Dempster's Big Toe

Tough day all around for the Cubs.

First they lose Dempster to a broken toe. Secondly, they lose a close game and a chance to make up ground on the Cardinals and Brewers.

Dempster’s injury really came out of nowhere.

The good news, however, is the DL should free up Ryan to spend more time with his ailing daughter. A much needed mental break, indeed.

After all, I can only imagine the guilt that comes from spending more time at work than with a hospitalized offspring.

With that in mind, it’s hard to fault Dempster for not exactly being the dominate pitcher he was a year ago.

If Kevin Hart pitches half as good as Randy Wells, he’ll plug the gap left by Dempster’s absence just fine.

In three June starts for Triple-A Iowa Hart posted a 3-0 record and 1.50 ERA.

I’m willing to give Chicago a free pass on scoring just one run.

The lineup has gelled since the beginning of the calendar month, but Javier Vazquez threw a terrific game Tuesday evening.

For certain, you offer a tip of the cap to the former White Sox.

Hats off to Big Z, too. He did a nice job on three days rest and was deserving of a win, as well.

Zambrano is without a victory in his last seven starts, but you can’t blame Carlos for the lack of run support.

If the lineup stays healthy, however, that changes for Zambrano in the season’s second half.

Never seen anything quite like Mike Gonzalez’s rocking on the mound before throwing his pitch. It looks like the guy is trying to kick-start a motorbike!

If the Cubs win Wednesday afternoon they’ll improve to 5-2 on the homestand before facing first place St. Louis for four games.

At the very least, tomorrow can’t be much tougher than today.

• The Cubs (41-40) are in third place.

• W: Vazquez (6-7) L: Zambrano (4-4) S: Soriano (9)

• Tuesday’s game marked the halfway point of the season.

• Chicago is 11-10 during its stretch of 22 games played in 22 days.

• Zambrano is 1-3 since returning from the DL May 22.

• Former Cub Ryan Freel played center field for the Royals’ Tuesday night.

• St. Louis placed Mark DeRosa on the DL with a sore left wrist, thus eliminating him from the upcoming Cubs/Cards series.