Cubbies fall in a sweep to Sox, now on biggest skid of the year

The hits just keep on coming for the Chicago Cubs as White Sox nation celebrates a sweep on their home turf.

The Cubs just couldn't get anything going the entire series, while the Sox bats remained hot and their pitching was even hotter.

In today's game, the Cubs failed to capitalize on the few mistakes Sox starter Mark Buerhle made. They left four runners in scoring position while Buerhle was on the mound, numbers you can't make up for against a pitcher of his caliber, especially with him being as hot as he is currently.

For example, in the second, Geovany Soto hit a screaming double, giving the Cubs a runner in scoring position with one out. However, even after a Jim Edmonds single and a walk to Henry Blanco, the Cubs were unable to score in the inning, letting Buerhle out of a jam and giving the Sox a chance to get an early lead.

Which they did.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Sox got their first run on a leadoff home run by Carlos Quentin, his 19th of the year.

Then, in the fifth, Brian Anderson (of all people) hit a two-run homer to put the Sox up 3-0. Meanwhile, Buerhle refused to give the Cubs another chance to put him in a jam, retiring the side 1-2-3 in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings.

The Cubs got their first run in the bottom of the seventh due to an error by Joe "Just Give Him a Gold Glove Already" Crede (as Anderson affectionately called him yesterday). However, they were still back two, and it wasn't about to get any easier for the Cubbies to make a comeback.

In the bottom of the eighth, Jim Thome blasted one off of Joe Asciano, putting the Sox up 5-1.

Bobby Jenks came in again to close things out for the Sox, and, for the first time this year, the Cubs have lost four games in a row.

It is unbelievable to me that a team that can be so good at times has such trouble finding wins on the road. Come playoff time, that could become a major problem.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet. The Cubs have St. Louis hot on their heels, and there's a lot of ball left to be played.

Hopefully, the Cubbies will find a way to make it when they're away. Otherwise, I just don't see it happening this year.