GAME THREAD: NL: CHICAGO CUBS (21-25) at LA DODGERS (28-20)

NL: CHICAGO CUBS at LA DODGERS

<div class="pre">NL AT LA DODGERS - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: M Lieberthal hit for R Martinez.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, A ETHIER ON FIRST, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: CHICAGO CUBS 4
LA DODGERS 2 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: M Lieberthal (.217, 0 HR, 1 RBI)</div>

 

NL: CHICAGO CUBS at LA DODGERS

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CHICAGO CUBS 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 4 10 0
LA DODGERS 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 2 10 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CHN - CARLOS ZAMBRANO, WILL OHMAN (8TH), RYAN DEMPSTER (9TH) AND
HENRY BLANCO

LOS - MARK HENDRICKSON, CHAD BILLINGSLEY (6TH), BRETT
TOMKO (9TH) AND RUSSELL MARTIN

HOME RUNS: CHN - ARAMIS RAMIREZ (12) OFF MARK HENDRICKSON IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
MARK DEROSA (5) OFF MARK HENDRICKSON IN THE 2ND, 0 ON

LOS - WILSON BETEMIT (5) OFF CARLOS ZAMBRANO IN THE 7TH, 0 ON</div>

 

NL: CHICAGO CUBS at LA DODGERS

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CHICAGO CUBS 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 4 10 0
LA DODGERS 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 2 10 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CHN - CARLOS ZAMBRANO, WILL OHMAN (8TH), RYAN DEMPSTER (9TH) AND
HENRY BLANCO

LOS - MARK HENDRICKSON, CHAD BILLINGSLEY (6TH), BRETT
TOMKO (9TH) AND RUSSELL MARTIN


WP - CARLOS ZAMBRANO (5-4)
LP - MARK HENDRICKSON (2-2)
SAVE - RYAN DEMPSTER (11)

HOME RUNS: CHN - ARAMIS RAMIREZ (12) OFF MARK HENDRICKSON IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
MARK DEROSA (5) OFF MARK HENDRICKSON IN THE 2ND, 0 ON

LOS - WILSON BETEMIT (5) OFF CARLOS ZAMBRANO IN THE 7TH, 0 ON


TIME: 2:33 ATT: 48,243

PROBABLES: CHN - RICH HILL (4-4, 3.37)
LOS - RANDY WOLF (6-3, 3.75)</div>

 

NL: CHICAGO CUBS at LA DODGERS

<div class="pre">CHICAGO CUBS (4) VS LA DODGERS (2) - FINAL

CHICAGO CUBS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
A Soriano lf 4 0 1 1 0 2 2 .297
A Pagan cf 4 0 0 0 0 2 2 .278
D Lee 1b 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .362
A Ramirez 3b 4 1 2 1 0 1 0 .295
M DeRosa 2b 4 1 1 1 0 1 1 .256
M Murton rf 4 1 2 0 0 0 0 .289
H Blanco c 4 0 1 1 0 1 1 .212
C Izturis ss 4 1 2 0 0 0 1 .274
C Zambrano p 2 0 1 0 0 0 2 .250
W Ohman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a-D Ward ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .294
R Dempster p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Totals 35 4 10 4 0 8 9

a-struck out swinging for W Ohman in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - M Murton (6, M Hendrickson). HR - A Ramirez (12, 2nd inning off M
Hendrickson 0 on, 0 Out), M Derosa (5, 2nd inning off M Hendrickson 0 on, 0
Out). S - C Zambrano. RBI - A Ramirez (36), M DeRosa (21), H Blanco (3), A
Soriano (12). 2-out RBI - A Soriano. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out -
A Soriano 2, A Pagan 1. GIDP - M DeRosa. Team LOB - 5.

FIELDING: DP: 2 (A Ramirez-M DeRosa-D Lee, C Izturis-M DeRosa-D Lee).


