Where's ol' Mo?

The Cardinals beat the Cubs yesterday by almost a full touchdown.

Carlos Zambrano looked aweful. So did the plethora of arms Lou Pinella sent out for the final seven and a third innings.

Geovany Soto has a bruised hand and is listed as day-to-day.

It's September 20.

If there is one thing history has taught us about October, it's that the team that ends up with the rings is determined as much by momentum as by talent and record, especially since Bud Selig traded logic for determining the Series host by the All Star Game winner.

So why do I get the feeling Cubs fans are OK with the Cubs backing into the division crown, being granted a free pass to another week of baseball by the ineptitude of the Milwaukee Brewers?

The Cubs had seen a couple weeks worth of good baseball leading into the series opener against the hated Cardinals, who are eight days from Tony LaRussa having more free time to sleep in his car. The series against Houston, moved by Hurricane Ike to Milwaukee, brought Carlos Zambrano back from a sore shoulder to his historical no-hitter, followed by Ryan Dempster beating previously unbeaten CC Sabathia at Wrigley.

And then Friday happened.

Zambrano was understandably lost, given the family issues he had dealt with on Wednesday and Thursday. I am giving him a free pass on not being ready to pitch on Friday. But Lou Pinella needed to see his ace being ill-prepared for the start and utilize one of the dozen other starters on the active roster for a day. The last thing the Cubs needed with a week left in the season was a day on which they not only got obliterated on the score board, but their young bullpen was used for over seven innings.

I'm sure the other end of the spectrum, the positive spin of the Friday game was that Pinella had the opportunity to pull all the starting bats from the lineup and get the likes of Darryl Ward a few at bats (in which Ward produced well I might add). I'm also sure someone somewhere will say it works out great for Cubs fans because now the Cubs can control their own destiny and clinch at home by winning a game in front of their hometown fans.

If you saw the postgame press conference, I'm not sure Pinella was of the mindset that setting up a dramatic 70 degree Saturday at Wrigley was a good plan.

Rest the arms once you've won the division. Rest Aramis Ramirez and Derrek Lee once you've won the division. Get Kosuke Fukudome at bats once you've won the division. Take a look at Kevin Hart or Angel Guzman starting a game once you've won the division. Until then, let's let the eggs hatch before we start counting...