Watching him pitch the last two starts you wouldn't think this guy is the ace of a staff that is heading to the playoffs, right?

Wrong.

Carlos Zambrano despite his recent struggles is the ace of the Cubs staff and will certainly be on the playoff roster when the Cubs open the playoffs at home next Wednesday.

The star of the offensive side of the game through five innings was Mark DeRosa.  DeRosa drove in the first run of the game with a home run in the second inning.  DeRosa was replaced in the fifth inning after suffering a mild calf strain and is listed as day-to-day.

Zambrano gave the lead right back in the third inning, giving up a walk with the bases loaded, followed by a Carlos Delgado grand slam that gave the Mets a 5-1 advantage.

As usual the Cubs didn't die and came back to take a 6-5 lead before Jeff Samardzjia gave up the tying run that pushed the game to extras.

In the bottom of the 10, Derrek Lee hit a tie breaking double and then scored on Aramis Ramirez's two run homer to give the Cubs the 9-6 lead, and eventually the victory.

The Cubs will turn to Rich Harden against Pedro Martinez in the series finale.

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