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Game Forty-Three: Cubs (26-16) vs. Pirates (20-22)
Game Time - 12:05pm C.T.
Coverage - TV: Comcast SportsNet - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 183
Location - Wrigley Field, Chicago
Carlos Zambrano (6-1, 2.03/1.11) vs. Zach Duke (2-2, 4.04/1.61)
The Cubs will try to keep the streak going today against the Pirates behind the ace of Lou Piniella's staff. Carlos Zambrano will make his first start of the season against the Bucs while the Cubs offense will see a familiar face in Zach Duke.
Carlos Zambrano will make his second appearance of the series today after pinch-hitting for Sean Gallagher in the 6th inning on Friday. Zambrano is coming off a solid win against the Padres last Tuesday and will look to post his 6th win in a row. Big Z has pitched beyond expectations so far this season and will look to keep it going against an offense he's struggled with in recent years.
Zambrano has been throwing a lot of strikes this year, which is the big difference in his performance. Z has walked only 16 batters in 62 innings this season with 43 strikeouts. While Zambrano's strikeout total is down, he is pitching to contact and going deeper in games....Zambrano is averaging just under 7 innings per start. Zambrano is 4-0 in 6 starts at Wrigley this year with a 1.98 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP.
Carlos Zambrano needs two strikeouts to pass Larry Corcoran (1,086) for 9th on the Cubs' All-Time strikeout list.
Zambrano is 9-6 in 20 career games, 18 starts, against the Pirates with a 3.83 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP....last year, 2-2 in 4 starts with a 2.88 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP.
- Jason Bay - 12-for-34 with 4 doubles, 5 home runs and 7 walks
- Adam LaRoche - 3-for-19
- Nate McLouth - 3-for-10 with a double
- Xavier Nady - 8-for-20 with 5 doubles
- Freddy Sanchez - 4-for-26
The Cubs will get their third look of the season at Zach Duke. Duke is coming off back-to-back wins against the Giants and Braves. He has allowed only 3 earned runs on 13 hits in his last 13 1/3 innings with 8 walks and 6 strikeouts....all 3 runs were scored by the Giants. Duke has been very good this season with the exception of a 3-game stretch between April 14th and April 25th. The Cubs finally put up runs against Duke on April 20th....they chased the talented southpaw in the 5th inning after he allowed 5 runs on 8 hits in a 13-6 loss to the Cubs.
Lou Piniella's offense was very aggressive on Friday against Tom Gorzelanny, it was the right call and a good game plan. But today the Cubs must return to their newfound patient ways....in 49 innings this season (8 starts), Duke has walked 18 to go along with only 16 strikeouts. Duke is 0-1 in 4 starts on the road this year with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.68 WHIP....7 walks and 2 strikeouts.
Duke is 4-3 in 10 career starts against the Cubs with a 2.57 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP....this year, 0-1 in 2 starts with a 4.91 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP while the Cubs have hit .356 against him.
- Ronny Cedeno - 8-for-20
- Mark DeRosa - 2-for-12
- Jim Edmonds - 0-for-8 with 2 walks
- Kosuke Fukudome - 1-for-3
- Reed Johnson - 3-for-5 with a double
- Derrek Lee - 9-for-26 with 2 doubles and a home run
- Aramis Ramirez - 9-for-26 with 6 doubles and a home run
- Alfonso Soriano - 7-for-15 with a double and a home run
- Geovany Soto - 2-for-7
- Ryan Theriot - 5-for-15 with 2 doubles and 2 walks
Let's Talk Cubs Baseball....
Trips to the Northside
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Today's lineup:
Soriano - LF
Theriot - SS
Lee - 1B
Ramirez - 3B
Fukudome - RF
Soto - C
DeRosa - 2B
Johnson - CF
Zambrano - P
Somebody needs to make another pot of coffee in the Cubs' clubhouse. Just seem a little flat in the first two innings.
Excellent at bat by Reed....game tied
Soriano!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He is flippin RED HOT!!!
Wow...patient Soriano isn't just good: he's scary.
Boseph....my thoughts exactly.
Derrek Lee is really struggling. I wonder when micah hoffapour is gonna get the call up. When was the last time piniella gave lee a day off?
Elliot....good to hear from you.
Hoffpauir is supposed to get the call at some point on Sunday.
Lee has played in all 43 games this season.
Hey neil. Don't worry, i check this site daily several times. I was just keeping quiet for a while since Soriano is tearing the cover off the ball, and I think i fall under the classification as a "soriano-hater." Anyways, if lee has played in all 43 games, i think it's time piniella rests him.
SINGLE HANDEDLY can carry a team right now. WOW.
S O R I A N O !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SO-RI-ANO (clap, clap, clap, clap, clap)!!
Elliott, I agree. Ward's injury is not allowing Piniella to do so right now. He hit the ball hard yesterday, just no results.
Piniella said before the game that Lee and Soto would be getting more regular days off.
Hoffpauir gives the Cubs a solid glove at 1st....but no one knows about his offense.
