Cubs-Brewers: Chicago's Win Serves as a Case Study in Sexy vs. Efficient

If you turned on your television in the ninth inning on Saturday night, you would think the Cubs had replaced Lou Piniella with Earl Weaver.

The dependence on the long ball was in full effect in Milwaukee, as the Cubs needed a dramatic two-run shot in the final at bat from Alfonso Soriano to get a big divisional victory.

But the real issue at hand for the Cubs is the same thing fans have come to grips with over the past four years: an inability to play station-to-station baseball is overcome with a timely home run.

Carlos Zambrano, coming off the best Opening Day start of his career, wasn't nearly as sharp as he was in Houston. The middle relief was mediocre to say the least, as the cast of pitchers frustrated Piniella to the point that he sent pitching coach Larry Rothschild to remove Neal Cotts from the game.

The pitching certainly did not hold up their end of the proposition, so the bats did the least they could to make Saturday night a win.

In the seventh inning, the offense produced a perfect case study for how and why the Cubs have been unable to advance in the post season. After a couple walks and a base hit loaded the bases, the Cubs should have stranded all three runners in what was a one-run game.

If not for Soriano beating out a double play grounder on a call that, based on replay, could be disputed, the Cubs would have squandered a golden opportunity.

But once the Cubs tied the score, Piniella went to his bullpen to hold the tie. In came Angel Guzman, who would walk the two Brewers he faced, was quickly pulled in favor of Cotts. The move to Cotts was a strategic move to get the left-handed specialist in to face Prince Fielder, who had taken Zambrano out of the yard earlier.

Cotts walked Fielder. Piniella steamed. Rothschild made the switch.

In came Aaron Heilman, who surrendered a two-run single before retiring the Brewers. Heilman would also pitch a solid eighth.

Despite the bullpen failing, and the bats refusing to hit a simple fly ball to score a run in a bases loaded situation, the bombers came through. Aramis Ramirez hit a solo homer in the eighth to pull within one, and then Soriano provided the fireworks in the ninth.

As the Brewers scratched to make the game competitive, playing small ball as well as possible, the Cubs were yet again shown that they don't have to do the little things well to win games in the National League Central.

If the Cubs continue to rely on the sexy home run ball to win games, their fate after the end of September will not change. They need to become more efficient, like their opponent was on Saturday night, to win close games in October.