Good grief
The above picture was taken just moments before Kerry Wood threw the first pitch of the ninth inning during Thursday afternoon’s game. I bet you can guess what happened next.
No, Craig Counsell didn’t line one back up the middle, sending Wood’s glove, hat and clothing flying in all different directions. But he might as well.
Wood drilled Counsell with the first pitch of the inning. Gabe Kapler hit a double. Then, Jason Kendall drove in Counsell. And faster than Charlie Brown could yell “AAUGH!” the Cubs were down 4-3 and Wood had blown his third save this season.
Game, set and series.
Following the Cubs’ 4-3 loss to Milwaukee Thursday afternoon I couldn’t help but think back to the MLB.com article written on Wood’s 20 K game ten years ago. I even said this in response to the article:
Fortunately Wood doesn’t seemed phased by the setbacks and he has embraced his closer role.
Yeah, I’m an idiot. Why Carlos Marmol isn’t the closer is beyond me. His stuff is filthy and he is better suited to become a closer. I predict that by the All-Star break, Marmol will be the Cub’s closer.
In other news, Carlos Zambrano continues to pitch well, going 6-1/3 innings, scattering seven hits, striking out three and giving up one run. He even hit a solo shot in the third inning to give Chicago a 1-0 lead.
Mark DeRosa and Geovany Soto knocked in Chicago’s other two RBI.
The Cubs came into this series limping and would’ve liked to take two of three from their divisional rival. Instead they blew not one, but two chances to to ultimately sweep the Brewers.
In game one of this series, Ben Sheets pitched like a guy who sat out a couple of weeks due to injury and Chicago still lost despite dropping seven runs on the Brewers. Then you have Thursday’s performance and Wood blowing his third save of the year.
The Cubs are very talented and have one of the best, if not the best, lineup in the National League. But if the bullpen doesn’t start to step up, all the runs in the world won’t matter. And Lou Piniella will be spending quite a lot of time picking up his bullpen’s gloves, hats and clothing strewn around the pitcher’s mound.
