Kosuke Fukudome delivered the game winning rbi single for the Chicago Cubs in the ninth inning as the Cubs defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers by the score of 5-4.  Fukudome also got the Cubs scoring started in the second inning when he hit a solo home run which was his fourth of the season.

Besides getting two rbi from Fukudome, Ryan Theriot, Aramis Ramirez, and Mark DeRosa all had one rbi in the game.  DeRosa’s rbi came on a solo home run in the fourth inning.  The Cubs should have done more damage in the game but they left 20 runners on base.

Starting pitcher Ryan Dempster didn’t have his best stuff going and ended up getting a no decision in the game.  He was pulled after just 5 1/3 innings as he gave up five hits and three runs.  One of those hits however was a Jeff Kent solo home run.

Neal Cotts and Carlos Marmol got the Cubs into the eighth inning where Bob Howry gave up the lead as Kent hit his second solo home run of the game.  Howry would get lucky however as Fukudome picked him up and scored a run in the top of the ninth inning, and then Kerry Wood came in to record his 17th save of the season.  Wood is really racking up the save as of late!

The Cubs will continue playing the Dodgers through the weekend.  Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs used the long ball to win their ninth straight game as they beat the San Diego Padres 9-6 at Petco Park.  Petco is not a park where you usually see home runs hits, but the Cubs hit three long balls in the game.

Alfonso Soriano had a three run shot in the eighth inning, Mark DeRosa hit a two run shot in the fifth inning, and earlier in the fifth inning Geovany Soto connected for his tenth home run as he went deep to center field.  Soto would have had another home run in the game as well in any other ball park but it was caughty right at the wall in deep center field.

Soriano led the Cubs with three rbi while DeRosa had two rbi.  Soto, Ryan Theriot, Derrek Lee, and Aramis Ramirez all had one rbi in the game.

On the mound it was Jason Marquis pitching five innings and picking up the win.  Marquis sure didn’t have his best stuff, and I think he was glad he was pitching in the big park as he got hit kind of hard.  Four hits and three runs were charged to Marquis as he improved his record to 3-3.

The Cubs used six relief pitchers for the final four innings of the game as Piniella is trying to not have each pitcher throw to many pitchers as they have been used a lot lately.  Kevin Hart who had just been called up threw the worst as he gave up two hits and three runs while walking two.  Hopefully it was just a case of nerves after being called back up to the big league team.

Michael Wuertz, Scott Eyre, Neal Cotts, Bob Howry, and Kerry Wood all seen action out of the bullpen.  Wood recorded his 16th save of the season in the game.  It would be great to see the Cubs starting throw a complete game or atleast seven or eight innings so the bullpen can get some rest…

As we mentioned Kevin Hart was called up and Micah Hoffpauir was sent down.  It was simply the case of the Cubs needing a fresh arm in the bullpen. Hoffpauir will more then likely be called up when the Cubs travel to Toronto.

Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs capitalized on a error by the San Diego Padres as they opened up the flood gates and put up 12 runs on the board as they beat the Padres 12-3.  Great win for the Cubs as they are off to a 4-0 start on their current homestand and have moved a game up in the division on the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Cubs put up six runs in the fifth inning, and then another five runs in the sixth inning as they pretty much put the nail in the coffin for the Padres.  Alfonso Soriano had a two run home run, Geovany Soto and Mark DeRosa also both had two rbi in the game.  Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez, Kosuke Fukudome, and Reed Johnson all had one rbi in the game.

Carlos Zambrano picked up his sixth win of the season as he improved his record to 6-1 with the win.  Zambrano tossed seven innings and gave up six hits and three runs.  Zambrano’s pitch count was down, but with that big of lead Lou Piniella decided to take him out after seven innings.

Scott Eyre and Bob Howry closed out the game after Zambrano excited.

The Cubs are playing good ball once again, and they will try to keep it up tomorrow when they play another night game against the Padres.  Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs looked like they were going to go on for a nice win against the Milwaukee Brewers but the Brewers had other ideas.  Kerry Wood gave up three runs in the ninth inning as the Brewers came back to beat the Cubs 4-3.  With the loss, the Cubs are now a half game out of first place in the division.  They had a bad week of baseball that is for sure.

Wood took the loss in the game and is now 2-1 on the season.  Carlos Zambrano had been in line to pick up his fifth win of the season but got the no decision after Wood blew the game.

Zambrano went deep for the Cubs to put them on the board in the fourth inning.  Mark DeRosa and Geovany Soto both had a RBI each as well.

The Cubs now have to travel to St. Louis and take on the Cardinals who are in first place in the division.  It will be intersting to see how the Cubs come out and play this weekend against the Cardinals.

Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs were swinging some hot bats once again as they beat up on the New York Mets by the score of 8-1.  With the win on Tuesday, the Cubs swept the Mets in the short two game series, and remained in first place of the central division.

Ronny Cedeno led the Cubs at the plate going 2-5 with a grand slam and an RBI double.  Cedeno finished the day with five RBI and already has 13 on the season.  Reed Johnson finished with two RBI and Mark DeRosa had one RBI.  Up and down the lineup, the Cubs are hitting the ball and being patient at the plate.

Another Cubs player that had a great day at the plate was Kosuke Fukudome who reached base all five times.  Fukudome had three hits and two walks.

Ted Lilly was finally able to pick up a win this season.  He pitched six innings and gave up four hits and only one run.  Great outing for Lilly, hopefully that momentum will carry over and he will go on a nice winning streak.

Bob Howry, Carlos Marmol, and Kevin Hart pitched the final three innings of the game without allowing a run.

The Cubs finished the homestand with a 7-1 record!

Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs rocked the Cincinnati Reds by the score of 12-3 on Wednesday night.  The Cubs rocked Reds starting pithcer Josh Fogg early and often and also had some luck off of their bullpen.

Geovany Soto led the Cubs with three RBI, Kosuke Fukudome and Mark DeRosa both had two RBI.  Mike Fontenot, Derrek Lee, Reed Johnson, and and Carlos Zambrano all had one RBI each.  Zambrabo had a hell of a day at the plate as he went 3-4 including hits from both sides of the plate.

Zambrano did pick up the win as he pitched seven innings.  He did give up eight hits and two earned runs but pitched well enough to pick up the victory.  Kevin Hart pitched the final two innings of the game and allowed one earned run on a Adam Dunn home run.

Good win for the Cubs as they continue to play good baseball.

Cubs Blog 

The Chicago Cubs defeated the Cincinnati Reds in Dusty Baker’s return to Chicago by the score of 9-5 on Tuesday evening.  The Cubs used three long balls by Derrek Lee, Mark DeRosa, and Ryan Theriot to get by the Reds.  The wind was blowing out and the Cubs sure took advantage of it.

Lee and Derosa both finished with three RBI while Theriot had two RBI.  Aramis Ramirez also had one RBI in the game.  I just have to laugh everytime Aramis is at the plate, the guy just swings for the fences everytime, and I’ll predict that he hurts himself sometime this year swinging the bat the way he is swinginig right now.

Ryan Dempster picked up the win for the Cubs even though he didn’t pitch like he is capable of.  He was a little wild but kept the score close and ended up picking up the win as he pitched six innings of four run baseball.  Carlos Marmol, Michael Wuertz, and Kerry Wood and seen in action to close the game out.  Wuertz sucked it up, Marmol was able to get out of a bases loaded jam, and Wood looked great.

Alfonso Soriano was placed on the disabled list with a calf injury and Eric Patterson has been called up to take his spot on the roster.  Most Cubs fans thought it would be Matt Murton getting called up, but for some reason Jim Hendry choose Eric Patterson.

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.