Cub’s fans got exactly what they expected out of newly acquired pitcher, Rich Harden, but it would take an 11^th inning RBI single from Reed Johnson to secure the Cubs second straight victory.  Harden was effective through 5 1/3^rd innings giving up five hits while striking out ten batters and giving up no runs.  It was the third time in his career that Harden had double-digit strikeout totals and the second this year.  He would leave to a standing ovation in the 5^th inning with a smile on his face that was shared throughout the electric crowd on hand at Wrigley. 

The Cubs would give Harden plenty of run support early led by Jim Edmonds 2-run homer in the 3^rd and then a two-run double in the 4^th.  He would finish the day 2-4 with four RBI’s and 2 runs.  The Cubs would then take a 7-0 lead into the 8^th inning before Giant’s catcher, Bengie Molina, doubled in Ray Durham for the Giant’s first run.  They would score once more to make it 7-2 heading into the 9^th inning. 

In the 9^th, with a five run lead, Lou Piniella gave the ball to Carlos Marmol, who has struggled of late.  After a lead-off double to Giant’s shortstop, Ivan Ochoa, things would begin to unravel for Marmol.  After another single and two Cub’s misplays in the infield, the game was quickly tied 7-7.  Cub’s closer, Kerry Wood was unavailable in the game due to a blister so Lou went with Sean Marshall in the 10^th.  Marshall pitched two solid innings before leading off with a single in the 11^th.  Then, with Mark DeRosa at 2^nd and Mike Fontenot at 1^st, Reed Johnson hit a one out, game-winning single which scored Derosa on a very close call at home plate. 

Expect the presence of broomsticks in Wrigley for the series closer Sunday afternoon as the Cubs look for the sweep.  They will be facing Giant’s ace and All-Star, Tim Lincecum (10-2), who has looked like a Cy Young winner despite pitching for a team below .500.  The Cubs will bring Ryan Dempster to mound who has yet to lose in Wrigley Field this season.

Special Note….  Cubs shortstop, Ryan Theriot, went 3-4 on Saturday extending his hitting streak to nine games and upping his batting average to .322 on the year.

A brilliant effort from Jason Marquis, and an 8^th inning homerun from “Mr. Clutch”, Aramis Ramirez, got the Cubs back on track with a 3-1 victory Friday afternoon.  Marquis, who pitched like a starter fighting to keep his rotation spot, threw 7 scoreless innings giving up 3 hits and no runs.  Giant’s pitcher Matt Cain was just as brilliant through 7 as he gave up 3 hits, no runs, and struck out nine Cub batters. 

With the flags barely moving, it was evident early in the game that we would not see the same type of day that led to 7 Red’s homeruns just a day before.  Both starting pitchers were dominant on the mound and through 7 innings the game was scoreless.  After a double from Cub’s leftfielder Daryle Ward, Piniella put in Ronny Cedeno to pinch run, and decided to pinch hit for Marquis in the bottom of the 7^th despite the low pitch count he had attained.  The move would cost Marquis a chance for the win as Kosuke Fukudome failed to plate the run.  It was obvious that Marquis was well aware of the looming probability that he might lose his rotation spot with the acquisition of Rich Harden, and he pitched well enough to earn another start.  With one out and nobody on, Giant’s manager Bruce Bochy decided that Matt Cain’s day was done and pinch hit for him in the 8^th.  Bob Howry pitched a perfect 8^th inning that set the stage for the ensuing drama that was about to take place.

Cub’s shortstop, Ryan Theriot,  kept his eight game hitting streak alive on a bloop play in the 3^rd and then led off the bottom of the 8^th inning with his second single of the game.  Mike Fontenot then bunted Theriot over to second to put the go ahead run in scoring position.  Giant’s pitcher, Tyler Walker, then proceeded to intentionally walk Derrek Lee to pitch to Aramis Ramirez with runners at first and second.   Ramirez then took the very first pitch and hit a hooking bomb towards the leftfield foul pole and out onto Waveland Ave to give the Cubs a 3-0 lead.  The homerun was the 17^th of the year for Ramirez and drew a curtain-call from the 41,000 fans in attendance. 

Cub’s closer, Kerry Wood, got the call in the 9^th and got into immediate trouble when he let the first three batters he faced reach base.  Ray Durham would score for the Giants making it 3-1 and leaving runners at 1^st and 3^rd with no outs.  Wood then caught Aaron Rowand looking for strike three, as Bengie Molina stole second putting the tying run in scoring position with one out.  John Bowker then flew out to Kosuke Fukudome and the runners held.  As the fans got to their feet, Rich Aurilla hit a ground ball to Derrek Lee, who then tossed it over to Wood for the 3^rd and final out.  The save would be Wood’s 24^th tying him for first in the National League with Giant’s closer Brian Wilson. 

