Dusty can't be having much fun this year; Gorzelanny and Cubs defeat punchless Reds to reach new high-water mark

Tuesday: Cubs 6, Reds 3

Tom Gorzelanny sneaking a peak at his name being back on a major league scoreboard. Or looking at something else. Yeah, he's probably looking at something else.

The Tom Gorzelanny Experiment is a success!

Well, maybe it's too early to report that. But it's off to a helluva start: 7.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K. How sweet is that? It was his first start since September 10, 2008.

And he can hit! Well, not really. He was an almost impossibly bad 7-for-113 in his career entering Tuesday, but he had a nice little bloop RBI single to raise his career average to .069. That's right, .069.

Gorzelanny will likely get three starts before Lilly returns, and almost certainly be replaced at that point even if he pitches well. But he could become a bullpen option if he pitches well enough to warrant it.

Fukudome provided some instant offense for Gorzelanny, doing his best impression of Alfonso Soriano with a home run to begin the game. It was his first since July 8 off the Braves' Kenshin Kawakami. He reached base twice in the game, and has a .440 OBP when batting leadoff.

The Cubs could have a 12 percent roster turnover from Tuesday to Wednesday:

• Andres Blanco was placed on the DL with a left calf strain to make room for Tom Gorzelanny. If Blanco's really injured, then so be it. But if not, I strongly prefer him over ...
• Aaron Miles, who will be activated today (are we sure he's healthy? Maybe he needs a little more time ...). Presumably, a Jeff will be sent to the minors to accommodate Miles--either Stevens or Samardzija. As I said Sunday, I put both hands up to vote for Samardzija.
  
• Geovany Soto could be activated as early as today, requiring yet another roster move. Fox and Baker are almost surely safe, leaving Hoffpauir and Fuld as the options. I opt for Hoffpauir, who is rotting on the bench and is batting just .179 since June 1.

Rich Harden has been hot lately, while Justin Lehr will be making just his second career start. Can anyone say "sweep"?

Triple Crown?

I was going to write here about how Albert Pujols' triple crown chances were slipping away. Mark Reynolds had pulled to within two home runs of the league lead, while Prince Fielder had passed Pujols by one in RBI. But then Pujols hit two home runs, including a grand slam, and recorded five RBI as the Cardinals beat the Mets 12-7 in 10 innings. Pujols is fifth in the league in batting average, however, 19 points behind Hanley Ramirez.

You can't make ...

this up.