Game 62 Recap: Cubs 6, Bad Father's Day Gifts 5

Yes, Six.

W - Gregg (1-1)

L - Thornton (4-2)

Box Score, Photos

Things to Take from This Game

1. Eventful day for Getz

Sox second-baseman Getz doubled in a run, made a fine run-saving catch at second, but also had two errors.  The second one was notable because...

2. Big 8th for Cubs

...it came at the start of the Cubs' half of the eighth, letting Hoffpauir get on.  Without that, the inning would have ended with a Bradley strikeout with one man on base.  Instead, Lee had a chance to save the rally, and hit a three-run homer to bring the Cubs within a run at 5-4.  Soto made it back-to-back homers off of Linebrink, tying the game.

3. Z, Bradley, Lee look fine

Z gave up a two-run homer to Alexei Ramirez and the Getz double, but otherwise looked like he was in command of his fastball and pitched well.  Bradley, other than that strikeout, continued to show a good eye and had a couple of sharp singles. Lee of course continued his hot hitting.

4. Most everyone else does not

Marmol kept getting hit on sliders up in the zone, giving up a couple of Runs.  Soriano kept hitting from behind in the count, Theriot kept swinging from his ass, Fukudome and Blanco failed to spontaneously transmogrify into major-league hitters.

5. However...

After the exciting 8th, Reed Johnson led off the bottom of the ninth with a pinch-hit single, Blanco bunted him to second, and Soriano got just enough of one to bloop a ball into right-center for the game-winning hit.

All the late-inning heroics follow....

Game Recap

Pregame

•  Phew, it's Len and Bob on WGN.
• LouPa eventually is going to have to do things he doesn't want to do
• LouPa feels for these guys
• Looks overcast at Wrigley
• Len with a nice crack about "Hoping I can out-yell the Hawk today."
• Wayne Messmer belts it out.  Just once, I want to see him change it up, and do it to a Samba style beat or something....

Inning 1 - Top

• Game starts will ball one to Podsednik, then a fastball down the middle for a strike. Sinker, Podsednik chops one to Blanco who makes the easy flip to first.
• Fastball strike to start Alexei Ramirez.  Grounder to Fontenot's right, a nice backhand and throw for the 5-3.
• Another first-pitch strike to Dye.  0-2 count, Dye chops one back to Z, who sort of goes down on one knee to cradle it in, still bobbles it a bit.  Fires an unnecessary fastball to Lee for the putout.  Easy first inning, 11 pitches.

Inning 1 - Bottom

• Floyd spikes the first pitch into the left-handed batter's box, to a few cat calls.  Gets the second pitch over for a strike. 
• Hanging slider, Soriano lines it toward the left field corner, but Podsednik makes a nice running catch.
• Fastball down the middle, Theriot flies out to Podsednik.
• 2-1 to Bradley, swings over a slider, 2-2.  Two more balls for the walk.
• Lee goes down to reach for a fastball, drives it to right field, but Dye's there for the easy catch.

Inning 2 - Top

•  Slider for strike one to Konerko.  Quickly 0-2 on a bunch of sliders, K's chasing one down and outside.
• AJ gets some boos as he steps in.  Z working very quickly, I turn my head and it's 1-1.  
• AJ grounds one up the first base line, foul, but Lee completes the play, firing the ball to Z as he covers.  Z bare-hands it.
• AJ flies out to right.
• Anderson singles into left.
• Rob G says that Pat Hughes says that Z. hasn't given up an XBH in three games.
  • And right as rain, Getz pulls one, dumping it down the right field line for a double, runners at 2 and 3
• Beckham gets grazed by a pitch, takes first.  Not too bad, with the open base and the pitcher up next.  Just barely caught the sleeve, it looks like.
• High fastball and Floyd K's swinging.  Long inning, Z now at 34 pitches.