Cub’s fans get ready to welcome in Rich Harden tomorrow as he will face Giant’s pitcher Kevin Correia who is 1-5 with a 4.96 ERA.  Make note that the game time has been moved to 12:00pm Central time so get their early! 

The Friendly Confines turned very unfriendly this afternoon for Cub Fans.  The rain held off but that didn’t stop the Cincinnati Reds from raining 7 HR’s in the Wrigley Field bleachers this afternoon on their way to a 12-7 win.  The loss ended a 3 game winning streak by the Cubs and prevented the Wrigley faithful from an opportunity to wave their broomsticks. 

The Cubs would strike first on a double by Derek Lee scoring Ryan Theriot in the first inning.  Hot hitting Mike Fontenot would double and score on a 2 RBI single from “The Riot” in the 2^nd inning that gave the Cubs a 3-1 lead.  That would not hold for long as Lilly could not make it out of the 3^rd inning giving up 3 runs including the go ahead 3 run shot from Red’s second baseman Brandon Phillips.  The Reds would not look back from that point as they would get 4 more runs in the 4^th capped off by Ken Griffey Jr’s 605^th career HR.  Griffey finished the day knocking in 4 runs on 2 hits.  Fontenot again delivered in the 4^th with a one out 2 run shot to the right field bleachers.  He would finish the day with 2 hits, 3 runs, and 2 RBI’s. 

The Reds just continued to pour it on as catcher David Ross led off both the 5^th and 7^th inning with HR’s, his first multi-homerun game of the season.  Votto capped off the power display when he hit the Red’s seventh and final HR in the top of the ninth inning. 

The Cubs did get their first look at newly acquired RHP Chad Gaudin in the top of the seventh.  He got behind David Ross quickly and Ross made him pay by hitting his second HR of the day.  After Gaudin gave up a single to the next batter he went on to retire 6 in a row.  Maybe Chad just needed to shake off the butterflies he felt pitching for his first time as a Chicago Cub!  Watch for Gaudin to be the real sleeper in the blockbuster trade made Tuesday for Rich Harden. 

Ted Lilly took the loss today and was unsuccessful in his bid to win his 10^th game of the season.  Lilly now falls to (9-6) on the season and will not pitch again until after the All-Star break.  Red’s starter Bronson Arroyo gets the win despite giving up 5 runs and 7 hits in 5 innings.  He now moves to (7-7) on the season with a 5.97 ERA. 

Hold on Cubs fans there is a little brighter news to report…  First Round pick Andrew Cashner, the right-handed closer from Texas, signed with the Cubs today and even got to throw in front of Cub’s pitching coach Larry Rothschild.  He is all set to join the rookie league team in Mesa.  It was also confirmed today that Cub’s fans will get their first look at Rich Harden on Saturday as the Cubs host the San Francisco Giants at Wrigley Field.  The Cubs will most certainly have a packed house on hand to welcome him to his new home on the Northside.  The Giants series begins tomorrow as the Cubs will look to get back on track with Jason Marquis taking the mound in a showdown with talented Giant hurler, Matt Cain.  Let’s go Cubs!

Little man Mike Fontenot came up big for the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night as he hit the game winning home run in the eighth inning off of Tyler Walker and the Cubs defeated the San Francisco Giants 6-5.  It was awesome to see Fontenot hit the home run and pick up his teammate Carlos Marmol who just given up a three run home run the inning before.

Marmol, who hasn’t been throwing the ball that well lately once again struggled as he gave up a three run home run to Ray Durham in the seventh inning that tied the game at 5-5.  Marmol was picked up by his teammate however and actually got the win in the game to improve his record to 2-3.  Kerry Wood finally got a save opportunity and grabbed his 21st save of the season.

Cubs starting pitcher Ryan Dempster got a no decision after throwing six innings of five hits and two run baseball.  Dempster would have pitched longer but he gave up a two run homer to John Bowker in the sixth inning that let the Giants right back in the game.  It was a quality outing for Dempster but still remains winless on the road.

Geovany Soto had a two run single in the seventh inning while Jim Edmonds had a two run home run in the sixth inning as they led the Cubs at the plat with two rbi each.  Matt Murton got the Cubs on the scoreboard in the first inning when he grounded into a double play and Edmonds scored from third.  Murton was not awarded for a rbi on the play however.

The Cubs can take three of four from the Giants if they are able to win on Thursday evening.  Hopefully they can win and then head to St. Louis and take on the Cardinals in a big four game series.

