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Z Lets Bat and Arm Do the Talking As Cubs Win 2-1
Patrick GaddyJun 5, 2009
Carlos Zambrano kept his mouth shut and dominated the Cincinnati Reds while letting both his arm and his bat do the talking tonight. Zambrano won his 100th game, all as a Cub, and hit a home run as the Cubs defeated the Reds 2-1 at Great American Ball Park.
Zambrano pitched solid, going into the seventh inning, while giving up just two hits and no runs. Z did walk a season high five while striking out seven.
He didn't allow a hit until Adam Rosales lined a single to left with one out in the fifth inning.
Carlos also made a couple of stellar defensive plays. He slipped in behind the runner to cover first base on a Brandon Phillips' foul pop near the first base stands in the sixth inning. Derrek Lee caught the ball and threw to Zambrano to double Chris Dickerson off of first. Dickerson was caught sleeping on a nice heads up play by both Z and Lee.
Then in the seventh, he grabbed a line drive up the middle, catching it after hitting it up into the air off his glove.
Zambrano reached the milestone 100th victory on his third try. It was gis first win since defeating Florida on May 3.
When asked about Randy Johnson winning his 300th game and whether or not he could get to 300, Big Z had some interesting things to say:
Would be sad to see a guy with so much talent leave the game early. I have a feeling after Big Z is gone, we are going to laugh at some of his antics and, in fact, miss them.
The Cubs opened the scoring in the top of the first courtesy of an infield single by Ryan Theriot and walks to Kosuke Fukudome, Lee and Mike Fontenot that forced home a run.
Micah Owings and Zambrano then matched zeroes for the next three innings, with Theriot being the only Cub to reach second during this time after a single and a stolen base in the top of the third.
That was until the top of the fifth with Big Z leading off. This is where things got weird. As we know, Big Z is a switch hitter. After striking out left handed in his first at bat against Owings, Carlos decided to try it right handed. Nice choice, as he hit a BOMB to center, giving the Cubs what proved to be the winning run.
The next few innings were nothing but a few walks and a bunch of outs, as once again, the two pitchers were matching out for out.
Enter Carlos Marmol in the bottom of the eighth, and Cubs fans were standing on the window ledge. Was the pen about to blow another gem by a starting pitcher?
Marmol walked Jerry Hairston leading off the inning. Something Carlos has done this A LOT of late. I think when a guy from the pen walks the lead off hitter, that pisses me off more than anything. You get paid to do one thing, THROW STRIKES!
After getting Chris Dickerson to ground out, with Hairston moving to second, Brandon Phillips tripled in the gap, scoring Hairston and putting a runner on third with one out.
Those fans on the ledge are now on their tip toes.
Laynce Nix then popped out to Koyie Hill out in front of home plate. He then walked Ramon Hernandez to get to Jay Bruce and i'm thinking "WTF are you doing? Throw a damn strike!!!".
After getting ahead of Bruce with a 1-2 count, he induced him into a ground out to second ending the inning.
In the top of the ninth, the Cubs, with a chance to add an insurance run, failed to do so as Theriot flied out to center, stranding Hill at third and Soriano at second.
And just when you thought the fireworks were over with Marmol and maybe those fans on the ledge could come back inside, enter Kevin Gregg in the bottom of the ninth.
Gregg got two quick outs on a grounder to Theriot and a fly ball to Reed Johnson in center. So your thinking, ok, maybe we will get a 1-2-3 inning here. WRONG!
Ryan Hanigan singled to center and things got stupid.....again! Jerry Hairston struck out, but ANOTHER wild pitch on strike three, this time with Hill behind the plate for those of your that wanted Geo's head on a platter the other night in ATL. Hairston was able to reach first and Wilkin Castillo, pinch running for Ryan Hanigan, went all the way to third.
Gregg was then able to get Dickerson to pop out to third on a 1-0 count to end the game. WHEW!! Cubs Win! Cubs Win! Cubs Win!
