The Chicago Cubs blew a 7-0 lead and then went onto beat the Pittsburgh Pirates in 12 innings by the score of 10-8.  It was a sloppy game played by both teams.  From errors, to walked batters, it seemed like the game would never get over.  Finally the Cubs pushed across two runs in the 12th inning to pick up the win.

Jon Leiber pitching in relief picked up his first win of the season.  Carlos Marmol pitched the 12th inning and picked up his first save of the season.  Kerry Wood wasn’t planned to be used today, and that was why Marmol pitched the 12th inning.

At the plate for the Cubs, Kosuke Fukudome went 3-5 with an RBI, Geovany Soto was 3-7 with two RBI, Aramis Ramirez also had two RBI, and Ronny Cedeno had a bases loaded double that scored three runs for his only hit of the game.  Mark DeRosa was the only other Cub to record an RBI.

It was dissapointing to see the Cubs blow the big lead, but that is what happens when you walk batters and have three errors in the game.  With the off day tomorrow, hopefully they will take some groundballs and get some work in on the defensive side of the ball.

Cubs Blog

It was an up and down day at Wrigley Field for the Chicago Cubs and their fans, but in the end they were the one that left happy as the Cubs defeated the Astros 9-7.

Derrek Lee and Kosuke Fukudome led the Cubs during their comback as Lee went 4-4 with two RBI’s and falling just shy of the cycle by missing the triple.  Fukudome hit the game winning runs in with a double in the 7th inning that scored two runs for the Cubs.  Mark DeRosa followed with another double that score Fukudome to add an insurance run.

Jason Marquis was the Cubs start and he sucked it up.   No wonder why so many Cubs fans wanted him traded or even released.  The Cubs might look at pitching Sean Marshall in Marquis spot next time, because Marquis SUCKS!

Kevin Hart picked up the win in relief, and Kerry Wood picked up his second save of the season.

Two big mistakes by the Chicago Cubs in the 8th inning proved to be too much for them to overcome.  An error to lead off the inning my Mark DeRosa, and then a misplay in left field by Alfonso Soriano allowed the Astros to score two runs in the 8th inning and go on for the the 4-3 win.

The team isn’t hitting the ball that much, so they can’t be making these kind of mistakes on the defensive side of the ball.  They need to make these easy plays that are routine.

On the offensive side, the Cubs struggled for the most part. Geovany Soto did have a two RBI single in the 7th inning and Mark DeRosa hit a solo homerun in the 9th inning.  If the Cubs want to win these games however, they need to score some runs earlier in the ballgame and get into the opposing teams bullpen sooner.

Starting pitcher Rich Hill pitched pretty good for the most part on Friday.  Hill did make a  mistake with two outs in the 4th inning when he walked a batter and then gave up a homerun.  All Hill needs to do is finish off batters, and he would be a very good pitcher.  I look for him to have a good outing in his next performance.

The Cubs record is now 1-3 and will play the Houston Astros again on Saturday.

The Chicago Cubs have finally won a game in 2008!  The Cubs defeated the Brewers by the score of 6-3 on Thursday afternoon as they salvaged one game out of a three series.

Starting pitcher Ryan Dempster pitched a lot better the most fans expected.  Dempster piched six innings while only allowing three hits and one earned run.  He had a bad first inning where the Brewers scored two runs, but after that he settled down and pitched a pretty good game.

Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood came in and closed the door on the Brewers in the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings.  Wood picked up his first save for the Cubs as well.  That sure was a great sight seeing Marmol and Wood blow through the Brewers the last three innings.

At the plate for the Cubs, Aramis Ramirez hit his first homerun of the season and Alfonso Soriano collected two RBI’s.   Ryan Theriot, Mark DeRosa, and Geovany Soto each had a RBI for the Cubs as well.

The Cubs will now play the Houston Astros.  Another divisional series, and hopefully the Cubs can win a couple of games and stay near the top of the divison.

Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs are exactly where they did not want to be to open up the 2008 season.  The Cubs are 0-2 as they have lost the last two ballgames to the Milwaukee Brewers.  The lack of keyhits, and poor pitching hurt the Cubs on Wednesday as they lost 8-2.

It’s early in the season, but the Cubs need to get some hits with runners in scoring position.  The pitchers need to throw the ball better as well.  I’d like to see those outfielders coming in on balls, not running towards the wall chasing the ball lol.

The Brewers and Cubs will play once again on Thursday.  We will see if the Cubs can atleast get one win in the series.