As predicted, we predicted terribly

You might recall that Trevor Sierra, Andrew Kapral and I made our annual Cubs predictions last March. We predicted seven categories total; in five of them, all three predictions turned out to be higher than the actual result. So either the Cubs had a pathetic season in which they underperformed to an extreme degree, or all three of us are blindly optimistic fools with zero talent for predicting what will occur in a Cubs season. Or both. You know what, I think it's both.

Last year, Trevor and Andrew tied with three apiece while I had two.

*Actual result in parentheses

Cubs wins (75)

Trevor 88
Andrew 87
Brandon 86

Um ... yay? I don't feel good about benefiting from the Cubs' debacle of a season.

Had the Cubs won 86 games, the lowest of our three predictions, they would have lost the division by just three games and finished ahead of the Cardinals by two. Instead, they finished with the eighth-worst record in the majors. They were worse than teams such as the Astros, Brewers, Marlins and A's. They were even worse than the Mets. Not a great year.

Randy Wells wins (8)

Trevor 13
Brandon 11
Andrew 10

After winning 12 in his rookie season, Wells started five more games in 2010 but won only eight. His ERA went up by more than a point even though he actually gave up fewer hits/9 in 2010 compared to 2009. He was much less consistent this season--he had three starts of four innings or fewer.

Soto slugging percentage (.497)
Brandon .475
Andrew .445
Trevor .430

Here's the only category where we were all too pessimistic. Soto had a great bounce back season. While playing in only 105 games hurt his power numbers, his slash line was back to the level of his Rookie of the Year campaign. (Slash line is average/on-base/slugging.)

2008: .285/.364/.504

2010: .280/.393/.497

He also had a higher HR/AB ratio this season than in 2008. My win here puts me up 2-1 on Andrew.

Zambrano wins (11)
Trevor 20
Brandon 14
Andrew 14

Good guess, Trevor. No, really, I mean he averaged 11.5 wins over the previous two seasons and he's never won 20 in his life. As it turned out, Zambrano only started 20 games due to his time spent in the bullpen. 3-2 me over Andrew. (Trevor? You there?)

Derrek Lee HR (19)

Brandon 33
Trevor 33
Andrew 27

Ouch. If you don't count 2006 when he missed most of the season or 1999 when he only played 70 games, this was his lowest home run total since 1998. He also had his lowest average (.260) since 1998. His punishment? Being banished to the Orioles, where Cubs go to die.

By going low, Andrew's tied it at 3. This is dramatic ...

Carlos Marmol walks per 9 innings (6.0)
Brandon 6.4
Andrew 5.8
Trevor 5.1

This category was meant to be indicative of Marmol's season overall. As in: lots of walks per nine innings? He must be blowing lots of saves. Not many walks per nine innings? Wow, he must be doing well as the closer. Since I thought he was going to be a disaster as closer, I went high on this one. Turns out I lost to Andrew by just 0.2, yet Marmol had a great season. He was 38-for-43 in saves, had a 2.55 ERA and led the majors with a ridiculous 16 strikeouts per nine innings. He was in fact one of the few pieces of glitter on the turd that was the Cubs' season. And yet ... lots of walks. Oh well. You win this round, Andrew.

Theriot OBP (.321)
Andrew .380
Brandon .370
Trevor .365

And Trevor takes his first category despite being pretty far off on this one. A few players who had a higher OBP than Theriot in 2010:

Alfonso Soriano

Drew Stubbs

Ryan Ludwick

Yovani Gallardo

Dan Haren

Angel Pagan

Albert Pujols was walked intentionally 38 times in 2010. Theriot walked 41 times total. So anyways, Theriot is not good at getting on base. None of us realized that, but Trevor's guess sucked the least.

Final tally:

Andrew 4

Brandon 3

Trevor 1

Congratulations, Andrew! A tie for first last year and an outright victory this year. You are forcing me to slightly doubt my hypothesis that living in Texas for an extended period of time inevitably turns you into a babbling buffoon who wears spurs and eats your own poop. But only slightly.

Actual NL Central Standings

Reds

Cardinals

Brewers

Astros

Cubs

Pirates

Predicted
Brandon
Cardinals
Cubs
Brewers
Reds
Astros
Pirates

Trevor
Cardinals
Cubs
Brewers
Reds
Astros
Pirates

Andrew
Cubs
Cardinals
Reds
Brewers
Astros
Pirates

Derrek Lee update

That looks weird.

It's not a good one, unless you were hoping he would fail in Atlanta. After hitting four home runs in his last three games played as a Cub, Lee has yet to go deep in 17 games as a Brave. While in his first 10 games he had nine hits, seven RBI and three runs scored (and the Braves went 5-5), he is just 4-for-20 with one run scored and nary an RBI in his last seven (and the Braves are 2-5).

While they lead the Wild Card race, the Braves fell out of first for the the first time since May after a second straight loss to the Pirates yesterday.

Cubs bid farewell to Derrek Lee

As a member of the Florida Marlins, Derrek Lee helped ruin the Cubs' best chance to make it to the World Series in the last 26 years. A year later, he came to North side in a trade for Hee-Seop Choi and has manned first base for the last seven years, hitting 179 home runs (11th most in franchise history) and batting .298 in that time. He finished third in the MVP vote in 2005 and made two All-Star teams while in Chicago, and is one of the top 10 first basemen ever to don Cubbie blue. He also served as a team leader and a calm presence in a not-always serene clubhouse.

But with free agency looming and an OPS lower than Lee's seen in over a decade, Jim Hendry took advantage of the opportunity to move him to a contender. Needing offense after a season-ending injury to Chipper Jones, the Braves moved in on D Lee and shipped three prospects to the Cubs. Lee earlier nixed a potential trade to the Angels, perhaps because they were and are on the periphery of the playoff race, but accepted a trade out East to the division-leading Braves.

Though Lee has not looked the same this season and has battled the injury bug a bit, I will certainly look fondly on his time with the Cubs. He and Aramis Ramirez secured the corner infield positions as well as the three-four spots in the lineup for seven seasons, and he has been one of the most consistent and productive Cubs hitters of the last quarter-century. In addition, he won three Gold Gloves at the most important position in the field.

With that said, it was a no-brainer for Hendry as he turned what would have become nothing into a potential something. From MLB Trade Rumors:

Chicago gets right-hander Robinson Lopez, right-hander Tyrelle Harris and left-hander Jeffrey Lorick according to the Cubs, who will send the Braves money in the deal.

