Game Thirty-Nine – Cubs 3 Padres 4
WP – Shawn Estes (1-0) LP – Jason Marquis (1-3) Save – Trevor Hoffman (7)
Lou Piniella’s crew lost a game they should have won on a rainy night at the old ballpark. Shawn Estes shutdown the Cubs offense and picked up his 100th career win. Alfonso Soriano led off the bottom of the 1st with his 5th home run of the season, and second in as many days. The Cubs tacked on a pair in the 2nd off a Reed Johnson double but Jason Marquis once again struggled with his command and lost his third game of the season.
Jason Marquis gave up all 4 of the Padres runs in the 4th inning. The big hit was a 3-run homer by Kahlil Greene. Marquis gave up a 2-out single to Shawn Estes and after a wild pitch put the go ahead run in scoring position, Estes scored the winning run on a double to right center by another former Cub, Jody Gerut.
Lou Piniella said after the game when asked about Marquis’ performance, “One bad inning. I have no idea, they are all about the same. One bad inning. Five good innings and one bad inning and it cost him a ballgame.”
Michael Wuertz retired 9 of the 10 batters he faced in 3 solid innings of work but the Cubs offense could not mount their 5th consecutive comeback of the homestand….and ended their 4-game winning streak. Jason Marquis was very sharp early on. He was keeping the ball down with very good movement and location but that all changed in the 4th inning. Marquis’ sinker flattened out and he started leaving everything up.
Adrian Gonzalez led off the 4th with a ringing single to right on a 1-2 pitch. Scott Hairston followed with a single to left. Marquis then served one up on a tee to Kahlil Greene. Greene came in hitless in his career against Marquis. Greene singled in the 2nd inning and then tied the game with one swing of the bat….a no doubter to left.
Marquis retired Edgar Gonzalez on a fly out to right center and Luke Carlin on a ground out to short. Marquis got ahead in the count to Shawn Estes, 1-2, before giving up a 2-out single to the opposing pitcher. Estes then advanced to 2nd on a wild pitch and scored on a double to left center by Jody Gerut.
Marquis retired the Padres in order in the 5th and left after putting 2 on with 2 outs in the 6th….and Scott Eyre retired the only batter he faced with runners on 2nd and 3rd to end the inning.
Marquis allowed 4 runs on 9 hits in 5 2/3 innings with 3 strikeouts. a walk and a costly wild pitch.
After Alfonso Soriano gave the Cubs the 1-0 lead in the 1st inning, Geovany Soto reached on an error by Edgar Gonzalez with 1 out in the 2nd. Mark DeRosa followed with a single. With runners on 1st and 2nd and only 1 out, Reed Johnson doubled to right center. Soto scored easily, DeRosa followed closely behind and scored on a very good slide at the plate.
With the Cubs down by a run in the 5th, Jason Marquis and Alfonso Soriano started the inning with back-to-back singles. Ryan Theriot attempted to lay down a sacrifice bunt but instead bunted the ball too close to the mound. Estes threw out Marquis at 3rd for the first out of the inning….Piniella called it the turning point of the ballgame. Derrek Lee flied out to left and Aramis Ramirez flied out to right to end the inning.
The Padres bullpen shut down the Cubs and Trevor Hoffman recorded the 531st save of his career.
Tuesday night was one of those games teams lose during the course of a season….but with Jake Peavy and Greg Maddux scheduled to start the final two games of the series, a win against Shawn Estes was needed. It was the first win for Estes since September 5, 2005.
Ted Lilly will face Jake Peavy in the third game of the series on Wednesday night.