Game One Hundred Thirty-Three - Cubs 7 Pirates 14
WP - Jeff Karstens (3-10) LP - Ryan Dempster (12-9) Save - None
Ryan Dempster simply did not have it Tuesday night ... and the worst road team in all of baseball pounded the Cubs once again. Dempster labored through the first two innings on a hot night at Wrigley. He allowed five runs on 51 pitches before six outs were recorded.
Dempster could not find a rhythm but it was his mistake that opened the floodgates. Dempster bobbled a tailor made double play ball off the bat of Garrett Jones that would have gotten him out of the first inning. But instead, Dempster was only able to get one ... and before he could record the third out, the Mighty Pirates took a commanding 4-0 lead.
Ryan Dempster had allowed only five earned runs in his last five starts combined ... and he allowed that many in just two innings Tuesday night. Dempster left after three innings, his shortest outing of the season, and seven earned runs ... a new season low. Dempster's line: seven runs on seven hits with three walks, four strikeouts and a hit batsman on 70 pitches, 43 for strikes.
Dempster came into Tuesday in search of career win 100 but instead he picked up his ninth loss of the season.
While Dempster was struggling with his command and finding a rhythm, the Cubs' pathetic offense was busy making Jeff Karstens look like a Cy Young candidate. Karstens retired the Cubs on just 10 pitches in the first inning ... and sat down six of the first seven batters he faced. The Cubs managed only two singles in the first four innings.
Jeff Karstens picked up his first road win of the season ... and just his third win of the year. The last time Karstens won a game, before Tuesday, was back on June 19. The Cubs quit once again Tuesday night. Karstens allowed two runs on four hits without a walk, again without a walk, and six strikeouts in six dominating innings.
The Cubs young pen provided the Mighty Pirates additional batting practice in relief of Ryan Dempster. Marcos Mateo was not good but Mike Quade said he's working on stuff with Larry Rothschild. Mateo gave up four runs on four hits, two long homers, without a walk and five strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings. An error by Starlin Castro gave the Pirates a fourth out in the seventh, and ran up the Cubs' unearned run total. James Russell could not pitch around Castro's mistake and allowed three more runs on three hits.
Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmol actually kept the Mighty Pirates off the board in the eighth and ninth.
The Cubs' lone highlight prior to the eighth inning was a two-run homer by Koyie Hill in the fifth. Hill's dinger was his first of the year ... the last time Hill hit a homer was May 29, 2009.
The Cubs scored five of their seven runs in the eighth off of Sean Gallagher and Chan Ho Park. Micah Hoffpauir doubled in a run. Starlin Castro singled in and scored a run ... and Darwin Barney singled and scored in the eighth as well.
Starlin Castro raised his average to .315 with a 2-for-4 night at the plate. Castro drove in the Cubs' fourth run in the eighth ... his 40th RBI of the year.
The Pirates ended their 14-game road losing streak Tuesday night and improved to 5-3 at Wrigley this season ... the Pirates last win outside of PNC Park came on July 28 at Coors Field. The Mighty Pirates continued their domination of the Cubs in Twenty-Ten and improved to 10-4 versus Chicago this season.
The Cubs finished August with a 10-19 record and with the latest embarrassment, slipped back to 21 under the mediocre mark on the year (56-77) ...