A look into the future

Tyler Colvin, shown here celebrating a home run by Jake Fox in Spring Training 2007. In a rare display of self-restraint, Cesar Izturis is nearby but NOT ringing Colvin's bell.

2006 first-round draft pick Tyler Colvin has been called up by the Cubs, and could start tonight vs. the Brewers. The 24-year-old lefty batted .300 with 14 HR and 50 RBI at Double-A Tennessee this season. He can play all three outfield positions.

The Cubs didn't want to throw Colvin to the wolves this year, but with the suspension of Milton Bradley (more on that tomorrow) and injuries to Alfonso Soriano and Sam Fuld, they needed an extra body.

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.

Wells deserves better, Cubs can't get much worse

Friday: Dodgers 2, Cubs 1


An error by the sure-handed Ramirez and a two-run double by a career .185 hitter.

That pretty much sums up Friday's performance, at least when you add in the fact that the Cubs tallied one--uno, un, unus, eins--hit on the night. The Cardinals and Rockies lost, but they needn't look in the rearview mirror for the Cubs, for they are now 1-4 on this all-important West Coast road trip and appear to have no interest in working their way back into the thick of the playoff race.

On the bright side, Randy Wells lowered his ERA to 2.84, Sam Fuld stole a home run from Manny Ramirez, and Carlos Marmol pitched a scoreless inning (thanks in part to Fuld's catch).

Despite pitching 6 2/3 innings and allowing no earned runs (two runs total), Wells' record dropped to 9-6 because of the minimal support provided by the offense. Here's hoping J.A. Happ and Tommy Hanson stumble in their next outings as we root for Wells in the Rookie of the Year race.

Today's game should be interesting, with Ted Lilly making his second start since coming off the DL and knuckleballer Charlie Haeger taking the mound for the Dodgers. The Cubs have two more chances to right the ship on the road before coming home for a 10-game homestand.

Did you know ...

Mark Reynolds is just one home run off the NL-leading pace of Albert Pujols (Phat Albert has 39). However, Pujols has struck out just 51 times compared to Reynolds's 169.

Adam Wainwright and Jason Marquis are tied for the NL lead in wins (14).

Zach Greinke leads the AL in ERA (2.44), but is just 3-7 since May 31.

Road Warrior

Thursday: Cubs 6, Nationals 2

Welcome back, baseball. (Aside: is the day after the All-Star Game the worst sports day of the year? There's absolutely NOTHING going on!) And welcome back, Rich Harden. For the first time in three July starts, Harden allowed fewer than 4 ER. He's been right at home on the road all year: his home/road splits entering Thursday were: 2.59 ERA on the road, 7.59 ERA at home. If Piniella could work it so that Lilly only started at Wrigley and Harden only started on the road, the Cubs might never lose again!

While Harden had success Thursday, I still have to ask: Why did Lou decide to hand him the ball out of the break? Of the Cubs' four starters (Dempster excluded as he's on the DL), is Harden really the one you want getting the most starts in the second half?

But negative thoughts aside, it was great to see Harden command the strike zone and even up his record at 6-6. He had more strikeouts (7) than hits and walks combined (3), and he nearly dropped his ERA below that ugly five mark (5.06).

One of the Cubs' more frustrating tendencies in the first half was their inability to tack on runs when they had the lead. So I could not have been happier to see them score one in the 6th, one in the 7th, and three more in the 9th to put the game away. The Cubs reached the 10-hit mark and had knocks from seven different players, including Sam Fuld, who raised his average to .412 with a pinch-hit single.

And I don't care if it's against the Nationals--a win's a win. Besides, John Lannan is a quality pitcher. At 24 years old, Lannan has compiled a 3.86 career ERA in 2+ seasons, won nine games last year on a bad team, and has six thus far in 2009. If the Nationals decide to offer him up when he's no longer arbitration eligible, Lannan will garner serious interest from several teams.

While I'm very pleased about a 4-run Cubs victory to begin the second half, I'm about to do my due diligence and explore the negative aspects of the 6-2 win. Avert your eyes if you'd rather not see the dark side of Thursday's performance.

While Soriano did have a single, giving him at least one hit in seven of his last eight games, he made yet another mental error when he ran into an out on the bases. His bonehead play took the Cubs out of a 1st and 3rd, one out situation, but we'll forgive him on the grounds that he once again saw more pitches than any other Cubs batter (22 in four plate appearances).

