The Cubs won their second game in a row yesterday over the Arizona Diamondbacks to climb back to within one game of .500 at 12-13. However, they did it in a different way as they came back from a 5-2 deficit in the fifth inning scoring five unanswered runs to win the ballgame 7-5. The Cubs went down initially after Carlos Silva got hit around for the first time all season raising his earned run average to a still very impressive 2.90. Mark Reynolds of the Diamondbacks, the definition of an all-or-nothing hitter clubbed a pair of home runs off of Silva moving his total to nine on the season. The corner infielder set the all time single season record for strike outs last year with a whopping total of 223 while also hitting 44 home runs that averaged a ridiculous 430 feet. He is certainly a fun player to watch, just not when he is teeing off on your team.
It keeps looking more and more like Soriano has rediscovered his swing as he tallied two more hits yesterday including the game-tying homer off of Bob Howry in the seventh inning (something that Cub fans became too accustomed to seeing during his recent stint in Chicago.) He looks like a completely different hitter right now displaying the type of power that made him a force in Washington and New York. The other aspect of his game that stands out right now is the patience he has shown at the plate. A player normally known for his free-swinging approach has been laying off the high fastballs and breaking balls in the dirt that pitchers have tempted him with for years. His production along with strong starts from the likes of Theriot, Fukudome, Byrd, and Soto has helped to negate the severe lack of production from Aramis Ramirez and Derrek Lee in the middle of the order.
The Cubs look to take three of four from Arizona today as they will send Tom Gorzelanny to the mound.
