Come to Think of it...Cubs Roll On Behind Marquis and Just 'Nuff Offense

And they say Jason Marquis always pitches poorly in the second half of seasons? Hah!

And they say the Cubs have been winning because of their offensive fire power? Hah!

And they say that Soriano is a bad fielder?  Uh, well, two out of three ain't bad.

Yes, despite another outfield error by the hopping Alfonso, and bats that were quieter than the sound of one hand clapping, the Cubs completed a sweep of the Pirates on Wednesday, beating the Bucs 2-0.

Jason Marquis pitched seven efficient frames, allowing five hits and walking no one.  Equally effective was Pirates starter Zach Duke, who only allowed two bunts and one double to account for the two Cubs runs.  Marquis improved to 9-7 on the season, while Duke sunk to a tear-inducing 4-13.

The Cubs have really turned it around on the road, winning 13 of their last 14. They moved to 33 games over .500 for the first time at this point in the season since 1945. Something familiar about that year.  Wait, don't tell me. It's on the tip of my tongue...

Though it's normal for the backup catcher to start a day game following a night game, some managers wouldn't have rested a player who just came off of a 7 RBI performance. But Lou did just that, as he started Hank White behind the plate, resting Soto and his 78 RBI. And it produced results, with Blanco executing a perfectly placed suicide squeeze bunt that just stayed fair down the first base line to score DeRosa with the Cubs' second run. The first run was the result of a softly hit grounder by Ronny Cedeno, scoring Reed Johnson, who had beat out a bunt single. 

Talk about a juggernaut offensive performance!

But hey, all that matters is that the Cubs won again, finishing off the season series with the Pirates 14-4. The 14 wins are the most by the Cubs against the Pirates since recording 15 wins in 1954 (they played more games against them in those days). Unfortunately, there won't be many more easy targets remaining for the Cubs, as they play 27 of their final 29 games against teams with winning records.

Oh, almost forgot - Kerry Wood recorded his 27th save in 32 chances. Got to give Kid K his props.

After the Cubs play their next seven games at Sam Zell Stadium, our fearless warriors  will play 16 of their final 22 games on the road, with the final three at Milwaukee. Nineteen of those final 22 are against teams with winning records. D'oh!

But right now, all that negative noise doesn't even register with me, as I bask in the warm glow of knowing that my favorite team owns the best record in all of baseball. (At least I hope that's a warm glow and not poor bladder control).

The last time the Cubs had the best record in baseball this late in the year? 1908. Something familiar about that year. Come to think of it, it's on the tip of my tongue...