Cubby-Blue

Ted Lilly wins on a gorgeous Wrigley night.

It still shocks me, seeing all the empty seats at Wrigley. And last night, it was cool and grand and the Cubs played just a really nice, relaxed baseball game. 

Why can't it be like this all the time?

Ted Lilly was fabulous, as always. In the 7th a couple Pirates got on and Ryan Church is up and he's got 2 strikes on him, and Ted has 100 pitches even and everybody got up on their feet yelling and it was kinda electric and Ted strikes him out.

Exhilarating.

Pure baseball.

That's what it's supposed to feel like, man.

Alfonso hit a couple out.

Marmol was on.

Just a great night at the ballpark, Cubs 3 and the Pirates 1.

You shoulda been there.

Here's a couple pictures.

Ted. The shadows were magic.

Soriano after one of his dingers.

The Toyota Sign. (I don't care)

Fukudome stealing annnnddddddd YOU'RE OUT!

She was cute and everything, but why is the waving-talking-on-the-cell-phone-while-the-game's-being-played-person always in front of me?       

The Zambrano banner. Hmmm. 

 

Carlos Zambrano has anger issues? WHAT ABOUT US FANS?!

 It must be awful to be Carlos Zambrano, a professional athlete making a billion dollars and having anger issues. 

Seriously.

And I apologize in advance if the following seems insensitive but...

WHAT ABOUT ME, MAN?

What about the lowly Cub Fan?

YOU THINK YOU HAVE ANGER ISSUES, CARLOS? YOU HAVE NO IDEA.

WHAT AM I TO DO ABOUT MY ANGER ISSUES - HOLD MY BREATH AND COUNT TO A HUNDRED AND TWO YEARS?

What about 1969, Carlos? Were you even born yet?

You think this team is bad? HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF HECTOR VILLANUEVA? 

Since you became a Cub in 2001, you've seen 3 Cub teams under .500 (not including this year).

SINCE 1970, I'VE SEEN TWENTY FIVE CUB TEAMS UNDER .500. 

You know why I never wear a rally cap? BECAUSE THE RALLY CAP WAS INVENTED WHEN THE TIGERS CAME FROM BEHIND TO BEAT THE CUBS IN THE 1945 WORLD SERIES!

Compared to what most Cub Fans are feeling right now, Lee Elia's rant is Disney Channel material.

What about $6.75 for 16 ounces of Budweiser? What about $30 bucks to park in somebody's crappy garage? WHAT ABOUT A SCALPER ASKING ME $100 FOR A BLEACHER SEAT?

What about getting SWEPT out of the PLAYOFFS TWO YEARS IN A ROW? 

What about getting Lou Piniella as manager, only he's THE CALM VERSION?

GIVE ME DON ZIMMER PLEASE, THAT I MAY WALLOW IN HIS GLORIOUS UMPIRE RANTING.

Seriously, what's so wrong with KICKING DIRT ON AN UMP WHEN YOUR TEAM IS PLAYING LIKE PIXIES?

How is it that the Cubs suddenly had Aaron Miles and didn't have Mark DeRosa? HOW DID THEY ACQUIRE AN OUTFIELDER WHO'S HEAD WAS SO FAR OUT OF THE GAME THAT HE TOSSED A LIVE BALL INTO THE BLEACHERS?

And what is up with these God-awful PIRATES? HOW CAN A TEAM WITH THE LOWEST PAYROLL IN BASEBALL BEAT THE TEAM WITH THE THIRD HIGHEST PAYROLL 8 TIMES OUT OF 10?

I could almost imagine what it would be like to be living your awful life, Carlos, but just as I was about to grasp it STEVE BARTMAN LURCHED UP AND KNOCKED IT AWAY! IT SQUIRTED UNDER LEON DURHAM'S GLOVE AND WENT BETWEEN HIS LEGS INTO RIGHT FIELD. 

Then, a goat ate it.

Cubs beat Sox, Tyler Colvin gets his 10th homer!

Ahhhhhhh....something nice to talk about!

The Cubs got some hits while guys were on base and... hey, isn't that the way baseball's supposed to be played? 

Sure is.

Like in the 3rd Geo Soto and Starlin Castro singled, and then Tyler Colvin stepped up and knocked one out. 

His 10th of the season, 10th of his young career.

The Cubs had a lead and then just kept going as the game went along until they had 8 runs. Which was good because the Sox ended up getting 3 in the bottom of the 9th and gave me a freaking heart attack. 

But it ends up 8-6, Cubs with the W, Sox with their first L in about a year.

Cubs get 14 hits with 3 from Soto and 3 from Colvin (along with his 4 RBIs).

