and Astros. Zambrano and Harden and hurt. Lee has no more power… Fukudome just isn’t the player he was in April and May. Kerry Wood is blowing 3-1 leads to the Louisville Bats. I mean, Jolbert Cabrera, come on now. Lucky for the Cubs, their NL Central cohorts the Brewers have been just as cold. Coming off a 4 game split with the majors’ worst San Diego Padres, where they scored only 7 runs themselves, the Brewers still sit 4 back of the Cubs. Despite the fact that the Cubs lead on a playoff spot will be only 7 with a Phillies victory tonight, the magic number continues to drop with each Brewer loss.
So it’s September 7th, and the Cubs still have a 4 game lead despite going through their toughest slump of the year, bar none. Even though we’ve seen it all before with the Cubs, they are going to make the playoffs one way or another. But for now, the slump rolls on.
So if you are like most people, you have been wondering how the Chicago Cubs would be selling playoff tickets. Well on Wednesday afternoon, the Cubs sent out an email that stated that they will be using a lottery this year rather then the virtual waiting room that allowed everyone to try and get tickets. You can sign up for the lottery at cubs.com
Personally I do not like this at all. I always had good luck with the virtual waiting room. The lottery will select so many people, and then it is unknown if they will be throwin in a vrw at a certain time or if they will buy tickets a different way. One thing that I have heard is that the tickets will all be will call. Meaning you will have to have a personal id and credit card that you used to purchase the tickets and then go down to Wrigley and pick up the tickets in person. I wish we could atleast do ticket fast (print at home) but it doesn’t look like it.
Families that were hoping to take the entire family to the game are pretty much out of luck. If you are selected for the lottery, you can only purchase two tickets to one game. Yep, I know it sucks but the Cubs are just trying to be fare and allow more fans to attend games without having to pay scalper prices.
So what is your take on this situation? I say bring back the virtual waiting room and print at home tickets! Leave us a comment and let us know your opinion on the ticket situation.
The Chicago Cubs are playing some very bad baseball right now as they lost for the fifth straight time. All five of the losses have came at home as well where they usually play pretty good ball. On Wednesday night, the Houston Astros completed a three game sweep of the Cubs with a 4-0 win. It was the second time in the series that the Cubs were shutout as the offense continues to struggle.
The offense isn’t being as patient as they were earlier in the season and that is one reason why they are struggling at the plate. They are swinging at too many first pitches instead of working the count. Too many balls are being grounded out and turned into double plays which kill any rally they have going on. With the big offensive lineup that the Cubs have, you would think there would be one player that could carry the team but right now everyone is struggling at the plate. Hopefully Thursday’s offday will help out the offense.
Onto the pitching side of the game, they didn’t throw the ball that badly on Wednesday night as Ryan Dempster pitched seven innings. Dempster gave up eight hits and three runs while walking three and striking out seven. The one mistake pitch that Dempster made was in the fifth inning when Ty Wigginton hit a two run home run. The pitchers just aren’t getting the run support like they have most of the season so they are taking the losses rather then getting the wins.
To add even more frustration to the team, Carlos Zambrano didn’t go through and have his MRI done on Wednesday afternoon like he was supposed. ESPN 1000 was reporting that Zambrano had a family matter he had to attend to when the MRI was scheduled. So who knows what is going on with Z’s arm and when he will be able to pitch again.
The Cubs did remain 4.5 games up on the Milwaukee Brewers who were also swept in their three game series. It would have been really nice to have extended the lead of the Brewers with a couple of wins but sometimes that is just how it works out. Atleast the brew crew were swept by the Mets and the Cubs are still up by 4.5 games.
Let’s all enjoy this offday, maybe watch a little football and be right back at it on Friday night when the Cubs begin a weekend series with the Cincinnati Reds. Maybe going out on the road will help the team out.
Holy cow, what a game Sunday night up in Milwaukee for the Chicago Cubs and Carlos Zambrano. Zambrano and the Cubs were taking on the Houston Astros in Milwaukee due to the damage in the Houston area from Hurricane Ike. Zambrano tossed his first career no hitter against the Astros in front of a 98% Cubs crowd.