And while I'll allow Bradley a little more time before countering his "I'm back" proclamation (though I hope he's right), his 0-for-5 performance wasn't exactly fool-proof evidence that he is, in fact, "back."

And finally, Marmol walked yet another batter in his one inning of work. It marked the 27th (!) time in 47 appearances that Marmol has walked at least one batter, and he's walked more than one 13 times. Marmol is 545th in the majors in walks per nine innings pitched at 9.0. On the bright side, he threw a strike to Derrek Lee at first to pick off the man he walked last night.

But it's only right that I end on a positive note: Derrek Lee continued to torment the baseball, falling a triple short of the cycle to raise his average to .287. He's now slugging .738 in July, 5th best in the National League.

Did you know ...

-Dan Haren of the Diamondbacks leads the NL in ERA (2.01).

-Brian Fuentes of the Angels leads the majors in saves (26).

Split doubleheader nets 6-5 homestand; Cubs within shouting distance at the break

Sunday, Game 1: Cubs 7, Cardinals 3

Prior to the game, Pujols accepts his mission from the baseball gods.

Ted Lilly is awarded his 2009 All-Star jersey.

Hoffpauir celebrates his three-run homer in the first.

Zambrano revels in his go-ahead (and game-winning) home run.

For some unknown reason, I love when this happens. Deuces wild.

The Cubs Quintet serenades the fans.

Hey, they're right--the Cubs did win today!

Sunday, Game 2: Cardinals 4, Cubs 2

This was the sign at Murphy's Bleachers in between games. Why it says Dan Brown blows, I have no idea.

For some odd reason, Jake Fox brought out the lineup card.

First pitch. We had a sweet view.

Jake Fox catching. And we didn't even get hit with any wild pitches!

Sean Marshall, after moving from pitcher to left field in one of the stranger double switches you'll ever see.

And now Marshall's back on the mound.

So there's the photographic recap of Sunday's doubleheader; here's the written one:

Every time you go to the ballpark, there's a chance you're going to see something you've never seen before. In Game 1, that was Albert Pujols popping one up on the infield, seeing it get dropped by Theriot, then heading for second only to have Jeff Baker pick up the ball with his barehand, spin around and--after getting over his surprise at seeing Pujols about 10 feet away from him--tagging him out. From a pop-up to an error to an out, all in about 15 seconds.

Pujols did his damage in Game 1, going 1-for-4 with a 2-run double and a run. But Hoffpauir's 3-run blast (his first since June 25) off just-returned-from-the-DL Kyle Lohse got the Cubs out to an early lead, and Zambrano's third home run of the year gave the Cubs the lead for good. It was a close game the whole way until errors by both members of the Cardinals' right side of the infield allowed three unearned runs to score in the 7th inning (and the 7th errors of the year for both Schumaker and Pujols, weird).

The win guaranteed that the Cubs would be no further back in the standings at the end of this 11-game homestand than they were when it began: 3 1/2 games out. The home runs and the Cardinals' errors allowed the frenzied Wrigley fans to ignore the fact that the Cubs were 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position. A win over the Cardinals on a sunny, 75 degree day washes away just about any negative elements. For at least the next four hours, it was "Go Cubs Go."

...

Game 2 didn't start off quite so well. The 1st inning home run this time went to the Redbirds, as Ryan Ludwick absolutely unloaded off of Randy Wells to put the Cubs in a 2-0 hole. The Cubs got one right back in the bottom of the inning as back-in-the-lineup Fuld notched his first of two hits, and Lee drove him in after Theriot bunted him to third.

Both Wells and Wainwright continued to hold serve until the 6th, when--after Wells had retired Pujols for the third consecutive time--Ludwick smashed another 2-run homer to make it 4-1. Bradley would drive in Aramis Ramirez with a hard-hit double (batting lefty!) in the bottom of the inning, but alas, that would be the end of the scoring for both teams on this night. It was not, however, the end of the story.

First, Fukudome pinch-hit for Koyie Hill in the 7th, which meant we were destined to see Jake Fox strap on the catcher's gear in the 8th. He did just fine behind the dish, blocking a couple balls and never having to attempt to throw out any base stealers.