LA DODGERS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Pierre cf 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 .279
T Abreu 2b 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .273
N Garciaparra 1b 4 0 1 1 0 1 2 .283
A LaRoche lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .206
R Martin c 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 .315
L Gonzalez lf 3 0 1 0 0 1 2 .276
b-J Kent ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 .293
B Tomko p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
W Betemit 3b 4 1 1 1 0 2 1 .190
A Ethier rf 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 .277
R Martinez ss 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 .161
d-M Lieberthal ph 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .250
M Hendrickson p 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000
a-B Clark ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .250
C Billingsley p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
c-O Saenz ph-1b 2 1 1 0 0 0 2 .244

Totals 35 2 10 2 1 10 14

a-lined out to first for M Hendrickson in the 5th; b-struck out looking for L
Gonzalez in the 8th; c-singled to left for C Billingsley in the 8th;
d-singled to left for R Martinez in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - A Ethier (8, C Zambrano). HR - W Betemit (5, 7th inning off C
Zambrano 0 on, 2 Out). RBI - W Betemit (15), N Garciaparra (28). 2-out RBI - W
Betemit, N Garciaparra. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - L Gonzalez 2,
J Kent 2, B Clark 1. GIDP - W Betemit, O Saenz. Team LOB - 7.

FIELDING: DP: 1 (R Martinez-T Abreu-N Garciaparra).


----------------------------------------------------
CHICAGO CUBS - 020 200 000 -- 4
LA DODGERS - 000 000 110 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

CHICAGO CUBS ip h r er bb so hr era
C Zambrano (W, 5-4) 7 2/3 8 2 2 1 8 1 5.24
W Ohman (H, 9) 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 4.85
R Dempster (S, 11) 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 3.97

LA DODGERS ip h r er bb so hr era
M Hendrickson (L, 2-2) 5 9 4 4 0 4 2 3.62
C Billingsley 3 1 0 0 0 3 0 4.15
B Tomko 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 6.14

WP - M Hendrickson. Pitches-strikes: C Zambrano 125-86; W Ohman 4-3; R
Dempster 7-7; M Hendrickson 74-54; C Billingsley 40-27; B Tomko 19-11. Ground
balls-fly balls: C Zambrano 8-7; W Ohman 0-0; R Dempster 2-0; M Hendrickson
7-4; C Billingsley 5-1; B Tomko 2-0. Batters faced: C Zambrano 31; W Ohman 1; R
Dempster 4; M Hendrickson 23; C Billingsley 10; B Tomko 3.

UMPIRES: HP--Doug Eddings. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Derryl Cousins. 3B--Kerwin
Danley.

T--2:33. Att--48,243.
Weather: 73 degrees, sunny. Wind: 6 mph, out to
center.</div>

 

NL: CHICAGO CUBS at LA DODGERS

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NL
CHICAGO CUBS 4
LA DODGERS 2 FINAL</div>

 

NL: CHICAGO CUBS at LA DODGERS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CHICAGO CUBS (4) AT LA DODGERS (2) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHICAGO CUBS 2ND: A Ramirez homered to right. M DeRosa homered to right.
M Murton reached on infield single to second. M Murton to second on wild pitch
by M Hendrickson. H Blanco grounded out to third. C Izturis singled to left,
M Murton to third. C Zambrano sacrificed to catcher, C Izturis to second.
A Soriano struck out swinging. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 2,
LA DODGERS 0.

CHICAGO CUBS 4TH: M DeRosa flied out to left. M Murton doubled to deep
left. H Blanco singled to left, M Murton scored. C Izturis grounded into
fielder's choice to shortstop, H Blanco out at second. C Zambrano reached on
infield single to shortstop, C Izturis to second. A Soriano singled to left
center, C Izturis scored, C Zambrano to second. A Pagan struck out swinging.
(2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 7TH: R Martin struck out swinging. L Gonzalez lined out to
center. W Betemit homered to right. A Ethier grounded out to second. (1 Run,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 1.