Inning 2 - Bottom

• 2-0 to Soto.  That sort of rhymes.  Two-oh Soto.
• Grounder to Alexei, 6-3 to Soto.  That doesn't rhyme.
• Fontenot with a nice line-drive single into the right-center gap, Dye cuts it off.
• Fukudome grounds into the Easiest 4-6-3 Ever, except Getz gets a bit of a high-hop at the end, he drops it, shovels it to Alexei Ramirez, who has his eye on the sliding Fontenot, and the ball gets away.  Everyone safe, runners at 1 and 2.
• Blanco hits a pretty sharp liner back up the middle, but Floyd gets a glove on it, slowing it down for Getz, who goes to the bag, and turns an easy 4-3 double play, inning over.

Inning 3 - Top

• Quickly a 1-2 count to Podsednik, who stares at strike 3, a fastball on the outside corner.
•  Ramirez grounds to Blanco.
• Anotehr quick 0-2 to Dye.  Pops up a 1-2 slider, foul, Soto grabs it.  51 pitchs, 2 hits, 0 BB and 3 K for Z, through 3.

Inning 3 - Bottom

• Z flails away, and gets a quick 3-pitch strikeout. 
• Soriano rolls one to the left of Alexei Ramirez, who makes a nice play for the 6-3 putout.
• Theriot with a sharp grounder to Getz, who again drops it, but recovers for the 4-3.  Just 31 pitches through 3 for Floyd, 1BB, K and hit.

Inning 4 - Top

• Konerko rolls out to Blanco on the first pitch.
•  and AJ bounces one to Fontenot.
• 3-2 to Anderson.  As Brenley points out, Z looks to have good command of a live fastball today.
• and that said, Anderson walks.
• Anderson runs, a called strike, and Soto makes a bit of a high throw, but Theriot gets down the tag for the end-of-inning caught stealing.

Inning 4 - Bottom

• Bradley dumps a low fastball into left field for a single
• Lee hits a slow grounder to third, but Beckham turns the 5-4-3.  Surprisingly, just Lee's second of the year.
• Soto walks.
• wtf.  They aren't holding Soto on, and Soto runs, just barely beating the tag.  1st stolen base for Soto!
• full count to Fontenot.
• Fontenot walks, bases loaded and two outs for Fukudome 
• Fukudome bounces one back up the middle, but Getz makes a very nice diving catch, and flips to Ramirez to just barely get the force.  Tough way to end the inning.

Inning 5 - Top

•  Getz quickly rolls out to Blanco
• Len notes the wind is shifting, blowing in from right, and might be a portent of the coming rain
• Beckham rolls a single into right.
• Floyd with a nice bunt up the 1B line, Lee tags him out.  Beckham advances.
• Podsednik with a soft fly out to center, inning over.

Inning 5 - Bottom

•  Blanco rolls out to second.
• Zambrano chases a pitch in the dirt, striking out.  Not happy about it.
• Soriano pops to second.  Lame inning.

Inning 6 - Top

• Ramirez flies out to straight-away center. 
• Dye lines one just to the right of the tommy armor sign in left-center for a double
• Konerko comes up and you can hear the Sox fans chanting "Paulie".  Cubs fans try to drown it out with boos.
• 3-1 to Konerko, pops a slider into right, Dye holds at second.
• AJ intentionally walked to get to Anderson.  1 and 2, two outs.
• Anderson dumps one into right-center, Bradley with a little bobble, but no play at the plate anyway.  0-1 Sox
• and Gets rolls out to Blanco, ending the inning.

Inning 6 - Bottom

• I just want to point out to Sister Trans that the only person shown talking on a cell phone at wrigley today, so far, is a Sox fan.
• Theriot singles to right on an 0-2 count. 
• Bradley takes a big swing at the first pitch, a fastball down the middle, and misses.
• Another fastball down the middle, Bradley fouls it off, 1-2 count.  Floyd keeps missing inside, full count.
• Theriot runs, and Bradley hits a sharp single to center.  1 and 3, no outs.
•  Lee hits a weak roller to Getz.  They try for the 4-6-3, can't get Lee at first.  Theriot scores, one out, Lee at first, and 1-1 game
• As Brenley points out the huge hole on the right side of the infield, Soto pulls a grounder to shortstop, for the easy 6-4-3 double play.