Cubs Game Notes
Carlos Zambrano's seven strikeouts tied his season high. Batters swung and missed 15 times, also a season high.....This was the Cubs third consecutive one run game....the Cubs are hitting 32 points higher at home (.266) than on the road (.234) while their 3.88 home ERA is 60 points lower than their road ERA (4.48).....Marmol recorded his 60th career hold, passing Bobby Howry for third on the Cubs all time list....Chicago is 21-8 when playing error-less ball, and 6-17 when committing an error … the Cubs are 23-4 when holding a lead entering the seventh inning and are 18-7 when scoring first.....Carlos Zambrano and Micah Owings have won the last three N.L. Silver Slugger Awards for pitchers … Zambrano earned the honor in both 2006 and 2008 while Owings took home the award in 2007.....Zambrano's 1,225 career strikeouts rank sixth in franchise history.....Zambrano's 18 career home runs rank first in franchise history ahead of Fergie Jenkins (13).....Z now has 94 wins since the start of the 2003 season rank fourth in baseball … Johan Santana is first with 105.....
Cubs at the plate
Alfonso Soriano went 1-for-4 with a double, stolen base (6) and a walk. The Fons is just 8-for-43 his last ten games with just one home run and one run batted in. For the year, Sori is hitting .243 with 13 HR's and 26 RBI's.
Ryan Theriot went 2-for-5 with one run scored and a stolen base (8). Theriot is hitting .286 with 5 HR's and 22 RBI's.
Kosuke Fukudome was 0-for-3 with a walk. Fukudome continues to have a solid year overall and is hitting .302 with 5 HR's and 20 RBI's.
Derrek Lee was 1-for-3 with a walk. Over the Cubs last 10 games, Lee is 9-for-27 (.333). He is really bring his average up as of late and for the season D Lee is hitting .263 with 6 HR's and 21 RBI's.
Micah Hoffpauir went 0-for-4 with a couple of strike outs. Hoffpaur is hitting .275 with 4 HR's and 17 RBI's.
Koyie Hill was 1-for-4 on the night with a single and a couple of strike outs. Koyie is hitting .269 with 2 HR and 7 RBI's on the season.
Mike Fontenot was 1-for-3 with an RBI and a walk with the RBI coming on the walk. Font has really been picking it up at the plate as of late and is hitting .333 (10-for-30) over the Cubs last 10 games. Fontenot is hitting .232 with 5 HR and 24 RBI's.
Andres Blanco went 0-for-3 and continues to struggle. Can you say we miss D-Ro? Blanco is hitting just .150 with 0 HR's and 1 RBI since his call up.
Cubs on the mound
Carlos Zambrano controlled the game making sure his team wasn't going to lose as he not only pitched 6 2/3 strong innings, but also homered and made a couple of great defensive plays. This is the way Carlos needs to do his talking with his play instead of his mouth. Zambrano is now 4-2 with a 3.72 ERA on the season.
Angel Guzman pitched just one third of an inning, coming in for Z in the bottom of the seventh and getting Jonny Gomes to hit into a fielders choice to end the inning. Guzman has been one of the few solid relievers out of the pen lately and boasts a fine 2.45 ERA on the season.
Carlos Marmol was very shaky again. After once again allowing a lead off walk, a problem that has to have Lou ready to choke Carlos, Marmol gave up a run scoring one out triple before working his way out of the inning without allowing the tying run to score. Marmol has now walked seven guys in his last six innings of work. Carlos is 1-1 with three saves and a 3.46 ERA on the season.
Kevin Gregg manged to get the save pitching the ninth, but not without fire works. Another dropped third strike allowing a runner to reach base in the ninth inning, could have once again done the closer in. This one came with Hill behind the plate, the first one with Soto back there. Is Gregg's stuff that good? Or are the pitcher and catchers not on the same page with signals? For the season, Gregg is now 0-1 with a 4.81 ERA and 10 saves.
Series Record 1-0
Season Record 27-25
Road Record 11-15
Home Record 16-10
Next Game: 06/06 in Cincinnati @ 6:10 pm CST
Zambrano pitched solid, going into the seventh inning, while giving up just two hits and no runs. Z did walk a season high five while striking out seven.