A 4-pitch walk to Zach Duke?!?!?!? Z has to settle down. Very dangerous offense. Where is Rothschild/Piniella?
I think that's the first time this season I've seen Z break his bat, and I hope that he hasn't hurt himself. I love his passion, but it's stuff like that that can be a problem.
Somethings not right with Z.
He lost his composure for the first time this year.
He was having a little trouble the inning before with his command, so it may have nothing to do with the breaking of the bat. But it makes you wonder.
I just don't like to see him start with good stuff and then just seem to completely lose it.
I know Lou wants to give Z a chance to get out of this, but I'm really surprised that he hasn't pulled him, with the bags full and no outs.
Damn, there you go. He better get Z out.
i guess WGN has a blackout where I'm at, so I don't know what's going on....Is he hurt? the gameday shows he's throwing hard, but what exactly has happened with him?
Zambrano took his at bat to the mound....same as last year against the Dodgers. He has done so well this year of letting the little things go.
It's up to the pen and the offense now.
Aaron, he was doing O.K. on the mound. Not as sharp as he has been. He struck out in the bottom of the 4th, broke his bat over his left knee and the result was this inning.
Aaron, he struck out at his last at bat, and got pissed as he was trotting down to 1st base (catcher dropped the third strike).
After turning toward the dugout he broke his bat over his thigh.
I really don't think he hurt himself, but as Neil said he just couldn't put it behind him. He takes hitting SO seriously, almost to a fault.
I would go so far as to say it seems like something is on his mind away from the game. Could be wrong, but it seems just too weird.
Great play be Lee....you know what they say about great defense helping to jump-start your offense. Maybe that play will get him going again.
Great play by Derrek Lee!!!! Time for the offense to get the momentum back.
Well...so far, so much for that idea. Duke loves beating the Cubs and now he has a lead. No a good combo....
Lee and Soto are really showing some wear today. Zambrano...I'll just chalk it up as a bad outing. But Soto and Lee seem to be getting worn out: Lee offensively and Soto defensively. Here's hoping those days off are forthcoming.
unreal.
SICK.
Boy he sure does look like a "shell of his old self".
:)
WOW!!!! SO-RI-ANO (clap, clap, clap, clap, clap)!!!
Guys I mean seriously. There is such a thing as streaky hitting, but this is beyond words. You run out of appropriate adjectives!
I never, NEVER would have seen this coming, at least not this soon.
And now Leiber is coming in and looking SICK. He's our most important bullpen guy behind Marmol, in my opinion.
boy Id sure love to hear people talk about trading soriano now... patience is a virtue... glad Lou has more than some.
Please tell me if the Cubs will win this game???
I can't believe it. Marmol looked unhittable and the McClouth rips one out.
I can't believe it. What a weird game today.
I guess it's a simple formula. RJ and Fonty get on base, and AS belts his third homer of the game.
Right?
And here I was just about to come on and say how bad of a move it would be to put Marmol in today, due to how weird it is. Oh well, Capps is too perfect to last.
perhaps if someone besides Soriano will step up and earn their paycheck, such as Fuku, Lee, and Ramirez, then then Marmol wouldn't have been in that position to give up a HR in the first place.
Soriano is the best hitter in MLB the last two weeks...
Leads the team in HRs, probably top 3 in RBIs, better average than the never-criticized Derrick Lee, and doesn't make excuses.
Geez, Jason, what's up with you and D-Lee? He's played in every freaking game this year!
Look, everyone who criticized Sori has been eating crow for awhile now, and we've all admitted it.
As for someone "other than Soriano stepping up".....what about Geo? What about Theriot?
I'm not denying that those three have gone into a rough patch, but I think you're blowing it a bit out of proportion.
Reed Johnson is no longer "BTS" or "Better Than Soriano".
Now he is Reed "RK/RJ" Johnson, for Rally Killer.
This guy is a glorified backup OF...and he has no business starting on our otherwise stellar lineup.
Same thing for Fontenot.
The downfall of the Cubs will be over-reliance on DeRosa, Fontenot, Theriot, Johnson, Pie, and Edmonds.
Need real players, Hendry...not guys you HOPE will have a good year.
Soriano 5-5...that is a REAL MLB PLAYER!!!!!
You're just making idiotic statements. Sheesh.
Thanks to backup players Reed Johnson and Mike Fontenot, we didn't have much room for error in the 9th.
Lee gave it a good ride, but he is no Soriano.
Lee needs a day off! I'm also ready to see McClouth go away.
If Lou gives Lee a day off, he will probably give Soto a day off, leaving us with Blanco, Johnson, DeRosa, Fontenot, and Theriot all in the lineup at the same time.
He is making $12+M a year...he can tough it out, I think.
Gotta blame this game on the middle of the order, and on Zambrano...I missed the early part of the game, but just by reading the comments and looking at his pitching line, you can tell he didn't have a good mindset/mental approach today.
These games will happen...although normally Fuku, Aramia, and Lee shouldn't all slump at once.