Wow, it was a totally different Carlos Zambrano on Friday then we seen when he threw his no-hitter in Milwaukee. Zambrano was rocked by the St. Louis Cardinals as the Cardinals blew out the Cubs 12-6.  Now Cubs fans will be hoping for a Brewers lose Friday night so they can drop that magic number down to 1.

Zambrano gave up six hits, eight runs, and one grand slam in only 1 2/3 innings. I’m not sure what the problem was with Z, but he was terrible no matter what way you can look at it. It doesn’t concern me however because a pitcher will have a bad start here and there. I just hope it wasn’t anything in his shoulder that was causing the problem.

In relief of Zambrano, Angel Guzman was charged with three runs while Kevin Hart was charged with one run. The Cubs bullpen didn’t throw the ball that badly besides Guzman and Hart.

The Cubs reserves got a lot of action in th game as Lou pulled most of the startes half way through the game. Casey McGehee led the team with two rbi’s even though he didn’t even have a hit. Felix Pie, Daryle Ward, and Kosuke Fukudome all had one rbi each as well.

The Cubs can clinch on Saturday if they beat the Cardinals tomorrow afternoon and the Brewers lose either Friday or Saturday. Or if the Brewers lose both nights, the Cubs will clinch as well. I would rather just have the Cubs take care of business and clinch by winning some games. So will the Cubs do it this weekend?

Cubs fans, the magic number is down to 2! Geovany Soto crushed a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth out to tie the game and then Derrek Lee came up with a huge rbi single in the bottom of the 12 inning as the Cubs beat the Brewers 7-6.

Some people will say it is a lucky win as Braun should have caught a line drive in the ninth inning. Good teams find ways to win and take advantage of other teams mistakes however. Right now the Cubs will take any win they can get, no matter how they get it!

Soto, who with a doubt should be the National League MVP came up huge with that three-run home run. He absolutely hammered a first pitch fastball to left field to tie the game at 6-6. Aramis Ramirez and Jim Edmonds also hit solo home runs for the Cubs.

I’ll give some props to Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood. Marmol tossed a scoreless tenth inning while Wood tossed two scoreless innings. Wood did run into some trouble with two runners on with no ots in the 12th inning, however he was able to work out of the jam and give the Cubs a chance to win it in the bottom of the inning. That is exactly what happened as Wood picked up the win and is now 5-4.

Starting pitcher Rich Harden only gave up one hit and one run over five innings of action. Harden’s pitch count was over 100 pretty fast as he walked six and struck out seven. The bullpen wasn’t that good after Harden left however as Jeff Samardzija gave up two runs and Neal Cotts walked in a run with the bases loaded. Marmol and Wood sure made the bullpen’s stats look a lot better then they probably should have been.

So now the Cubs have the St. Louis Cardinals coming into town for a series this weekend. I expect the Cubs to have no problems clinching the division this weekend. Hopefully it will happen on Friday night, and if not then on Saturday. It’s a good time to be a Cubs fan!

The Chicago Cubs were unable to lower their “magic number” as they lost to the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday night. The Cubs fell behind early in the game when Jason Marquis loaded the bases and allowed three runs to score in the first inning. The Cubs just weren’t able to battle back out of the three run hole as they ended up losing the game 6-2.

Marquis took the loss as he gave up six hits and three runs. Angel Guzman got out of the jam after Marquis was taken out of the game but then he quickly ran into trouble in the seventh inning and allowed three runs to score.

There wasn’t much offense for the Cubs in the game even though Brewers starter Ben Sheets left the game with forearm tightness. As a team they were only able to come up with six hits and two runs. Aramis Ramirez hit a solo home run and Ryan Theriot added a rbi on a fielders choice in the ninth inning. Theriot’s rbi shouldn’t have happened as it should have been ruled an error by Prince Fielder in my opinion but oh well.

The Cubs will try once again to lower the magic number to two as they play the Brewers Thursday afternoon. Rich Harden takes the mound for the Cubs so I really like their chances!

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!

Congrats to Big Z on his memorable no hitter!

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…

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.