He didn't allow a hit until Adam Rosales lined a single to left with one out in the fifth inning.
Quote:
| "I felt good," said Zambrano, |
Quote:
| "Zambrano pitched really, really well -- really well," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. "He got a little tired at the end." |
Then in the seventh, he grabbed a line drive up the middle, catching it after hitting it up into the air off his glove.
Zambrano reached the milestone 100th victory on his third try. It was gis first win since defeating Florida on May 3.
When asked about Randy Johnson winning his 300th game and whether or not he could get to 300, Big Z had some interesting things to say:
Quote:
| "Three hundred? Me?" Zambrano said. "No, I'll be out of here in five years." "After this contract, I'm done," said Zambrano, who is signed through 2012 with a vesting option for 2013. "I'm serious. I don't want to play. I want to help this team, I want to do everything possible to win with this team, but after five years or four years, or whatever I have left on my contract, I just don't want to play. "I want to stay home and see my daughters grow up and hang out with my family more," he said. "Do you know how many Mother's Days I spend with my mother? Do you know how many things I've lost in my life? "It's good to be here, it's good to play baseball -- don't get me wrong," Zambrano said. "But five years, four years, whatever I have left in my contract, I will retire. That's it." |
The Cubs opened the scoring in the top of the first courtesy of an infield single by Ryan Theriot and walks to Kosuke Fukudome, Lee and Mike Fontenot that forced home a run.
Micah Owings and Zambrano then matched zeroes for the next three innings, with Theriot being the only Cub to reach second during this time after a single and a stolen base in the top of the third.
That was until the top of the fifth with Big Z leading off. This is where things got weird. As we know, Big Z is a switch hitter. After striking out left handed in his first at bat against Owings, Carlos decided to try it right handed. Nice choice, as he hit a BOMB to center, giving the Cubs what proved to be the winning run.
The next few innings were nothing but a few walks and a bunch of outs, as once again, the two pitchers were matching out for out.
Enter Carlos Marmol in the bottom of the eighth, and Cubs fans were standing on the window ledge. Was the pen about to blow another gem by a starting pitcher?
Marmol walked Jerry Hairston leading off the inning. Something Carlos has done this A LOT of late. I think when a guy from the pen walks the lead off hitter, that pisses me off more than anything. You get paid to do one thing, THROW STRIKES!
After getting Chris Dickerson to ground out, with Hairston moving to second, Brandon Phillips tripled in the gap, scoring Hairston and putting a runner on third with one out.
Those fans on the ledge are now on their tip toes.
Laynce Nix then popped out to Koyie Hill out in front of home plate. He then walked Ramon Hernandez to get to Jay Bruce and i'm thinking "WTF are you doing? Throw a damn strike!!!".
After getting ahead of Bruce with a 1-2 count, he induced him into a ground out to second ending the inning.
In the top of the ninth, the Cubs, with a chance to add an insurance run, failed to do so as Theriot flied out to center, stranding Hill at third and Soriano at second.
And just when you thought the fireworks were over with Marmol and maybe those fans on the ledge could come back inside, enter Kevin Gregg in the bottom of the ninth.
Gregg got two quick outs on a grounder to Theriot and a fly ball to Reed Johnson in center. So your thinking, ok, maybe we will get a 1-2-3 inning here. WRONG!
Ryan Hanigan singled to center and things got stupid.....again! Jerry Hairston struck out, but ANOTHER wild pitch on strike three, this time with Hill behind the plate for those of your that wanted Geo's head on a platter the other night in ATL. Hairston was able to reach first and Wilkin Castillo, pinch running for Ryan Hanigan, went all the way to third.
Gregg was then able to get Dickerson to pop out to third on a 1-0 count to end the game. WHEW!! Cubs Win! Cubs Win! Cubs Win!