Baseball America ranked Lopez 16th among Braves prospects before the season and suggested that he "may be the biggest sleeper in the [Atlanta] system." He's still just 19, but his numbers in A ball haven't been as impressive as the ones he posted in his Rookie ball debut last year. Lopez has a 4.37 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 so far in 2010.

Harris, 23, has played at three levels this season and has now reached AA. Overall, the reliever has a 2.90 ERA with 10.9 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9. Lorick, also a reliever, has yet to reach AA, but the 22-year-old has solid numbers so far in 2010: a 2.24 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9.

As always, we'll have to wait and see how this trade ultimately pans out. But for now, kudos to Hendry for getting something done even after the trade deadline, and I bid a fond farewell to Derrek Lee. I wish him the best; I'd have no problem seeing him win his second World Series ring a couple months from now.

Week 19 awards: Helping the Reds' cause again

Jeff Roberson, Associated Press

I know, it's sad that this is now the lens through which I view the Cubs season, but what can I say--they're in fifth place in the division and reached a nadir of 20 games below .500 in the middle of this past week before taking the final two games from the Cardinals. There are still other reasons to watch: to witness the development of youngsters like Castro and Colvin; to see if Zambrano can get his act together in the final two months; and to continue to monitor the carousel of rookie relievers who are essentially auditioning for spots in the bullpen next season, among others. But when it comes to the actual wins and losses, it doesn't get much better than beating the Cardinals, and the Cubs have now taken two series from the redbirds in the last three weeks.

The aforementioned bullpen nearly ruined what should have been a comfortable victory yesterday, but Marmol eventually nudged the door shut against a ragtag lineup consisting of several Cardinals back-ups. Though the game was a blowout early on, the Cubs ultimately needed pretty much all of their nine runs to hold off their rivals.

The Cubs swung the bats well throughout the week, scoring 37 runs while going 3-4 against two potential playoff teams with three of the losses being of the one-run variety, giving them 29 of those frustrating defeats on the season. Twenty-nine! Even more frustrating, the Cubs held a lead in all four of their losses.

Ryno of the Week: It was an abbreviated week for Derrek Lee as he was tending to his ill grandfather for a few days, but he returned with a vengeance by launching four home runs over the weekend. His four dingers match the highest total he's had in any month so far this season. Overall this week he was 5-for-10 with three runs and 4 RBI.

Honorable mentions: Starlin Castro, Marlon Byrd, Ryan Dempster

Goat of the Week: When you fantasize about finally getting your shot in the major leagues, you definitely don't think your career will start the way Thomas Diamond's has. The 27-year-old lasted just four innings against St. Louis on Friday which was one inning more than he pitched against the Reds in his previous start, and he struck out just three guys in his last two starts after chalking up 10 Ks in his major league debut. His struggles cost him his spot in the rotation, as his next scheduled start will go to Casey Coleman; Diamond will move to the bullpen.

Dishonorable mentions: Alfonso Soriano, Randy Wells

Cubs shut out Dodgers for second time in three days

Ted Lilly hasn't won in over a month, and even seven scoreless innings couldn't get him back in the win column yesterday. But a late RBI by Tyler Colvin did put the Cubs back in the win column, and Sean Marshall took home the victory. Despite being a reliever, Marshall has more wins (5) than any Cub pitcher except for Carlos Silva.

Lilly has continued to look better and better with each start, and yesterday's outing was his best since his first of the year when he tossed six shutout innings against the Brewers. The performance gave the Cubs another series win and brings them to 8-3 in their last 11.

Their recent success hasn't been the result of the offense getting into gear--they haven't scored more than six runs since May 7 when they beat the Reds 14-7. Granted, you obviously don't have to score seven runs or more to win, but it's interesting that the Cubs' recent surge has not been a function of good hitting, but rather adequate hitting combined with great pitching.

Certainly that was the case yesterday as the offense mustered only four hits and one run, but Lilly, Marshall and strike-out-the-side Marmol held the Dodgers to the minimum. Brian Brennan said that the broadcast mentioned it was the Cubs' first 1-0 win in over three years; if memory serves, that was a complete game gem by Jason Marquis in Pittsburgh back in 2007.

Derrek Lee is really coming around--he's now 7-for-9 with three walks in his last three games. Starlin Castro, on the other hand, is 0-for his last-12 and saw his average dip under .300 for the first time this season.

By the way, did anyone else see Reed Johnson making nice catches out in left and wish that he was in the outfield in the top of each inning rather than the bottom? His Cub replacement, Xavier Nady, isn't even allowed to throw the ball farther than my one-year-old niece for fear that his elbow will, like, explode or something. Johnson is also batting .303 to Nady's .229. Oh well.

The Cubs face the Cardinals this weekend, who are just 9-13 in their last 22 games. They have struggled to score at times, and have actually scored seven fewer runs than the Cubs this season. They've also recently lost Brad Penny and Kyle Lohse to the DL, which means Adam Ottavino will make his major league debut against the Cubs tomorrow (Lohse may even be out for the year). But sandwiched around him will be Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainright, so the Cubs will have their work cut out for them. Go get those Redbirds!

Note: Jeff Baker left the game after losing vision in his right eye. I'm not even sure what to say about that. Hopefully he'll be all right.

Dempster downs Dodgers as Lee leads offense

I'll get my small quibble out of the way first: Ryan Dempster should have been given a chance to complete that game. Carlos Marmol pitched Saturday and Sunday, so it's not like he needed work, and Dempster had allowed just four base runners through eight innings.

But I digress. Though the Cubs didn't record their first complete game of the season, they did notch their second shutout. Dempster's gem got the Cubs back to just two games under .500, which is their best record since May 7 when they were 14-16. It was a well-deserved win for Demp, who has gone at least six innings in all of his 10 starts this year.

Which reminds me, exactly who is supposed to go to the bullpen when Carlos Zambrano returns to the rotation? I agree with Ken Rosenthal: the other starters have been very consistent, and I think the team is still best-served with Big Z in the bullpen. Every current member of the starting rotation has a great reason to stay there: Dempster goes deep into games, giving the bullpen a rest; Gorzelanny has the best ERA of the five starters; the Cubs are 8-1 when Silva starts; Wells is 15-12 with a 3.21 ERA in his career; and Lilly is left-handed (the Cubs already have three lefties in the 'pen) and won at least 12 games each of the last four years. Or, the Cubs could try something different and go with a six-man rotation. But no matter what I think, Zambrano will return to the rotation next week against the Pirates.