Inning 7 - Top

•  Beckham with the leadoff walk, Floyd stays in to try to bunt him over.  Good grief, he's only thrown 76 pitches, so probably a no brainer.
• Floyd bunts him over.
• Heilman warming up.
• Podsednik pops one toward the Cubs' bullpen, where Heilman stares at the popup, almost blocking off Soriano's path.  Soriano stumbles over the bullpen and makes a fine back-handed catch up against the wall.
• Slider down the middle, and Alexei Ramirez lines a home-run to straight-away left, a few rows into the bleacher.  Lots of cheers heard at Wrigley.  1-3 Sox
• Dye lines out to Bradley
• The coach to some hockey team sings the stretch.  Whoever he is, he's horrid.  But what did you expect, he's a hockey coach.  He goes "root, root root for the" and shuts up, only to then go on with "if they don't win it's a shame."  Pretty sad.

Inning 7 - Bottom

• Marmol now up.  Fontenot rolls out to Beckham.
•  Fukudome bounces back to Floyd.
• I'm going to do this part of the recap before it happens:  Blanco makes an out, and the inning ends.
• Yep.

Inning 8 - Top

• Marmol in.  1-2 count to Konerko, he hangs a slider, Konerko goes to right for the single.
• Marmol misses his location with a fastball by about three feet, and Soto stretches from outside of AJ back towards AJ, with the ball just getting away from him.  Konerko takes second, and it's ruled a passed ball.
• AJ rolls to second, for what would have been a GIDP.  Instead it's a 4-3, runner advancing to third. AJ looks into his dugout as he runs down the line, Len wonders if it isn't to indicate to someone that he had made the right play and advanced the runner?  Who knows.
• Linebrink warming up.
• Anderson pops to Lee, just foul of first base.
• Getz pulls yet another looping hit down the right-field line, this time for a double.  1-4 Sox.
• 0-2 to Beckham, he inside-outs a slider thrown over the plate, and lines a single to right.  Bradley tries for the play at the plate, but Getz is safe.  Marmol getting hit pretty solidly on the breaking stuff.  1-5 Sox.
• Sean Marshall in to face Josh Fields.  Thome had been on deck.  Was he announced as the hitter, or not?  Not yet sure, he may still be available for pinch-hitting.  Ok, he was announced, then taken down.
• Marshall walks Fields.  Len and Bob fail to make any sort of department store-related pun.
• Podsednik grounds out to Blanco.

Inning 8 - Bottom

•  A Micah Hoffpauir sighting, as he hits for Marshall.  Linebrink in. Just 90 pitches for Floyd, 3 BB and 2 K.
• Hoffpauir down 0-2.
• Hoffpauir accepts some charity from Getz, as a ball clangs off his body.  Eventful day for Getz at second.
• I look up, and it's an 0-2 count to Soriano.
• Linebrink makes a mistake, a fastball in to Soriano, and he lines it to left for a single.   Hoffpauir to second.
• Theriot swings from his ass at a fastball, missing it. 0-1 count.  And again, fouled off, 1-2.  Battles back to 3-2 count.
• Another big swing, and Theriot pops up to Getz.  1 out.
• 2-0 count to Bradley.  Only Cub who seems to be working from ahead in the count these days.  On to a full count.  K's swinging over a down and inside change-up.
• Mercifully, Lee bails us out of another failed rally, and hits an opposite field home run into the basket directly about the 368 sign in right field.  Fastball over the plate.  4-5 Sox.
• And now Soto hits a home run on the next pitch, to straight-away left, several rows up.  Wrigley finally sounds like Wrigley.  5-5 tie.
• Matt Thornton in, Jake Fox in to hit for Fontenot.  Flies out to center.

