April 7, 2008
By
Zeldink
Posted at 11:41 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Cubs | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 13 | 3 |
| Pirates | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 13 | 2 |
Boxscore
Wow, 12 innings! It took 12 whole innings for the Cubs (4-3) to finally defeat the Pirates (3-4). And that was thanks to Pittsburgh having one remaining reliever in the pen, Rule V draftee Evan Meek (0-1).
I don’t know which makes me more concerned about the Cubs, the way they won, the fact that Jon Lieber (1-0) isn’t in the rotation while Dumpster and Marquis de Suck are, or the fact the Ted Lilly blew chunks today. Regardless, it goes down as a W for Chicago, but I think this team has serious question marks.
The two face each other again when Ryan Dempster faces Zach Duke at 6:05pm EDT.
April 7, 2008
By
Zeldink
Posted at 12:54 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Astros | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 |
| Cubs | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 3 | 8 | 0 |
Boxscore
Houston (2-5) closed out their series against the Cubs (3-3) with a loss.
Brandon Backe held his own against Carlos Zambrano (1-0). Back provided a quality start with 6 innings, 2 runs, and 7 strikeouts. Zambrano outlasted him and the Cramps to get the win, while the Astros bullpen allowed a run in the 7th, with Oscar Villareal (0-2) picking up his second loss on the young season. Kerry Wood (S 3) showed he could pitch a lot in a short number of games by getting his 3rd save.
The Cubs fly to Pittsburgh to play in beautiful PNC Park against the Pirates today at 1:35pm EDT. Ted Lilly (0-1) for the Cubs and Tom Gorzelanny (0-1) for the Pirates.
April 5, 2008
By
Zeldink
Posted at 11:32 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Astros | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 12 | 1 |
| Cubs | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | - | 9 | 14 | 1 |
Boxscore
The mismatch I mentioned earlier wasn’t as much of one as I expected.
Despite giving Roy Oswalt (0-1) an early lead, the Cubs (2-3) battled back to defeat the Astros (2-4). However, the game wasn’t the exact opposite of what I expected. Jason Marquis continued to embrace the Marquis de Suck appellation by allowing 4 earned runs in 5 and 1/3 innings. Despite the win and the almost flirtation with .500 for the first time this season, the Cubs still have a huge rotation problem. (Seriously. Was the GM too close to the situation to realize that Dempster and Marquis were not viable options? Or could the team not afford Kyle Lohse without renaming Wrigley Field to Viagra Ball Park?)
Roy O. took the blame for sucking, which was manly and, ultimately, unhelpful. Just pitch better. And maybe strike someone out sometime, like Derrek Lee.
Kevin Hart (1-0) got the win with Kerry Wood (S 2) getting the save. And his arm didn’t even fall off! Way to go, Kerry!
The two play again Sunday at 1:20pm CDT when Brandon Backe (0-1) pitches against Carlos Zambrano (0-0).
April 4, 2008
By
Zeldink
Posted at 9:09 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Astros | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
| Cubs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 1 |
Boxscore
The Astros (2-3) added to the Cubs (1-3) 100th season of futility by breaking a tie-game against Chicago’s Jon Lieber (0-1) in the 8th.
The poor Cubs. They are going to be the brunt of so many century of losing jokes this year. I wonder, will that make it easier or harder to win once they reach the 101st or 102nd?
Miguel Tejada drove in the go-ahead run to make a winner of Rule V draftee Wesley Wright (1-0). Jose Valverde picked up his first save as an Astro. Mark DeRosa hit a solo shot for the Cubs in the 9th (Dusty Baker was smiling somewhere), but it wasn’t enough to keep them from settling into last place in the central.
The two face each other again Saturday at 12:05pm CDT as Roy Oswalt (0-1) takes on Jason Marquis (0-0), an even match-up if ever I saw one.
April 4, 2008
By
Zeldink
Posted at 5:42 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Brewers | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| Cubs | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | 6 | 7 | 1 |
Boxscore
As I sit here drinking some whisky and Diet Dr. Pepper (don’t laugh, it’s tasty), I realized that I haven’t performed my self-appointed task of writing the quick linescore recaps of yesterday’s NLC games. Sure, I did the Cardinals game, but there were 4 other games last night. And 2 more are already finished today! Ah, the insanity of dedicating yourself to a Sisyphean task for no discernible reason. (And if I’m not making sense now, just wait until I’ve had more whiskys and Diet Dr. Peppers by the end of this night!)
Anyway, to the game. The Cubs (1-2) garnered their first win, managing not to get swept by the Brewers (2-1) and undoubtedly saving the lives of several Cubs fans who place far too much importance in early season games.
Ryan Dempster (1-0) somehow served the role of stopper for Chicago, despite living up to his nickname in the first inning, while Kerry Wood got his first save of the season. Dave Bush (0-1) got the loss for the Brewers.
The Cubs opened a series hosting Houston, while the Brewers returned home to host the Giants.