The Cubs only managed six hits last night, but two errors by Rafael Furcal and two big hits by Derrek Lee (he was 3-for-3 overall) resulted in three Cubs runs. It was only the second time all year the Cubs have won when scoring three or fewer runs, but of course the Cubs will take it any way they can get it. Carlos Marmol snagged his third save in the last four games and 10th on the season, tying him for fifth in the NL in that category.

The Cubs have now won seven of nine overall, and are suddenly playing well against good teams after struggling mightily against the patsies of the National League. Here's hoping they can keep that up as they have two more against the Dodgers followed by their first match-up with the Cardinals this weekend.

Two notes: The Cubs would have won either way, but Tyler Colvin kept the "The Cubs Haven't Won When Tyler Colvin Doesn't Play" streak alive when he pinch-hit with two outs in the ninth; Starlin Castro kept his "Reached Base in Every Game" streak alive when he reached on an error in the eighth.

Grabow, wasted opportunity in ninth do Cubs in

(AP Photo/Matt Slocum / May 20, 2010)

I'm not mad that the Cubs lost yesterday, but I'm definitely frustrated about the way they lost. One out of two in Philly ain't bad--heck, I'll usually settle for one out of three in Cheese Steak Land. But the Cubs could have had that one. They came back from three runs down only to see John Grabow fire up his Evil Machine of Suckiness, and then failed to score the tying run in the ninth despite putting runners at first and third with nobody out against 77-year-old (it's true, look it up ... never mind, don't look it up) Jose Contreras.

Castro had a solid day at the plate with two hits and an RBI, but he looked bad striking out on three pitches in the ninth. Aramis Ramirez worked a 3-2 count but then swung at a pitch that may have been in a different time zone, and then Soto fouled out to end the threat and the game. It was just the second save of Contreras' career.

But even though I don't want to, let's go back to Grabow. The game-winning hit was a single to right by Raul Ibanez, but the real problem was the two walks that came before it. Grabow's never been a control guy--he actually walked more men per nine innings last year than he has this year, if you can believe it. But he's also allowed 23 hits in 15.1 innings this season, resulting in an 8.44 ERA and a crazy-bad 2.08 WHIP. He has allowed at least one run in five of his eight appearances in May. (Side note: I don't blame Piniella for not going to Sean Marshall given that he pitched Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. He's been great, but we can't use him 90 times.) This is a tough situation--if Grabow can't pitch effectively, the Cubs are screwed anyways. But when we keep trotting him out there and runners keep trotting around the bases against him, it's not fun to watch.

Speaking of trotting around the bases, Dempster pitched decently but was hurt yet again by the long ball. Chase Utley hit one early and Jimmy Rollins's three-run blast, which came on a 3-0 pitch, was the eighth home run Demp has allowed this year. He allowed 22 last year and only 14 in 2008.

Two starts ago: Three-run shot by Joey Votto, Reds go up 5-3
Three starts ago: Two-run shot by Ryan Church, Pirates go up 2-1
Four starts ago: Home runs by Adam Kennedy and Adam Dunn account for two of the Nationals' runs in a 3-2 Cubs loss

So, it's safe to say that it's becoming a trend. Dempster has pitched solidly this year, but he's now lost five straight starts. He's going to have to keep the ball in the park more often if he wants to get into the win column more often.

Fukudome and Lee had home runs of their own yesterday. Lee's was especially nice to see as it was his first since April 25. Pat Hughes told listeners they could "get out the tape measure" on Lee's blast, which was nice to hear given that the only distance Lee's been covering lately is that from home plate to the dugout.

The Cubs are still 3-1 on the week and split a road series with the best team in the National League. They'll have to shake off this tough loss as they prepare for an early interleague series in Texas. The Cubs last played in Arlington in 2007, losing two of three (hey, look who lost the last game of that series!).

Silva pitches well, offense does just enough in 4-3 win

It's May 13, the Cubs have played over 21 percent of their schedule, and Carlos Silva is still without a loss. He bounced back from two mediocre starts and moved to 4-0 with a solid outing against the Marlins yesterday. The Cubs are 6-1 in Silva's starts and three of their four wins in May have come in games in which he took the mound. It's quite possible that Silva could retire today and we would still say two years from now that Hendry fleeced the Mariners. I'm only half joking.

The offense didn't exactly bust out of their slump, but two big doubles by Mike Fontenot and Marlon Byrd--along with a wild pitch by Chris Volstad--enabled the Cubs to eke out a victory. Derrek Lee and Starlin Castro chipped in two hits apiece, and Aramis Ramirez was given another day off. Oh, that reminds me: a quick word on Aramis Ramirez saying he's his own hitting coach. Really, Aramis? Rudy Jaramillo and his $2.4 million contract beg to differ. Look, I know you're a veteran and all, and a player who's had a great deal of success in the past. Clearly you do have a pretty good idea how to hit a baseball. But right now, you don't. Your major league-worst .159 batting average indicates that if you are your own hitting coach, you suck at it. You're fired. Luckily, the Cubs happen to have another hitting coach on hand, and it just so happens that he's been paid to work with major league hitters for the last 20 years. Maybe just have a chat with him, chew the fat, a little tete-a-tete. Maybe drop the macho "I can do it all" shtick, because you can't. Not right now, anyway.

On that note, I also think it's time for Piniella to move both Derrek Lee and Ramirez down in the batting order. It doesn't have to be permanent, of course. I still have faith that both of them will have solid seasons, but right now, they are two big black holes in the middle of the lineup. Theriot and Fukudome tend to get on base (.357 and .422 OBPs, respectively), then Lee and Ramirez strike out, pop it up, etc., and the inning ends. To wit: yesterday, Lee popped out with runners at first and second and nobody out, and grounded out with a runner at third and only one out.

After our resident minor leaguers are done stabbing a rally in the chest dozens of times, the bottom of the order does decently, but the pitcher comes up and it's all for naught once again. On Monday, Lilly's first two at bats came with runners and first and third and then with the bases loaded. Suffice to say, those situations did not work out in the Cubs' favor. Move Lee and Ramirez down until they finally get hot, Lou, and then move them back up where they can do some damage. Right now the only thing they're damaging is Ron Santo's heart.

Carlos Marmol raised Santo's blood pressure in the ninth yesterday (and mine), though he did escape with his fifth save of the season. For some reason, he seemed to be overly reliant on his slider. Against Brian Barden, he threw five sliders and one fastball. Against Gaby Sanchez, four sliders and a curveball. I haven't seen that many sliders since I got drunk and went to White Castle with a stolen credit card. He finally did strike out Hanley Ramirez looking with a fastball on the inside corner, but where was that pitch for the first five hitters of the inning? But I digress. Marmol got the job done and the Cubs avoided the sweep.

