4/2/11 Pittsburgh Pirates 3, Chicago Cubs 5

Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
Game 2 of 3

So, the Pirates pwned the Cubs last year…and they pwned us on Opening Day, thanks to Ryan Dempster and “Cubs Nemesis” Neil Walker. Certainly, this pwnership just cannot last. And what of Carlos Pena?



Believe it.



The Pirates score one run each in the 1st, 3rd, and 7th innings. Carlos Zambrano does very well (he is a GREAT pitcher, fact…) but when he leaves the 7th inning after giving up the solo shot to Garrett Jones, the Pirates pwn us again and the Cubs are scoreless.

Enter Evan Meek…and a wild 8th inning…5 runs are scored by the Cubs and what do you know…we WIN!

Len and Bob, recalling his grand salami on Opening Day, refer to Neil Walker as “Cubs Nemesis Neil Walker,” so I will too.

Starting this season, I will welcome Carlos Pena to the team by documenting the Pena Shift…you can see on my scoresheet, for every plate appearance, look for the circled “22,” that means the shift was on. The shift was on for 2 out of 4 plate appearances. The shift is REAL.

Alfonso Soriano received a considerable amount of flack from the Wrigley crowd on what was seen as a baserunning blunder in the 7th inning on a perceived dropped 3rd strike. Soriano stuck out swinging, and the ball was dropped on a wild pitch. No need to boo Fonzie here, the ruling and play are as follows, per Bob Brenly:

With less than 2 outs, 1st base covered, the batter is out automatically, regardless of whether…the pitch gets by the catcher. With 2 outs, this is not the case. Fans were encouraging Soriano to RUN, but he was OUT.

The 7th Inning Stretch was led by Ferguson Jenkins. Go CUBS.

5/15/10 Pittsburgh Pirates 3, Chicago Cubs 4

Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL

Is this truly bliss, or are we just sliding down a pole with razor blades at the bottom (again)?

It's hard to believe I have such a sense of celebration over a WIN that avoids a sweep by the Pirates AND finishes a 3 game series with a loss, but that's what we Cubs fans have been used to this season so far.

PIT 3 6 1
CHC 4 8 1

The Buckos have won their games against us by scoring in the first inning. This is still true, as they did not score in the first (they waited until the 2nd, thanks) and subsequently did not win. The key seemed to be 'don't let McCutchen hit safely'...he did hit safely but was subsequently caught stealing (1-3-4)and that was really the end of his offensive threat.

Soriano...flied out once, hit safely twice, scored a run, stole a base (going on a wild pitch, snagging an extra base in the process), drove in a run, and was walked. Nice! Derrek Lee with 2 hits, an RBI...Fukudome, a hit and a run, Byrd (2 for 4)...Fontenot was walked and scored the tying run on a wild pitch by Evan Meek (whom we had feared when we was "throwing up in the bullpen")...Xavier nady delivers his first pinch hit RBI as a Cub, and suddenly our offensive power is easily matched with our ability to cross the plate. Defensively, the most honorable mention has to go to Fukudome's amazing catch in the top of the 7th, robbing Ross Ohlendorf's potential extra-bases drive with 2 men on base; this would have blown the game to a 5-1 advantage for the Pirates had Fukudome not reached the ball as efficiently as he had. As for Ohlendorf, see my post about Latos...moments like these don't -and can't- happen in AL games.

Yes, even if only for one afternoon...the nicest W of all is one that was fought for valiantly, and after such a dry spell.

I want to also comment that this year's Pirates really don't look or smell like last year's Pirates...they aren't really playing like the cheapo AAA team they have been for the past few years, so maybe they have the advantage in 2010 games with us 5-1 partly because we aren't performing as well as we should be, but also maybe because they are performing a little bit better than others have expected them to. Like they stole some of that 'mysterious spoiler mojo' from the Brewers (who could use some this year so far).

Lilly looked fine, but I still don't know what the hell happened in the 2nd inning. Sean Marshall = YES, and hey Carlos Marmol is effective as a closer in a Save situation. Theriot sat out the game due to a sore elbow from being hit by Carrasco yesterday.

WGN-TV broadcasters Len Kasper and Bob Brenly did their broadcast from the bleachers (with a visit from Bleacher Veteran Tom Ricketts as well) and no, this wasn't the first time they've done it but the weather was beautiful, no homers to catch out there today, and all is well.