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The Chicago Cubs had a 3-1 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh inning but Carlos Marmol and Scott Eyre both sucked it up and the Cubs ended up giving up seven runs in the inning and losing 8-3.  It was the first time in the past four days that Marmol was on the mound pitching so he was well rested but clearly didn’t have his usual control.  He walked two batters and hit two batters before being pulled out of the game.

Eyre on the other hand came in with the bases loaded and quickly gave up a grand slam which blew the game wide open.  He then gave up a triple, double, and a sac fly before finally recording an out.  Jon Lieber then came in and finished up the game by throwing 1 2/3 scoreless innings.

Starting pitcher Sean Gallagher didn’t pitch that bad at all.  He did get out of a bases loaded jam in the second inning with only giving up one out but that was really his only mistake of the game.  He lasted six innings while giving up four hits and one run.  It’s too bad Gallagher wasn’t able to get the win.  Oh well I guess Marmol was due for a loss…

Kosuke Fukudome, Ryan Theriot, and Mike Fontenot all had a rbi for the cubs.  Derrek Lee did go 3-4 to kind of get out of his slump.

Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs couldn’t score in the first eight innings, but they were able to push across a run in the ninth inning to tie the game, and then another run in the tenth inning as they beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 at Wrigley Field.

Geovany Soto hit a sacrafice fly to right field with the bases loaded and one out in the ninth inning to tie the game.  Mike Fontenot then hit a double in the tenth inning, and Alfonso Soriano signled to left field to score Fontentot for the winning run.  Now that was a great comeback for the Cubs as they swept the Dodgers in the three game series.

Starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano got a no decision on the game.  Zambrano was a little wild but did pitch eight innings.  He allowed six hits, one run, four walks, and struckout three batters.

Jose Ascanio pitched a scoreless ninth inning before Bob Howry ended up picking up the win as he pitched the tenth inning.  Howry is now 1-2 on the season.

The Cubs will now play the Colorado Rockies in a four game series starting on Thursday.

Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs lost once again and this time it was to the Cincinnati Reds by the score of 5-3.  The Reds came into the game with a five game losing streak, but that didn’t matter as they put up five quick runs on the Cubs and then held on for the victory.

The Cubs had their chance in the ninth inning with the bases loaded and only one out but Mike Fontenot was called out at home when he tied to score on a ball that got away from the catcher.  Replays showed that Fontenot was safe, but he was called out by the umpire.  Ryan Theriot then walked to load the bases once again but Derrek Lee grounded out to first base to end the game.

Geovany Soto hit a solo home run in the second inning for the Cubs.  Ryan Theriot and Lee also had a RBI each for the Cubs.

Ryan Dempster took the loss for the Cubs which was his first of the season.  Dempster tossed six innings as he gave up five runs.  Only one of the five runs were earned however as  the Cubs had two errors in the game that really hurt them.

The Cubs need to get back on track and no better pitcher to do that then Carlos Zambrano who will face the Reds tomorrow night.

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The Milwaukee Brewers just seem to have the Chicago Cubs number so far in the 2008 season.  Once again, it was the Brewers beating the Cubs on Tuesday night by the score of 10-7.  The Brewers were all over starting pitcher Jason Marquis and the Cubs bullpen.

Marquis only lasted five innings as he gave up ten hits and five runs.  Kevin Hart then came into the game and gave up four hits and three more runs.  In relief of Hart, Sean Marshall gave up a run and then Jon Leiber also gave up a run.  Just a terrible performance by all the Cubs pitchers.

Derrek Lee did connect for his eighth home run of the season in the game.  Too bad it was a solo shot.  Mike Fonenot led the Cubs with three RBI has a he had a bases loaded double in the seventh inning.  Reed Johnson, Felix Pie, and Marquis all had one RBI each for the Cubbies.

The Cubs will try to battle back and pick up a win on Wednesday night as they battle the Brewers once again from Wrigley Field Come back to this Cubs Blog to check out the game recap after the game is over!

Cubs Blog

The Chicago Cubs lost to the Colorado Rockies 4-2 on Thursday afternoon and their six game winning streak is over.  The Cubs had tied the game up in the eigth inning, but then allowed two runs in the bottom of the inning.  The cubs were almost out of the inning but Ronny Cedeno and Ryan Theriot were unable to turn an inning ending double play.

Kevin Hart took the loss for the Cubs as he pitched the eigth inning.  Starting pitcher Jason Marquis pitched ok as he went seven innings and allowed eight hits but only one run.  Marquis should have seen a better result then a no-decision but sometimes that is just how it goes.

Felix Pie and Mike Fontenot both had one RBI each at the plate.  Pie went 2-3 and had half the Cubs hits who could only mange four hits the entire game.

Now the Cubs will fly to Washington D.C. to start a weekend series with the Washington Nationals.

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.

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