Up next are the Pirates, who were just swept by the Reds and failed to score in their last two games. Just over a week after the Cubs were embarrassed in Pittsburgh, they get a chance for some revenge.

Caridad to DL, Jeff Gray recalled

Chicago Breaking Sports reports that a right-forearm strain has sent Esmailin Caridad to the DL, and righty Jeff Gray--acquired in the Jake Fox trade--will replace him on the roster.

While Caridad was excellent last season and I hope he can be productive in the set-up role this season as well, he has struggled out of the gate and can't seem to locate anything but his fastball. Gray had a 3.76 ERA with the A's last year and was yet to allow a run in four innings at Iowa this season. Therefore, this really doesn't hurt the Cubs at all.

Derrek Lee is out of today's lineup due to a minor right thumb injury. Fortunately the Cubs have a solid backup in Xavier Nady, and he will bat cleanup today behind Aramis Ramirez. Lee is expected to play tomorrow.

2010 Cubs preview: First Base

Whatever I predict about Derrek Lee, it will be wrong.

After being limited to 50 games in 2006 due to a broken wrist, I figured he'd come back healthy in 2007 and return to his 2005 numbers (when he hit 46 home runs and had 107 RBI). While he had a .330 average in the first half of 2007, he had just six home runs and 42 RBI at the All-Star break. So I figured his power was gone for good, that 2005 was just a fluke, but that he would at least continue to hit for a high average. So, of course, he racked up 16 more home runs and a respectable 40 more RBI after the All-Star break, but hit a more pedestrian .302.

The first half of 2008 led me to believe the power was here to stay--he had 15 HR and 56 RBI before the break. So just when I was back on the D Lee train, he had a miserable second half: 5 HR, 34 RBI, .266 average.

I pretty much gave up on him at the beginning of last season. He was 33 years old, finished the 2008 season in poor fashion, and he came out of the gate with an April that even Mario Mendoza would have been pissed about: 1 HR, 10 RBI, .189 average. And he was continuing his assault on the record for most groundouts to the left side of the infield in a career (he had approximately 7,000 of them in 2008). I was ready for Piniella to give Micah Hoffpauir (!) a chance at first base. He couldn't have been worse than this washed up, good-for-nothing ... wait, what's this? A .313 average in May? Six home runs in June? Nine more in July? 35 HR and 111 RBI (a career high) when the book was closed on 2009? Wha' happened?

I don't know the answer to that question, but perhaps Lee's wrist bothered him for a really long time after he returned to action in 2006. His power numbers and tendencies (e.g. grounding out to the left side constantly) had weird ebbs and flows, and for a long while it seemed that he had only warning track power. But his post All-Star numbers from last year were better than almost anyone's, including those of Albert Pujols. He was really the only consistent force in the Cubs' lineup all year, and in this, his contract year, the Cubs need big things from him again.

Though I have obviously been frustrated with Lee at times over the past few years, his last three seasons average out to: 26 HR, 94 RBI, .305 avg., .385 OBP. He has also averaged 149 games played over that same span.

So I feel like I have little choice but to predict good things from Lee once again (sorry, Cubs fans, if this jinxes him). Now he is 34 years old, which has to give you a bit of pause. On the other hand, I'm a firm believer that playing for a contract is--for most players--perhaps the biggest motivating factor out there. It may be a cynical view, but there's plenty of evidence to support it. From Casey Blake and Derek Lowe to Ryan Dempster and Aaron Rowand, feeling your wallet getting thicker every time you throw a strike or hit a double into the gap makes just about anyone better.

I'm going to go with 33 HR, 115 RBI, a .300 average on the dot, and a healthy .370 OBP.

What do you think? I'd advise disagreeing with me.

What's on deck for the Cubs?

There are still home runs to be hit, strikes to be thrown, and rings to be won.

Just not at Wrigley Field.

For the Cubs, the sights are now squarely set on 2010. This season reminded many Cubs fans of the Cubs of old, and in fact many of the Cubs are getting old. But it's in with the new as owner Tom Ricketts takes over the controls, though he and Jim Hendry don't have a great deal of wiggle room given the big, backloaded contracts Hendry has passed out like candy corn over the last few years.

So where do the Cubs go from here? First, there are the free agents: Rich Harden, Kevin Gregg, Reed Johnson and John Grabow.

There's no doubt Harden will test the free agent waters. I've said before that he's not worth big money and multiple years, but it's possible he won't find a suitor willing to give him either one. He's worth a mid-level, one-year deal. I think we all know that Hendry took white out to Gregg's name in the media guide right around mid-August. I would definitely welcome back Reed Johnson, who was of course hurt in 2009 but plays hard and is a solid platoon player or starter if need be. And Hendry's already working on a two-year deal for Grabow, who had success in his 30 games with the Cubs this year.

You can already fill out a good deal of the 2010 depth chart in pen:

• Soto isn't going anywhere, but needs to show up in 2008 shape so he can get back to 2008 form.
  
• Lee and Ramirez are set at the corners.
  
• Theriot seems a safe bet to be at short.
• Fukudome figures to be in center or right.
• Soriano's contract is unmoveable, so you can write his name in the spot marked "LF" (please let his bum knee be the reason he flailed away at the plate like a Little Leaguer and played left field like a Little Leaguer who's only on the team because his dad's the coach).

So second base and right field/center field are on Hendry's to-do list. With little payroll flexibility and what would seem to be an offense bound for a rebound, I still like the idea of Andres Blanco getting a shot at second. He would bat eighth and likely provide little pop, but he's the best defender on the Cubs' 40-man roster and it's always important to have good glove work up the middle. Free agent options include Mark DeRosa, Orlando Hudson and Felipe Lopez. Again, I'd prefer the Cubs stay in-house at 2B.

Suggesting that there's a question mark in the outfield of course assumes that Hendry is able to pull off an offseason magic trick worthy of a show on the Vegas strip: unloading Milton Bradley and the $21 million remaining on his contract. But even though Hendry is behind the 8 ball and every GM in baseball knows it, he's also handcuffed and has almost no choice but to ship him out.

If Hendry hopes to make an upgrade somewhere, outfield would seem to be the place to do it. The free agent class in center includes Rick Ankiel, Rocco Baldelli and Corey Patterson (kidding). In right, you've got Bobby Abreu, Xavier Nady, Austin Kearns (if his option is not picked up), and others.