Cubs Game Notes
Carlos Zambrano's seven strikeouts tied his season high. Batters swung and missed 15 times, also a season high.....This was the Cubs third consecutive one run game....the Cubs are hitting 32 points higher at home (.266) than on the road (.234) while their 3.88 home ERA is 60 points lower than their road ERA (4.48).....Marmol recorded his 60th career hold, passing Bobby Howry for third on the Cubs all time list....Chicago is 21-8 when playing error-less ball, and 6-17 when committing an error … the Cubs are 23-4 when holding a lead entering the seventh inning and are 18-7 when scoring first.....Carlos Zambrano and Micah Owings have won the last three N.L. Silver Slugger Awards for pitchers … Zambrano earned the honor in both 2006 and 2008 while Owings took home the award in 2007.....Zambrano's 1,225 career strikeouts rank sixth in franchise history.....Zambrano's 18 career home runs rank first in franchise history ahead of Fergie Jenkins (13).....Z now has 94 wins since the start of the 2003 season rank fourth in baseball … Johan Santana is first with 105.....
Cubs at the plate
Alfonso Soriano went 1-for-4 with a double, stolen base (6) and a walk. The Fons is just 8-for-43 his last ten games with just one home run and one run batted in. For the year, Sori is hitting .243 with 13 HR's and 26 RBI's.
Ryan Theriot went 2-for-5 with one run scored and a stolen base (8). Theriot is hitting .286 with 5 HR's and 22 RBI's.
Kosuke Fukudome was 0-for-3 with a walk. Fukudome continues to have a solid year overall and is hitting .302 with 5 HR's and 20 RBI's.
Derrek Lee was 1-for-3 with a walk. Over the Cubs last 10 games, Lee is 9-for-27 (.333). He is really bring his average up as of late and for the season D Lee is hitting .263 with 6 HR's and 21 RBI's.
Micah Hoffpauir went 0-for-4 with a couple of strike outs. Hoffpaur is hitting .275 with 4 HR's and 17 RBI's.
Koyie Hill was 1-for-4 on the night with a single and a couple of strike outs. Koyie is hitting .269 with 2 HR and 7 RBI's on the season.
Mike Fontenot was 1-for-3 with an RBI and a walk with the RBI coming on the walk. Font has really been picking it up at the plate as of late and is hitting .333 (10-for-30) over the Cubs last 10 games. Fontenot is hitting .232 with 5 HR and 24 RBI's.
Andres Blanco went 0-for-3 and continues to struggle. Can you say we miss D-Ro? Blanco is hitting just .150 with 0 HR's and 1 RBI since his call up.
Cubs on the mound
Carlos Zambrano controlled the game making sure his team wasn't going to lose as he not only pitched 6 2/3 strong innings, but also homered and made a couple of great defensive plays. This is the way Carlos needs to do his talking with his play instead of his mouth. Zambrano is now 4-2 with a 3.72 ERA on the season.
Angel Guzman pitched just one third of an inning, coming in for Z in the bottom of the seventh and getting Jonny Gomes to hit into a fielders choice to end the inning. Guzman has been one of the few solid relievers out of the pen lately and boasts a fine 2.45 ERA on the season.
Carlos Marmol was very shaky again. After once again allowing a lead off walk, a problem that has to have Lou ready to choke Carlos, Marmol gave up a run scoring one out triple before working his way out of the inning without allowing the tying run to score. Marmol has now walked seven guys in his last six innings of work. Carlos is 1-1 with three saves and a 3.46 ERA on the season.
Kevin Gregg manged to get the save pitching the ninth, but not without fire works. Another dropped third strike allowing a runner to reach base in the ninth inning, could have once again done the closer in. This one came with Hill behind the plate, the first one with Soto back there. Is Gregg's stuff that good? Or are the pitcher and catchers not on the same page with signals? For the season, Gregg is now 0-1 with a 4.81 ERA and 10 saves.
Series Record 1-0
Season Record 27-25
Road Record 11-15
Home Record 16-10
Next Game: 06/06 in Cincinnati @ 6:10 pm CST
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