The other Cubs player who found himself out of position in Game 2 was Sean Marshall. When Piniella went to take Marshall out of the game after he'd loaded the bases in the 9th, everyone at Wrigley (including Marshall, presumably) was perplexed to see Marshall walking out towards left field. Soriano left the game, and Heilman came on to pitch.

Brendan Ryan (who was probably doing everything he could to hit it to left field just to see what would happen) struck out, and Piniella emerged from the dugout to make another pitching change. And lo and behold, Little League-style, Lou summoned Marshall from left field back to the mound, and he was replaced in left by Reed Johnson. Marshall then struck out the Cardinals' version of a Hoffpauir (Jarrett), and then got Colby Rasmus to fly out to left (though I understand from my TV-viewing friends that Johnson's catch was questionable at best).

So the Cubs got out of the bases-loaded, nobody out jam with one of the most clever and most risky managerial moves I've ever seen. If you count Game 1 and Marshall's two pitching stints in Game 2, he essentially pitched three separate times on Sunday. Once again, you don't exactly see that every day.

The split doubleheader left the Cubs 3 1/2 games out at the break, exactly where they were before The Homestand. They sit right at .500, 43-43, an underperforming team with a surprisingly good chance of sneaking to the top of a weak division as the second half unfolds. We've seen glimpses of the team we expected heading into the season, and we've seen performances and statistics more appropriate for RFK Stadium than Wrigley Field. Everyone but Ted Lilly will take a few days off and prepare for 76 more games, starting with the Nationals on Thursday (who, by the way, just replaced Manny Acta with former Cubs manager Jim Riggleman). The Cubs are tied with the Brewers and just one behind the Cardinals in the loss column, so here's to a second half that goes exactly like the first ... was expected to go.

Cue the NHL strike and passage of CAFTA--Derrek Lee's playing like it's 2005

Thursday: Cubs 9, Brewers 5



How about that D. Lee? His 21-game hitting streak came to an end recently, but he has now hit in 27 of his last 29 games. His two hits Thursday were loud and proud: a three-run shot on the first pitch he saw followed by a grand slam in his next at-bat to satiate the fans who were already on their feet. I have to toot my own horn here: When Theriot had a 3-0 count, I said: "We're about to see a grand slam." Six pitches later, the ballhawks on Waveland had a souvenir.

Thanks to Seth McClung, a should-be reliever, for throwing a McClunker of a game. McClung's career ERA is over a run higher as a starter, and the Cubs showed why as they banged him around for 3.1 innings. After having the highest ERA in the NL during June, and now having to look to Seth McClung after Manny Parra struggled and was sent to the minors, the Brewers will no doubt be looking to add pitching before the deadline.

Dempster pitched well enough, and should have made it through seven innings except for an error by Fontenot that extended the inning. Demp was burned by the long ball for the 12th and 13th times this season. For all the success Cubs starters have had this year, the home run has been their kryptonite--they've allowed the 5th most home runs in the National League.

Nevertheless, Dempster was able to even up his record at 5-5. Though it's not as extreme, his home/road splits look a lot like last year: 4-1 at home, 1-4 on the road.

Sam Fuld led off again, and once again he looked like a leadoff man: 2-for-4, 1 BB, 2 R. Soriano will be back at leadoff today, according to Piniella, but I'd like to see Fuld get some time at all the outfield positions, spelling Fukudome and Bradley at times as well.

Since I haven't yet gotten around to telling you about the former Cubs who reside in the NL Central, I want to talk here about Casey McGehee. You may remember the name, as he was drafted by the Cubs in 2003 and played nine games last year as a September call-up. He was placed on waivers at the end of the season and was later claimed by the Brewers.

The 26-year-old utility man has seen action in 43 games, including all but four of the Brewers' games in June. He's batting a robust .322 with 5 HR and 21 RBI, and might be in the lineup to stay with Rickie Weeks out for the year.

But most important of all: according to Wikipedia, Casey is the grandson of Scuffy McGehee. What, you don't know who Scuffy McGehee is? Fine, I'll tell you. He was a major league pitcher, and the last one to consistently use the "floater pitch," also known as an Eephus pitch, also known as the pitch that Henry Rowengartner used to strike out Alejandro "Butch" Heddo at the end of the movie Rookie of the Year. I can't believe you didn't know who he was.

Did you know ...

-The best run differential in the NL Central is +11 (Cardinals).

-The best run differential in the NL East is +9 (Phillies).

-Jimmy Rollins is batting just .209.