LA DODGERS 8TH: R Martinez grounded out to first. O Saenz hit for
C Billingsley. O Saenz singled to left. J Pierre singled to center, O Saenz to
second. T Abreu struck out swinging. N Garciaparra singled to center, O Saenz
scored, J Pierre to third. R Martin walked, N Garciaparra to second. W Ohman
relieved C Zambrano. J Kent hit for L Gonzalez. J Kent struck out looking.
(1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 2.</div>

 

NL: CHICAGO CUBS at LA DODGERS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CHICAGO CUBS (4) AT LA DODGERS (2) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chicago Cubs Starting Lineups -- A Soriano LF, A Pagan CF, D Lee 1B, A Ramirez 3B,
M DeRosa 2B, M Murton RF, H Blanco C, C Izturis SS, C Zambrano RHP.

La Dodgers Starting Lineups -- J Pierre CF, T Abreu 2B, N Garciaparra 1B,
R Martin C, L Gonzalez LF, W Betemit 3B, A Ethier RF, R Martinez SS,
M Hendrickson LHP.

Umpires -- Doug Eddings (HP), Dana Demuth (1B), Derryl Cousins (2B),
Kerwin Danley (3B).

Gametime Weather: 73 degrees, Sunny, wind out to center at 6 mph.


CHICAGO CUBS 1ST: A Soriano grounded out to second. A Pagan flied out to
left. D Lee flied out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 0,
LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 1ST: J Pierre flied out to right. T Abreu struck out swinging.
N Garciaparra struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 0,
LA DODGERS 0.

CHICAGO CUBS 2ND: A Ramirez homered to right. M DeRosa homered to right.
M Murton reached on infield single to second. M Murton to second on wild pitch
by M Hendrickson. H Blanco grounded out to third. C Izturis singled to left,
M Murton to third. C Zambrano sacrificed to catcher, C Izturis to second.
A Soriano struck out swinging. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 2,
LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 2ND: R Martin struck out swinging. L Gonzalez singled to right
center. W Betemit grounded into double play, third to second to first,
L Gonzalez out at second.(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 2, LA DODGERS 0.

CHICAGO CUBS 3RD: A Pagan struck out looking. D Lee lined out to first.
A Ramirez struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 2,
LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 3RD: A Ethier lined out to left. R Martinez grounded out to
first. M Hendrickson struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CHICAGO CUBS 2, LA DODGERS 0.

CHICAGO CUBS 4TH: M DeRosa flied out to left. M Murton doubled to deep
left. H Blanco singled to left, M Murton scored. C Izturis grounded into
fielder's choice to shortstop, H Blanco out at second. C Zambrano reached on
infield single to shortstop, C Izturis to second. A Soriano singled to left
center, C Izturis scored, C Zambrano to second. A Pagan struck out swinging.
(2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 4TH: J Pierre singled to left. T Abreu singled to right,
J Pierre to second. N Garciaparra fouled out to first. R Martin grounded out to
third, J Pierre to third, T Abreu to second. L Gonzalez struck out looking.
(0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

CHICAGO CUBS 5TH: D Lee grounded out to third. A Ramirez reached on
infield single to second. M DeRosa grounded into double play, shortstop to
second to first, A Ramirez out at second.(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 5TH: W Betemit struck out looking. A Ethier hit a ground rule
double to deep right. R Martinez grounded out to pitcher. B Clark hit for
M Hendrickson. B Clark lined out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

CHICAGO CUBS 6TH: C Billingsley relieved M Hendrickson. M Murton grounded
out to pitcher. H Blanco struck out swinging. C Izturis reached on infield
single to shortstop. C Zambrano grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 6TH: J Pierre flied out to center. T Abreu grounded out to
shortstop. N Garciaparra flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

CHICAGO CUBS 7TH: A Soriano struck out swinging. A Pagan grounded out to
pitcher. D Lee grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 0.

