Sox take two of three from Cubs
Well, we went post-crazy in the day or two leading up to the weekend White Sox series, and since then it's been quiet. The series as a whole was very close, with exception to the first game, where the White Sox won 5-1. Zambrano pitched a beauty of a game in game 2 of the series, leaving after 7 innings and allowing 1 hit. Two problems here are 1) our offense doesn't like scoring runs and 2) our bullpen likes blowing 1 run leads. That's right, in case you haven't looked it up yet, the Cubs led 1-0 when Zambrano left, only to have the lead squandered in a 4 run 8th inning by the bullpen. The Cubs got a couple runs back, but it wasn't enough, as the Sox went on to win 5-3. So what does that tell us? Never pull the starting pitcher... ever. And that's just what Dusty Baker didn't do on Sunday for the 3rd game of the series. Mark Prior pitched a great game, going the whole 9 innings and giving up 3 runs, while the offense managed to put 4 on the board, just enough for the win. This was in large part due to Jason Dubois' 3-run homer, and the other 25% of the scoring came on a solo shot by Henry Blanco. It was good to see some of the less productive Cubs step up and take care of the scoring in this one. Games like this will alleviate some of the pressure from Lee and Burnitz, to name a few. Who knows, maybe one of these days Aramis Ramirez will find his swing again.
Another short post from me, as I'm busy at work. Give us your thoughts and observations from this series by commenting here!
** On another note, a somewhat humorous (depending on your sense of humor... I thought it was funny) article regarding Zambrano's tennis elbow can be found here at Espn.com.
** Here's to the Cubs hopefully beating up a bit on the bottom feeding Astros!
posted by Hyposquasher @ 1:23 PM
7 comments
7 Comments:
The Cubs backpocket heavy 3rd sacker actually hit three balls hard on Sunday. If he gets the chance to see some average pitching against the Stro's he might just find his swing again.
Blanco was reading the site recently, and decided to chime in with a four bagger. He thinks he belongs on this team, and from the ponding on the head and chest he got from Prior after the last out Sunday, his battery mate seems to feel the same way.
WORK! WORK! What's that? A disease?
You've been too busy working? That's condescending. What do you think we've been doing, and we still have time to write. Just kidding.
I have to agree with Jim. I like what I saw on Sunday out of Aramis. He was very close to driving in a few runs early in the game when he lined out to Nogoodnik in left field. He also had a long line out to left center, and a fly out to right center. He's hitting the ball hard to all fields, and while none of them dropped in, it's still a good sign.
Thankfully Dusty has finally realized the strength of his team. STARTING PITCHING. Make these guys pitch until they either lose effectiveness or they ask to be taken out. I was glad to see Prior given the chance to decide his own game, even after that home run in the ninth. Bullpen should be used sparingly, and as long as you still get them in once in a while to keep their arms strong, they will be MORE effective that way.
By the way, in response to the title of the previous entry, "what's a good pitcher anyway?":
A good pitcher is the difference between a W and an L when you're talking about a team that can't be counted on to score copious runs. That's the Cubs.
But having a good catcher behind the plate certainly helps.
Lazlo, I think we need to address that starting pitching issue.... we can't be the 2001 Diamondbacks and rely on those arms to propel us to glory, as they might fall off...
... expect a post about starting pitching tomorrow.
in other news, go Rusch!!
Hey! Don't be knocking the 2001 Diamondbacks—they had Mark Grace.
I would never knock the 2001 Diamondbacks -- although the 2001 Yankees had the pleasure of Enrique Wilson on their roster. And one-time Cub Henry Rodriguez.
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