If the Cubs choose instead to spend their money on a second baseman and/or bullpen help, there are in-house options in the outfield: Reed Johnson in center and Fukudome in right is one of them. Jake Fox is another option in right, perhaps in a platoon with Fukudome. Will Fox hurt the team with his glove? Most likely. But Bradley was no stud himself, and we all saw Soriano bumble his way around left, so how much of a drop-off would it really be?

With the chatter about Zambrano hitting the trade block cooling down, the rotation would figure to be Z, Lilly, Dempster, Wells and either Marshall, Gorzelanny or Samardzija (my money would
be on Gorzelanny).

And last, but definitely not least, the bullpen. Carlos Marmol will be the closer, having finished the season with 12 consecutive saves. Gorzelanny and Guzman should be the G-Men in the setup role. Aaron Heilman is (unfortunately) likely to be in the mix as well, along with Marshall and Samardzija (or Gorzelanny). Other unprovens will have the opportunity to make the squad, including Justin Berg (12 IP, 1 BB, 0.75 ERA), Esmailin Caridad (19.1 IP, 1.40 ERA), and Jeff Stevens (bad).

As always, the free agent market provides an array of options, including Chad Cordero, Danys Baez, Joe Beimel and Darren Oliver (the last two being lefties). Signing relievers will always and forever be a complete crapshoot (see: Brad Lidge in '08 vs. '09, or B.J. Ryan, or Ryan Franklin coming out of nowhere).

Hendry doesn't have much choice but to bring back a near mirror image of the 2009 team. But it's reasonable to assume it will be one of those goofy, distorted mirror images. Zambrano with just nine wins? Soriano with only 55 RBI? Ramirez missing half the season?

You can accuse me of being overly optimistic, but I think the Cubs have a very good chance of turning things around without turning the roster over. The fact is, there's over $130 million of talent in their dugout, and a whole slew of players fell so far below their career averages in 2009 that, well, their career averages now look nothing like they did heading into the season. In this case, what comes down must go up.

The off-field action will all go down starting in just about a month. Players can declare free agency starting 15 days after the conclusion of the World Series, and Hendry's real work will begin at that time. Hopefully his work will lead to Cubs fans enjoying playoff baseball one year from today instead of looking forward to 2011.

Should I stay or should I go? The Jim Hendry version

Jim Hendry is under contract for three more years, but you'd never know it with all the recent chatter about his potential ousting. Having made more bad moves in the offseason than did Tom DeLay on "Dancing with the Stars," his future is filled with more question marks than a Spanish exam. The Trib's Rick Morrissey says he deserves another shot; the Sun-Times says the Milton Bradley signing may have sealed his fate.

There's no doubt this past offseason was a bust. From The Useless One (Joey Gathright) and The Awful One (Aaron Miles) to the trade of Mark DeRosa and the signing of Milton Bradley, Hendry turned a great, 97-win team into a slightly above average, 83-win team. It was a huge disappointment, no doubt, though they did finish five games over .500 and second in the NL Central. It was nice to see them on the right side of .500 for the third consecutive season, but with a $134 million payroll, that wasn't exactly the goal.

The decline wasn't all Hendry's fault: there were injuries, including those to Ramirez, Zambrano, Harden, Lilly and others. There were unexpectedly subpar seasons, including those by Soriano and Soto.

But Hendry does deserve the lion's share of the blame, having built a team unprepared to weather these storms. He removed leadership by trading DeRosa and letting Kerry Wood walk (though I'm still okay with the latter). He failed to build a reliable bullpen. He has now spent $78 million on average/terrible left-handed right fielders over the last two years.

The Cubs' team ERA actually improved slightly from last year, down to 3.84 from 3.87. And on defense, they committed six more errors this year versus last. But the big problem (if you hadn't yet figured this out after 161 games) was the offense: 707 runs this year after leading the league with 855 last season.

In the general managing world, Hendry didn't just strike out on 2009, he got the golden sombrero. But just as a player or manager can't be judged by one season alone, neither can a general manager. I think it's only fair that new owner Tom Ricketts look at Hendry's entire resume before deciding his fate. At the moment, Hendry's name is synonymous with Milton Bradley's, but that doesn't tell the entire story.

MLB Trade Rumors compiled a detailed history of Jim Hendry's moves as Cubs GM. It was posted last July, so it doesn't include the debacle of this past offseason, but it's interesting to look at the many moves he has made since Andy MacPhail promoted him seven years ago.

Can you recall Hendry's first move as Cubs GM? Of course you can: he traded Darren Lewis for Chad Hermansen. Who could forget that? But wait. That trade wasn't as insignificant as it sounds. Less than five months later, Hendry traded Hermansen and Todd Hundley for Mark Grudzielanek and Eric Karros, a move that helped lead to a division title for the Cubs. It was also the first sign that Jim Hendry might be a direct descendant of King Midas. This is the kind of rabbit Hendry will need to pull out of his hat when it comes to unloading Milton Bradley.

But it was 2003's trade deadline fleecing of Pirates GM Dave Littlefield that really ignited a love affair between Hendry and Cubs fans: Jose Hernandez, Matt Bruback and Bobby Hill for Aramis Ramirez, Kenny Lofton, and cash! Littlefield then gave the Cubs Randall "Sausage Beater" Simon a few weeks later (that nickname sounds dirty, but in case you've forgotten the incident that begot such a nickname, please click the link).

In an attempt to out-GM himself, Hendry pulled off a Hee Seop Choi for Derrek Lee trade in the 2003 offseason. He also got Michael Barrett for Damian Miller and traded for Nomar at the 2004 deadline, and the Cubs won 89 games that year, though they choked away a playoff spot in the final week of the season.

Hendry has other good moves he can point to, such as trading Sammy Sosa after he turned his back on the Cubs (and integrity), and getting rid of Michael Barrett at the right time. He also made mistakes beyond those of this past offseason, such as giving up three young pitchers for Juan Pierre and giving away Greg Maddux for Cesar "♪ You can ring my be-e-ell, You can ring my bell ♪ " Izturis.

Those are the specifics, here's the bottom line: Hendry has produced three NL Central titles in his seven years at the helm. The Cubs hadn't seen that kind of consistent success since 1938 when they accomplished the exact same feat. In fact, the Cubs have made the playoffs just 16 times in their long history, and Hendry has been behind the desk for three of them. The 182 wins in 2007 and 2008 were the most in back-to-back seasons for the Cubs since 1935-36. It's fine to lay the blame for 2009 at Hendry's feet, but you also have to give him some credit for the products he put on the field in the years prior.