LA DODGERS 7TH: R Martin struck out swinging. L Gonzalez lined out to
center. W Betemit homered to right. A Ethier grounded out to second. (1 Run,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 1.

CHICAGO CUBS 8TH: A Ramirez fouled out to second. M DeRosa struck out
looking. M Murton grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 1.

LA DODGERS 8TH: R Martinez grounded out to first. O Saenz hit for
C Billingsley. O Saenz singled to left. J Pierre singled to center, O Saenz to
second. T Abreu struck out swinging. N Garciaparra singled to center, O Saenz
scored, J Pierre to third. R Martin walked, N Garciaparra to second. W Ohman
relieved C Zambrano. J Kent hit for L Gonzalez. J Kent struck out looking.
(1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 2.

CHICAGO CUBS 9TH: A LaRoche in left field. B Tomko relieved C Billingsley.
O Saenz at first base. H Blanco grounded out to second. C Izturis grounded out
to second. D Ward hit for W Ohman. D Ward struck out swinging. (0 Runs,
0 Hits, 0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 2.

LA DODGERS 9TH: R Dempster relieved W Ohman. W Betemit struck out swinging.
A Ethier singled to right. M Lieberthal hit for R Martinez. M Lieberthal
singled to left, A Ethier to second. O Saenz grounded into double play,
shortstop to second to first, M Lieberthal out at second.(0 Runs, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 2.</div>

 

Zambrano baffles Dodgers as Cubs hold on

<h3>CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 2</h3>LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- A date with the Los Angeles Dodgersapparently worked wonders for Carlos Zambrano.

Zambrano pitched into the eighth inning and Aramis Ramirez andMark DeRosa belted back-to-back home runs to lead the ChicagoCubs to a 4-2 triumph over the Dodgers on Saturday.

It was just the second victory in the last seven road games forthe Cubs, whose overall struggles have coincided with Zambrano'sshortcomings.

A two-time All-Star and Chicago's ace, Zambrano has yielded atleast four earned runs in six different outings this season andentered Saturday's matinee contest with a 5.61 ERA.

But the fiery Zambrano (5-4) always has fared well at DodgerStadium and delivered another stellar performance Saturday,yielding two runs and eight hits in 7 2/3 innings. TheVenezuelan righthander walked one and had eight strikeouts toimprove to 2-1 lifetime against Los Angeles.

The Dodgers finally broke through against Zambrano in theseventh inning when Wilson Betemit belted his fifth homer of theseason to cut the deficit to 4-1.

Zambrano ran into trouble in the following frame, surrendering atwo-out RBI single to Nomar Garciaparra and walking RussellMartin to load the bases. But lefthander Will Ohman struck outpinch-hitter Jeff Kent to rescue Zambrano and preserve the 4-2cushion.

Despite the shaky eighth inning, Zambrano boasts a 1.86 ERA innine career games - five starts - against the Dodgers.

Ryan Dempster worked around a pair of one-out singles in theninth to record his 11th save.

Chicago took the lead for good in the second against Los Angelesstarter Mark Hendrickson (2-2), who lost his second straightouting.

Ramirez opened the frame by hammering Hendrickson's firstoffering over the wall in right field for his 12th homer of theseason. Two pitches later, DeRosa drilled his fifth blast ofthe campaign to make it 2-0.

The Cubs tacked on two important insurance runs in the fourth.Matt Murton doubled with one out and scored on Henry Blanco'sRBI single. Alfonso Soriano made it 4-0 three batters later,ripping a two-out RBI hit to left field.

Hendrickson tossed five innings, yielding four runs and ninehits with no walks and four strikeouts. Juan Pierre and AndreEthier each had two hits for the Dodgers, who had theirthree-game winning streak snapped.

 

Zambrano baffles Dodgers as Cubs hold on

<h3>CHICAGO CUBS 4, LA DODGERS 2</h3>LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- A date with the Los Angeles Dodgersapparently worked wonders for Carlos Zambrano.

