Cubs! Sox! ValpoLife!
1:15 PM: Brett Fuller here, live-blogging the Cubs' game for everyone. Today's game features the Sox' Gavin Floyd facing the Cubs' Carlos Zambrano, a showdown on the North Side of Chicago at Wrigley Field. The Cubs and the Sox have both been struggling offensively as of late, but they are both surviving around .500, so once the offenses kick in a bit, watch out for them in the playoffs.
1:21 PM: "Big Z" Carlos Zambrano is working fast today. With all of the rain in the area, and the rate of the Cubs' offense lately, I would bet he is trying to get through five innings (MLB minimum to count as an 'official game') very quickly with something like a 1-0 win.
1:25: 1-2-3 inning for Big Z with three piddly grounders to the infield.
1:27: Cubs manager "Sweet" Lou Pinella promised changes to the offense after last night's 5-hit, 1-run performance. The lineup today? The exact same. Ugh.
1:31: Sox get out of the inning with only allowing a walk to Milton Bradley. For those of you who are at home (or lucky enough to watch TV at work), you can watch the game on WGN with the Cubs' announcers or Comcast SportsNet with the White Sox' announcers. I chose the Cubs' announcers because I have an involuntary reflex to throw something at the TV when I hear Hawk Harrelson.
1:39: Milton Bradley lets the fans know there are two outs. Good thing he learns from his mistakes.
1:43: Big Z loads the bases when he "hits" Gordon Beckham with a pitch. I'm not sure how I feel about people faking getting hit by a pitch, it's a little above flopping in basketball, but not by much.
1:49: Cubs get two on after a Theriot single and a Sox error. White Sox fans sigh in relief as Andres Blanco and his .212 average come to the plate. I think we all know what's coming...say it with me...double play. 0-0 after 2.
1:53: The Return of Scott Podsednik has to be one of the more compelling story lines in baseball this year. The guy comes to the White Sox in 2005, helps them win a World Series, leaves, is out of baseball, then comes back to the Sox and is hitting .351 this season. I'm a Cubs fan and all, but that's pretty impressive. Baseball works in mysterious ways.
2:02: Another 1-2-3 inning. This game is flying by. I think both teams want to get this in today, or else they will need to do a couple cross-town double headers next time they play. Can you imagine playing a three or four hour game, then having to drive an hour across town and play another three hour game in 90 degree heat in Chicago? Yikes.
2:11: Splat! Base hit for...Guess Who? Milton Bradley! He really had Ants in the Pants getting down to first. Of course Derek Lee comes up next and hits in to a double play. There has been less action in this game than a Hugh Grant movie. Thanks folks, I'm here all week.
2:21: Chris Getz ends the Cubs' inning with a diving catch & throw to second. I guess that atones for the error earlier in the game. "The Sox Savior" Gordon Beckham follows suit in the top of the fifth with a single to right, which brings up Gavin Floyd. I love it when American League pitchers come to the plate in the National League games. It's my favorite part of interleague play. There's just nothing funnier than someone who hasn't seen a 90+ MPH fastball blindly swing a bat.
2:26: I turned on the Comcast SportsNet/White Sox feed. 5 pitches in, we need to replace our fax machine, two phones, and our white board. Sorry, Chris, it's involuntary.
2:33: Today's game: 37 hitters, 5 hits, 4 walks. I don't think I need to say the score is 0-0. Who's winning? The Bears. (Someone has to get that joke...)
2:40: Big Z is battling. You know the Cubs' offense is bad when Sweet Lou is telling Zamrano to intentionally walk A.J. Pierzynski for fear of getting 1-run that they can't get back. The Cubs need to get Aramis Ramirez back in a big way.
2:41: Of course Brian Anderson, batting after Pierzynski, gets an RBI-single. 1-0 White Sox.
2:44: Ryan Theriot gets on base in front of Milton Bradley. Bradley could really make the Game of Life easier if he were to Connect Four here.
2:48: Derek Lee gets an RBI on a fielders choice after Bradley moves Theriot to third with a hit & run. Jenga!
2:54: Can anyone explain the current vampire trend going on? WGN just showed a promo for their "New Hit Series" The Vampire Diaries. Between that, True Blood, Twilight... I mean, what's going on here? Why?
2:56: Soriano makes a running catch over by the bullpen to get the second out. Announcer Bob Brenly just called it "one of the hardest plays a left fielder can make at Wrigley Field. What's harder? Oh, right.
2:57: Sox' Alexei Ramirez hits a two-run homer, White Sox 3-1. Why do I ever reference Bartman?
3:00: Blackhawks coach is singing the "7th Inning Stretch".... is there a more entertaining song for a Canadian to sing? "Take me oot to the ball game, take me oot to the crowd."
3:08: WGN's AM/PM Player of the Game is Zambrano. One question: Why is there a player of the game after only the 7th inning? Are we that dubious of the Cubs' offense that we don't care about the last two innings?
3:15: Carlos Marmol allows 2 more runs, White Sox go up 5-1. White Sox offense is starting to heat up these past two games.
3:23: Gavin Floyd finally comes out of the ball game for the Sox after allowing only 4 hits in 1 inning. The Cubs' offense, averaging 4.5 hits and 1 run per game this series, is either really bad, or the White Sox have a couple of Cy Young candidates on their staff.
3:27: Cubs put two on with the middle of the order (2-3-4) coming up for the first time in... well, a long time.
3:34: Derek Lee hits a three-run donger to bring it to a 1-run game. Nothing like a 2-out, 8th inning home run to wake up the Wrigley faithful. Linebrink (on the mound for the ChiSox), looks troubled. Soto hits one! Back to back! 5-5 ballgame!
3:43: Kevin "Heart Attack" Gregg comes in relief. I don't think I am going to elaborate any more on that.
3:49: Gregg manages to get out of the inning. He even retired Konerko, whose averaged dropped to .700 against Gregg. Yikes.
3:50: I am debating switching over to Comcast again, just to see how "unfair this game" would be if the Cubs win. Chris informs me, though, that he likes his TV up here and I couldn't guarantee I wouldn't break it.
3:56: Runner on 2nd. Bottom of the 9th. 2 out. Big money star is up. What will happen?
3:58: Soriano gets a hit! Reed Johnson scores! Cubs win 6-5! Great game!
Thanks for 'tuning in', Valpo!