Expectations-wise, 2009 was a disaster of a campaign for the Cubs. But the "W" flag still flew 83 times, and we've also seen some promise from young players such as Randy Wells, Jake Fox and Andres Blanco.

Hendry has created some serious work for whomever is in charge this offseason, but in my opinion, he's earned the chance to do that work himself. As Tom Ricketts takes over the helm, I hope he'll keep Jim Hendry on board.

Unbe-Lee-vable

♪ And while I know, based on my track record,
I might not seem like the safest bet
All I'm asking you is don't write me off, just yet ♪

So sang Hugh Grant in the movie "Music and Lyrics," a movie which I've never seen and one that I would almost assuredly hate since Drew Barrymore is in it. But nevertheless, these lyrics seem fitting when discussing Derrek Lee's season.

With a home run and a run-scoring double in Tuesday's 7-2 win over the Brewers, Derrek Lee set a new career high with 109 RBI. He ranks fourth in the National League in RBI, seventh in HR, 10th in batting average, 13th in OBP, second in slugging, and third in OPS. The only guys having hands down better seasons than Lee are some guy named Albert Pujols and half man/half beast Prince Fielder. Lee will probably get very few votes for MVP because the Cubs are 10 games out of first, but based on statistics alone, he deserves to be about third or fourth in the voting.

What has made this season even more impressive is that on May 16, Lee was batting .194 with three home runs and 15 RBI. I, and many others, pretty much wrote him off at that point. But then Lee went off, putting up a .333/32/94 line since mid-May. That's a good season, and Lee has compiled those numbers in just four months. Very good news for the Cubs as they look forward to 2010.

Moving from a veteran to a rookie, congratulations to Tyler Colvin, who drove in a run in his first ever major league plate appearance with a sacrifice fly on Monday. After a year of absolutely awful fundamentals by the Cubs, a sac fly is even more impressive than a base hit! But since he wasn't sure I would feel that way, he got himself his first big league hit in his next plate appearance. He added his first major league run last night, and robbed a home run for good measure.

I don't know how many times I've asked this, but it's enough that I can now be reasonably sure Lou Piniella doesn't read my blog:

CAN ANYONE TELL ME WHY JAKE FOX ISN'T PLAYING MORE?

"Maybe he's slumping?"

Nope, he's had at least one hit in four of his last six games.

"Maybe there's a veteran standing in his way?"

Nope, Bobby Scales has gotten the lion's share of the playing time in left field recently.

"His power numbers must be down."

No sir. His 11 HR and 41 RBI translate to 26 and 98 over 450 at-bats.

"His defense must really be hurting the team."

Eh, not really. His .953 fielding percentage is below average, but after three years of Alfonso Soriano, it's hard to complain. And Bobby Scales is a career infielder (he played 93 games in the infield at Triple-A this year) who had a ball bounce off his glove for a home run in Saturday's game.

If the Cubs are worried about Fox's potential to play defense every day in 2010, isn't this the time to figure out exactly how bad he is with the glove?

And even if they don't think he's a legitimate everyday option, shouldn't he at least be auditioning for a potential trade to an AL team where he could DH? This roster has been mismanaged worse than a certain office in Scranton, Penn.

Fox did play last night, but even that was a last-second lineup change.

A second-best season, a statistic, and a surgery

Monday: Cubs 2, Brewers 0


Derrek Lee now has seven home runs in his last 10 games, and has essentially guaranteed himself the second best season of his career. His 33 home runs rank second behind the 46 he smashed in '05, and his 98 RBI are tied for second, also behind '05 when he knocked in 107. His .303 average, by the way, ranks third behind '05 and the .317 average he had in '07.

Kudos to Ryan Dempster, who reached double digits in wins for the fifth time in his career, and has now allowed zero earned runs in three of his last five starts. Dempster is the third Cubs starter to get his 10th win, and both Harden (9 wins) and Zambrano (8) are within striking distance.

***ALERT*** The following statistic took me FOREVER to find, so please read it. Thank you for your cooperation.

The Cubs have not had five pitchers with double-digit wins since 1972. Their rotation when they accomplished the feat?

Fergie Jenkins
Burt Hooton
Milt Pappas
Bill Hands
Rick Reuschel

Think about that. The Cubs very well could accomplish a rather impressive pitching feat, one that requires both talent and depth. Going into the season, no one would have compared this year's rotation to the one listed above (and in fairness, that rotation combined for 69 wins, whereas this year's has 50 right now), but it might become the first group with five double-digit winners in nearly 40 years. And yet the team is just six games over .500 and has had quite a disappointing season.

See you in 2010

Alfonso Soriano will have knee surgery today and is out for the season. First Urlacher, and now this?

Okay, so maybe this news won't make quite as many waves in the Chicago sports world as did Urlacher's dislocated wrist. In fact, one could argue that this is good news:

1) Piniella has coddled Soriano for the last three years, and no doubt he'd be playing if he were medically cleared to do so. But the surgery means Piniella can't possibly put him in the lineup any more. That will give guys like Fuld, Scales and Fox the opportunity to get some audition time down the stretch.
2) Maybe, just maybe Soriano's struggles at the plate and pathetic defensive performance this year were related to his knee problems. The fact that he needs surgery reinforces this possibility.
3) This goes back to the silver lining to the season that I mentioned earlier--several players, including Soriano and Zambrano, will have played fewer than normal innings this year, perhaps resulting in a healthy and reinvigorated 2010.

The Curious Case of Cubs Ks

Saturday: Cubs 5, Mets 3


2009 could mark the end of an era. I refer to the Cubs' streak of leading the league in strikeouts dating back to 2001. Trailing the Giants by 36 (and in fourth place overall) after Saturday's action, it looks like the Cubs might finally relinquish the strikeout throne. While it's not an inherently good category in which to lead the league (strikeouts lead to higher pitch counts, and obviously aren't as strong an indicator of pitching strength as something like ERA or WHIP), I for some reason find it immensely enjoyable to see them at the top of the heap in this particular category every single year. The race isn't over yet, but the Cubs are really going to have to hunker down and start focusing on racking up those punchouts.

Rich Harden did his due diligence on Saturday, fanning 10 in five innings of work (what was it I was saying about strikeouts and pitch counts? Harden threw 102 pitches in five innings, partly because of all those Ks). All 10 strikeouts were of the swinging variety, and it's the third time he's reached double digits this season. I don't know how it's possible, but Harden's career high in strikeouts is still 11.

Derrek Lee provided some offense for Harden, having apparently been re-energized by a couple days off or by the birth of his second child, a son, or both. He hit a home run for each of his children, both into the second deck in left center. He's one home run shy of 30, and just two points shy of .300.