Zambrano pitched into the eighth inning and Aramis Ramirez andMark DeRosa belted back-to-back home runs to lead the ChicagoCubs to a 4-2 triumph over the Dodgers on Saturday.

It was just the second victory in the last seven road games forthe Cubs, whose overall struggles have coincided with Zambrano'sshortcomings.

A two-time All-Star and Chicago's ace, Zambrano has yielded atleast four earned runs in six different outings this season andentered Saturday's matinee contest with a 5.61 ERA.

"I have never thought of how my stats are different frompitching at home and on the road," Zambrano said. "I just tryto do my best to pitch the way I know I can pitch."

The fiery Zambrano (5-4) always has fared well at Dodger Stadiumand delivered another stellar performance Saturday, yieldingtwo runs and eight hits in 7 2/3 innings. The Venezuelanrighthander walked one and had eight strikeouts to improve to2-1 lifetime against Los Angeles.

"I feel good," said Zambrano, who owns a 0.86 ERA in six careerappearances at Dodger Stadium. "I have felt a lot better withthe way I'm pitching lately in my last three starts. I get paidto win ballgames and not by ERA."

The Dodgers finally broke through against Zambrano in theseventh inning when Wilson Betemit belted his fifth homer of theseason to cut the deficit to 4-1.

"That (ticked) me off," Zambrano said. "I wouldn't care if hegot a strike but I attacked the zone with two strikes when Ishould have thrown a pitch in the dirt or out of the zone, thatpissed me off."

Zambrano ran into trouble in the following frame, surrendering atwo-out RBI single to Nomar Garciaparra and walking RussellMartin to load the bases. But lefthander Will Ohman struck outpinch-hitter Jeff Kent to rescue Zambrano and preserve the 4-2cushion.

"Ohman came up big with that strikeout to get us out of theinning," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. "I know we got goodarms out there in the bullpen and I have no doubt in my mindthat our pen will come around."

Despite the shaky eighth inning, Zambrano boasts a 1.86 ERA innine career games - five starts - against the Dodgers.

"I never thought of how I pitch good against the Dodgers,"Zambrano said. "I just go out and pitch my game and see whathappens."

"(Zambrano) worked ahead in the count and threw strikes," Martinsaid. "He pitched a good game, and we just couldn't get itdone."

Ryan Dempster worked around a pair of one-out singles in theninth to record his 11th save.

Chicago took the lead for good in the second against Los Angelesstarter Mark Hendrickson (2-2), who lost his second straightouting.

"I was in the zone all day, but I really had no movement withany of my pitches today, and it showed," Hendrickson said.

Ramirez opened the frame by hammering Hendrickson's firstoffering over the wall in right field for his 12th homer of theseason. Two pitches later, DeRosa drilled his fifth blast ofthe campaign to make it 2-0.

"That's what we needed to do, which was put runs on the boardearly so we can have Carlos settle down and get into a goodgroove," DeRosa said. "I got a pitch out over the plate andjust went with it and got enough wood on it to get it over thefence."

The Cubs tacked on two important insurance runs in the fourth.Matt Murton doubled with one out and scored on Henry Blanco'sRBI single. Alfonso Soriano made it 4-0 three batters later,ripping a two-out RBI hit to left field.

Hendrickson tossed five innings, yielding four runs and ninehits with no walks and four strikeouts. Juan Pierre and AndreEthier each had two hits for the Dodgers, who had theirthree-game winning streak snapped.

"I didn't think (Hendrickson) pitched that bad at all," Dodgersmanager Grady Little said. "He just got hit by a good lineup,and we know that he will bounce back and give us a good starthis next time out."

 

What a drop from a 2 time All Star to beating opposing players with a bat</p>

</p>

http://www.baseball-reference.com/o/offerjo01.shtml</p>

 

Didn't he have like a 30 game hit streak with either the Royals or Red Sox? He used to be pretty damn good.

 

Yeah, I remember him with the Royals and he was pretty good. Almost had a 200 hit season.