Alfonso hit one out, and Aramis hit a double to go with yesterdays homer which maybe starts a hitting streak for our one-sixty-something-hitting All-Star 3rd baseman.

Fingers crossed there.

Dempster goes 7 and gets a nice little win.

I was so happy I rode my bike over to the Mucho Gusto and got some Victory Burritos to go.

That is a nice Sunday, my friend.

And now it's struggling Randy Wells against Paul Maholm and those Pesky Pirates.

Maholm is 4-6, I think 2 of his wins coming against the Cubs so, you know... ahoy this, matey.

And KEEP GOING, CUBS!

And thank you for the opportunity for me to do a post without profanity or an overwhelming sense of dread!

Carlos Zambrano & Ozzie Guillen go to dinner

 
So, I can understand the sudden, out of control, spontaneous burst of emotion that shot out of Carlos Zambrano in the dugout in game one of this Sox series. 

I can.

That stuff happens, even if the gist of what he was saying was, "If you won't play for me, I won't play for you."

I took that to be a season-long's worth of frustration that came pouring out.

In the Trib today, Ted Lilly said, "I don't think it was the right thing to do, but I don't think it was meant that way. It was clearly an emotional time, right? I don't think he meant it to be offensive. He was angry and probably could've handled it a different way."

I understand that.

But a conscious decision to go have dinner afterwards with Ozzie Guillen, even if it was planned before-hand?

I apologize for my language, but how much more clearly can Carlos say, "Fuck You, Cubs"?

The Cubs lost by the way.

A pretty good game - Freddy Garcia is just a freaking Cub nemesis.

It'll be so awesome to go to work on Monday and hear about all this crap from the Sox guys in the hallway.

It's kinda stormy out today, which is appropriate, and we'll see our 24-man Cub team and Ryan Dempster take on John Danks.

This Zambrano thing...

What a colossal, steaming pile this whole situation is, and we'll just have to see what happens.

Carlos Zambrano Explodes

I apologize for the graphic but yep, that's a boil. 

It's feels appropriate for this season, as Carlos Zambrano apparently ejected himself from Wrigleyville by... yelling in the dugout?

Kinda sad when yelling in the dugout is cause for suspension - this season has been nothing if not absolutely predictable, and FINALLY something happened that took me by surprise.

The Cubs played the Sox yesterday. Carlos Zambrano started, but he only got to play one inning. An inning in which he sucked. An inning in which a bunch of Sox runs scored. 

Then, the surprise - something interesting besides Alfonso Soriano bunting that one time. 

Surely you've seen the video - Carlos went all Carlos!

Somebody will have to tell me, however, exactly what Carlos was saying.

It must have been horrible. Because listening to WGN radio after the game, it totally sounds like Carlos isn't just suspended (by the Cubs). It sounds like they want to Milton Bradley him, send him anywhere for anything.

I've looked at the video many times. 

Carlos appears to be yelling at nothing. Like if he wasn't in the dugout, you'd think he was an insane street bum just yelling at the air because the whiskey's gone.

Plus I think he's yelling in Spanish - I can't read his lips like I can Derrek Lee's.

Derrek's in the background obviously yelling "Shut the fuck up!"

And then Carlos turns around and that's when it gets really interesting because he goes and tries to get in Derrek's face while Lou restrains him.

That's Derrek Lee. The rational guy. The guy who you get the calm quotes from after almost every hideous loss you've watched this season.

Then Z yells a bunch more as Tyler Colvin hilariously walks into frame to get a Gatorade from some weird dude in shades (who is that guy?), Big Z does the trademark cooler-slam, and then is escorted to the stairs.

And now he's suspended. 

The Cubs lost of course.

Jim Hendry gave a pretty long talk to the media about not tolerating that kind of behavior and stuff.

But I gotta tell you, until I hear what Carlos was actually yelling?

Come on man! I've done posts about Carlos as Travis Bickle (this from 2004)! Yeah, yesterday he looked like he was ready for the straight-jacket, but a display of emotion was something I thought this lifeless team needed.

Bob Brenley even said something like he thought it was cool, that emotion.

Maybe it was horrible.

Maybe Z said unforgivable things to D Lee and Lou and maybe even that weird guy with the shades.

But I wanna know what it was before I decide if I agree that Carlos should get the Milton treatment.

Because the really funny thing about this whole shootin' match?

The Cubs might just have gotten a spark.

Hopefully they either get shocked into being awake, or I don't know - maybe the team is all happy he got suspended. Maybe they'll be so happy they'll shoot out of bed with renewed enthusiasm.

Either way, I'm SO watching tomorrow.