Thanks to Citi, Santo can finally enjoy New York City


Listening to Ron Santo's annual lamentations regarding the existence of Shea Stadium, his least favorite place in the whole world, would have been comical had it not been so evident how much it truly pained him to be there. But with Shea Stadium gone forever, Santo can finally take a bite out of the Big Apple each year without taking extra blood pressure medicine. He went so far as to say he likes the Mets' new digs. I feel like Santo probably had a Shea Stadium demolition watching party at his place last year.

Zook on the hot seat?


I don't know enough about Illini football or Zook's contract situation to actually know if he might be on the hot seat. What I do know is that he went 2-10 in 2006, had a great year which included a Rose Bowl appearance (and blowout loss) in 2007, but then went 5-7 last year. And I also know that the nearly-ranked Illini got pushed around in 2009's season opener against a Missouri team that lost 23 seniors from last year. 37-9 was the final, a terrible start for the boys in orange and blue.

But it's the conference schedule that really matters, and here's another thing I know: the Illini better beat the living daylights out of Illinois State next week, and they better use this creampuff matchup to work out all the kinks. Because once Big Ten play begins for them on September 26, it's full steam ahead: Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan State are the first three opponents listed on their conference schedule, and they just happen to be rated 1, 2 and 3 preseason in the Big Ten. If the Illini find themselves sliding downhill as quickly as they did in their game against Mizzou, it seems to me that Zook might suddenly feel like he's sitting on a Bunsen burner.

Lee, Lilly take off against Astros

Wednesday: Cubs 2, Astros 0

How rude of Derrek Lee. And this after Fontenot turned in SportsCenter's #1 play earlier in the game.

Lilly and Marmol combined to post shutout number four on the year for the Cubs, vaulting them out of a tie for last place in the NL in that category. The others were Ted Lilly over the Rockies 4-0, Ryan Dempster over the Dodgers 7-0, and Randy Wells over Houston 12-0. It was good to see Lilly get the win, his 10th, after he went 0-1 in August despite a stellar 1.86 ERA. The Cubs scored just eight runs in his three August starts.

Wednesday wasn't much different, as a two-run homer by Derrek Lee was all the offense could muster. In fact, the four through eight hitters (Bradley, Fox, Fontenot, Baker, Hill) were a combined 0-for-14. But it was enough for Teddy Roosevelt Lilly, as he dominated the 'Stros with eight innings, four hits, no walks and five strikeouts. He's now 7-1 with a 1.73 ERA at home in 2009.

I said yesterday that if there's been one bright spot for the Cubs this season, it's Randy Wells. I stand by that, but if there have been two bright spots for the Cubs this year, the other is Derrek Lee. His home run was his 27th, and with six more he would have his highest career total outside of 2005 when he hit 46.

On top of that, the two RBI gave him 90 on the season, matching last year's total. With nine more, he'll once again have his highest career total outside of 2005, and with a great September, he could surpass that year's total of 107.

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Hey, look who's back: Andres Blanco! He wasted no time showing why Aaron Miles should never, ever play again for the Cubs, going 1-for-3 with a run scored.

"One hit?" you say. "That's nothing to write home about."

True, unless you're comparing him to Aaron Miles, which I am. Miles is 0-for-his last 700 (okay, actually his last 19), and is completely useless. On the other hand, Blanco was batting .304 in the minors, is hitting .240 with the Cubs, and is probably the best fielder they have save Derrek Lee.

--------------------------

While there's no arguing the fact that the Cubs have folded like a guy in a tent wearing a cheap suit, sitting on a 2/7 off suit, we have to give credit where credit is due. The Cardinals went 20-6 in August, meaning it would have been difficult for the Cubs to stay in the division race almost no matter what they did. The Cards are now 2-0 in September as well, meaning the Cubs haven't gained any ground on them at all since August 3. For a full month straight, the Cubs have either held their ground or fallen back in the standings every single day.

Soriano, no, no, yes!

Friday: Cubs 5, Nationals 2

The three fingers represent the number of runs he drove in with his game-winning home run, as well as the number of fielding miscues he had in the game.

The Cubs are 10th in the National League in runs scored, but it doesn't feel like they should even be that high, does it? They're 13th in batting average, but have used the long ball to help their cause--they've hit the fourth most home runs in the league, though it feels like they should be lower in that one too. Several key players have seen their home run tallies drop significantly from '08:

Player-----2008--2009

Ramirez----27-----11
Soriano-----29-----20
Soto---------23------9

The Cubs also had 17 HR from the second base position last year, but have just seven this year. But with 137 home runs, the Cubs are on pace to hit just eight fewer home runs in '09 compared to '08.

Nevertheless, a precipitous decline in batting average, walks, on-base percentage, and a host of other offensive statistics has them in the bottom half of the league in runs scored and reveals why Cubs pitchers lead the league in batting average--because they know the only way they're going to get any run support is if they do it themselves.

On Friday, Ted Lilly was taking his fourth shot at his 10th win, and while he pitched well enough to get it, the offense managed just one first-inning run by the time Lilly had left the game in the eighth inning. When the Mets went up 2-1 in that inning, it looked like another lackluster offensive performance would do the Cubs in.

But the Cubs got Lilly off the hook for the loss when Bradley--who was on base after banging out his third hit of the game--scored on Ramirez's single through a drawn-in infield. After a walk to Jeff Baker, Soriano did the one thing the Cubs do well, launching a three-run homer to become the second Cub to reach the 20 home run plateau this year (aside: the Yankees have six players with 20 or more home runs). It was Soriano's first home run in August.

So while the Cubs will have to wait at least a few more days to get a pitcher into double digits in wins, they at least managed to beat a Mets team with guys like Angel Pagan, Fernando Tatis, Omir Santos, Cory Sullivan, Wilson Valdez, and starting pitcher Pat Misch ("Who?" "Misch." "Oooooh," as the routine between the PA announcer and the crowd used to go at Kenosha Twins games) in their starting lineup.

Lee, Ramirez and Soriano combined to go 6-for-11 with all five RBI in the game. Bradley was the only other player with any hits in the contest, notching two doubles along with a single, though he was booed after miscommunicating with Jeff Baker and dropping a fly ball.

On the mound, Ted Lilly continued to look comfortable since coming off the DL, Kevin Gregg got the win despite allowing the game-tying hit (though the run was charged to Lilly, and Soriano probably should have caught the long fly ball that resulted in said run, just one of several fielding miscues for Soriano in the game), and Carlos Marmol walked the leadoff man in the ninth but retired the next three batters to record his sixth save.

