7 wins in 8 games!!

In the WGN pre-game, one of the commentators (can’t remember if it was Bob or Len) said the Cubs shouldn’t have any trouble tearing up May. I optimistically nodded in agreement and the game began…

First inning: After a Hairston groundout, Neifi went deep for the seventh time this season. This was especially memorable because the ball went directly into Harry the Heckler’s mit. By the way, Harry, lose the Padres throw back. Last time I checked you’re not a celebrity or a hip hop star so there’s no excuse for that kind of gear. Anyway, Harry, being the rambunctious bastard he is, threw it back before Perez could get to second. Also, Ramirez got his first of three hits in the game which proves he’s bat is definitely back in action (as if anyone was still questioning whether or not he’s slumping).

I want to interrupt myself for a second and comment on the cubs overall hitting as of late. On the whole, our guys have been very patient. They’re getting into hitters’ counts and forcing pitchers to throw strikes. This is leading to loads of offense and is one of the key reasons we’re winning some many games.

The bottom half of the first was pretty ugly for the Cubbies. Maddux threw a wild pitch to advance Blum to advance to second and Burnitz botched a ground ball in the infield to let Blum score easily (Blum’s luck ran out in the 5th when he failed to track down a DuBois fly ball in shallow right) .

Fast forward to the fifth: This is where the Cubs blew it wide open. May got pulled and in came the middle relief. Double, single, single, double, intentional walk to start the 5th. At this point, it’s 6-1, nobody out with the bases juiced. Barrett delivers with a ground rule double to make it 8-1. Maddux even got in on the action with a single which brought in Patterson (9-1, still nobody out). Hairston was next, and what do you know, he drops one into left center. By the time the Cubs’ hit parade ended, the score was 11-1. So…fifth inning recap: Cubs go through the entire order and then some getting eight hits putting seven runs on the board. That’s the most they’ve put up in a single inning this season. Oh, and the Padres went 1-2-3.

The Padres chipped away at the Cubs’ lead with two in the sixth and two in the seventh, but in the end, the Cubs rolled to their seventh win in eight games. Let’s hope we can get out of San Diego taking three of the four. Overall, another great performance by the Cubs tonight. Maddux got his fourth win of the season and six Cubs hitters had multiple hits.

Finally, here are some other interesting things I picked up while watching the game tonight: the Padres are passing around an upper respiratory infection (hence Klesko’s absence tonight), Len (WGN announcer) LITERALLY got shit on by a pigeon today while walking around San Diego and the winning word in the 2005 national spelling bee was ‘appoggiatura’ (a melodic tone).