Inning 9 - Top

• Gregg in. Miles in for Fontenot at third, Fox out of game. Alexei Ramirez hits one back up the middle, Gregg has his back turned to the plate and goes for the back-hand grab, no go.  Ball sneaks into center for the single.
•  Dye chops to Theriot, who starts a very ugly 6-4-3 attempt.  Theriot has the ball stick in his glove a bit, then does an awkard shovel, screwing up Blanco's rythem, who double-pumps, and throws one past Lee.  Dye holds at first.  Dewayne Wise runs for Dye.
• Konerko is 7-9 with a HR off of Gregg.  Gregg gets him to fly to Bradley
• Wise runs, AJ bounces one right up the line to Lee, who steps on first.

Inning 9 - Bottom

•  Reed Johnson to face Thornton instead of Fukudome.  Wise stays in for Dye, in right.
• Johnson singles sharply up the middle.
• Blanco, who had given up on batting righty, will face Thornton right handed to attempt the bunt.  It works, a fine bunt up the first base line.  Johnson on second with one out.
• Aaron oftheridiculouslookingbeardforhisbodyandbattingstance Miles hits a slow roller to the 6-5 hole.  Beckham had the easier play, but lets Ramirez get it so that Beckham can cover third and keep Johnson holding at second.  Ramirez gets to it, gets Miles at first.
• Guess what?  1-2 count to Soriano.  Now 2-2
• Soriano fists a floater over Getz and into shallow left-center for a single.  Johnson scores uncontested, 6-5 Cubs.

Parachat Recap

Pregame

• mlb.tv and computers
• sick kids

Inning 1

•  the new G.I. Joe movie.
• Michelle Yeoh
• Touch-ups.
• Ewan McGregor's skin.
• The rationale for new movies.
• Tattoos become the new parachat litmus-test, and The Joe will never get hired as a Wal-mart Greeter.

Inning 2

• 555
•  According to babelfish, Carlos told The Joe his penis is respectable?!?
• How does Milton Bradley relax?I
• Blame Rob.
• Our latest scurrilous rumor designed to gin up some traffic and help me pay for my computer:  Joe Morgan has Downs Syndrome.  (credit to The Joe).
• Ibanez hurts his groin.
• New position for Jake Fox:  Outfield.  All of it.
• Downloading Mongols.
• Anyone watch a game from a rooftop?
• More on Von Joshua being one of the Troy O'Leary All Stars

Inning 3

•  "Journalism"
• Rebranding "Christians" as "Fun-ions."  Or "Jesus Light."
• Cults and Rerun.
• The Cult Reporter: No Good Will Come of This.
• Chatting with Jehovah's Witnesses.

Inning 4

• Cheerleaders and Felix Pie.
•  Phone plans, paper bills and movies.  ~yawn~
• Soto's stolen base
• Chasing Pedro.

Inning 5

• Where's Manny? 
• Weather on the moon.

Inning 6

• Right play to IBB AJ?
  • yes.
• Rallying.
• Not thinking of Jim Hendry on the toilet.

Inning 7

• Getting beat by a 13 year old.
• Ditkaesque Stretches. 
• Marla Collins' daughter, omellettes and eggs.
• What would happen if the Cubs switched to competitive Curling?

Inning 8

•  This seasno's misery. 
• Possible lineup changes.
• The worst possible, plausible defensive arrangement for the Cubs.
• Griping about Theriot's approach.
• Going bananas.
• The silliness of giving up two HRs and not having any of them count as Earned Runs.
• Baseless Mark Cuban rumors.

Inning 9

•  The ugly 6-4-3 effort by the Cubs.
• Trying not to get our hopes up.
• Rally Salamander, or Rallymander.
• Victory!

Cubs' record in games recapped since my return from exile advances to 1-1.