The Cardinals are now 20 games over .500 after Khalil Greene tied the game in the eighth with his first career pinch-hit home run and then Albert Pujols unloaded off Jason Bergmann in the ninth, hitting a tape measure, walk-off home run to beat the Nationals. The Cubs remain nine games back.

Like Brett Favre coming out of retirement, it was only a matter of time until ...

Bears nose tackle Dusty Dvoracek suffered a season-ending injury. For the fourth time in his four-year career, Dvoracek will be placed on injured reserve, this time with a torn right ACL. Dvoracek's injury turns a three-man race into a two-man race between Anthony Adams and Marcus Harrison.

A position battle on the same side of the ball has been decided, as Pisa Tinoisamoa (whose name might just be harder to spell than Jeff Samardzija's) will be the starting strongside linebacker alongside Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs. Tinoisamoa, who was released by the Rams last season despite leading the team in tackles, was battling Nick Roach, Jamar Williams, and to a lesser extent, Hunter Hillenmeyer.

It's a good thing he won the battle given that he's the starter on the already-released Madden 10.

Is it football season yet?

Thursday: Nationals 5, Cubs 4


The good: Dodgers, Rockies, Phillies

The bad: Nationals, Padres

The ugly: The Cubs have lost to them all.

No matter which opponent takes the field against the Cubs right now, they're likely to be shaking hands after the last out is made. The Cubs are now 9-15 in August, and they have more problems than you can shake a bat at. Problems like:

-Milton Bradley taking the train back to Crazy Town, claiming that he faces "hatred" at Wrigley Field and that he prays each game goes only nine innings (no matter who's winning, presumably) so that he can get home. Phil Rogers says the Cubs should let him stay home, though that would mean eating the $21 million remaining on Bradley's contract.

-And his isn't the only contract the Cubs would love to shed but probably can't. Alfonso Soriano continues to be unproductive (0-for-4 Thursday to drop his average to .238), and the Cubs appear to be stuck with his indolence, inconsistency and ineptitude for five more years. I believe Hendry can fight his way out of this, but if he gets axed and someone else is charged with putting this team back together, I feel for them.

-No second baseman. The Cubs will need to address the hole in the middle of their infield this offseason, with Fontenot looking very much like a backup this season and Jeff Baker and Aaron Miles (shiver) the only other options on the current roster.

-Soto's demise. Wha' happened? From .285, 23 and 86 last year to .218, 9 and 31 this year. Koyie Hill--Koyie Freakin' Hill--is getting more and more playing time, and it's hard to argue with that decision; Soto's batting .150 in August after a .222 July.

-What to do with Rich Harden? Zambrano, Lilly, Dempster and Wells appear to be cemented in the 2010 rotation, but should the Cubs offer Harden a big deal? I think the Cubs should offer one or two years at a moderate salary, say $6-7 million/year. I'm not sure he'll get many offers bigger than that, given the economy and his long history of injuries.

-Randy Wells's Rookie of the Year chances are fading along with the Cubs. Now 9-7 with a 3.06 ERA, he has clearly ceded front-runner status to Spring Valley, Ill. native J.A. Happ (10-3, 2.63). Even the Braves' Tommy Hanson (9-2, 3.12) might have a leg up on Wells at this point. Wells has obviously had a fantastic season (and he deserves a better record to show for it), but his chances of picking up some hardware to remember it by have gotten a lot slimmer.

In fairness, the Cubs did get robbed Thursday on a bad call at the plate when Derrek Lee was called out trying to score on a wild pitch even though pitcher Sean Burnett tagged him with an empty glove. That's the way this season has gone on the North Side, as a chance to gain a game on the Cardinals was wasted perhaps in part because of the missed call, but mostly because the Cubs fell into a 5-0 hole against the worst team in the National League.

It's incredible that the Cardinals have the biggest cushion of any divisional leader (nine games). Last time they made the playoffs, in 2006, they scratched and clawed their way in with a mediocre 83-win season. No need for them to buckle up, put their seats in an upright position or put their tray tables up this September, for they appear headed for a soft landing in what has turned out to be a terrible division.

Like I said, is it football season yet?

The Pirates couldn't have come at a better time

Saturday: Cubs 17, Pirates 2


I see no reason why Major League Baseball can't allow the Cubs to face Charlie Morton every single day.

He faced the Cubs on August 13, 2008, as a member of the Braves, and didn't make it out of the 3rd inning. He allowed four hits, four walks, and ... four runs, en route to a 10-2 Cubs win.

On Friday, he one-downed (opposite of one-upped) himself by failing to get an out in the 2nd inning. Seven hits, three walks, TEN runs. In just one inning. So in his two starts against the Cubs, Morton's ERA is 37.80. His 2009 ERA was 3.81 heading into Friday's game, but it was 5.15 when he hit the showers.

Friday's fun fest featured some feats you don't see every day, and I figured we could all use some fun facts after a painful week of Cubs baseball, so let's get to it:

• By the 2nd inning, every Cubs starter--including Randy Wells--had at least one hit.
• The Cubs scored 10 runs in the 2nd, more than the nine runs they scored in the three-game series against the Phillies.
• The Cubs batted around in the 2nd inning before making an out.
• The Cubs had five plate appearances with the bases loaded in the 2nd inning, and seven total bases loaded plate appearances in the game.
• By the 4th inning, Derrek Lee had come to the plate three times with the bases loaded. He walked and doubled twice in those three at-bats. Lee tied a career high with seven RBI; he had seven RBI on July 2 of this year against the Brewers.
• Through the 4th inning, the Cubs had racked up five walks, eight singles, three doubles, two triples, and a home run.
• 17 runs is the most scored by the Cubs since a 19-run outburst April 30, 2008, against the Brewers.
• The last time the Cubs scored 14 runs by the 2nd inning was 1906.
  
• Last Saturday, the Cubs had 17 hits and only five runs. Friday, they had 18 hits and 17 runs.

The offense obviously did its job, and so did Randy Wells. With his ninth victory, he tied Ted Lilly for the team lead in wins. Why Lou Piniella took him out after six innings and just 86 pitches, despite a beleaguered bullpen, is beyond me. Wells has now pitched enough innings to qualify for the ERA leaderboard, and is tied for 12th in the NL with a 3.01 ERA.

Saturday, Tom Gorzelanny will start against his former team. Hopefully he'll enjoy his first start at Wrigley as a Cub, and hopefully the offense has some more runs in 'em.