Archive - Apr 7, 2008

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SP	Tom Gorzelanny	SP	Ted Lilly
(2008)	0-1, 4.50, 3 K, 3 BB	(2008)	0-1, 7.71, 4 K, 0 BB
LF	Alfonso Soriano	CF	*Nate McLouth
CF	Reed Johnson	2B	Freddy Sanchez
1B	Derrek Lee	LF	Jason Bay
3B	Aramis Ramirez	C	Ryan Doumit
RF	*Kosuke Fukudome	RF	Xavier Nady
2B	Mark DeRosa	1B	*Doug Mientkiewicz
C	Geovany Soto	3B	Jose Bautista
SS	Ronny Cedeno	SS	Luis Rivas
P	*Ted Lilly	P	*Tom Gorzelanny

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cubs look to extend their winning streak to three as they help open PNC Park for the year. Ted Lilly tries to rebound from a less-than-good debut versus the Brewers; he went 1-0 with a 3.20 ERA last year versus the Pirates in three starts.Kerry Wood will sit this one out today, so look for Carlos Marmol to close if the Cubs are so fortunate to find themselves in that situation.

 

Four games into their season-opening eight game homestand the Iowa Cubs are off to a sputtering 1-3 start.

THE GOOD NEWS: Both Seans [Marshall and Gallagher], Neal Cotts, Eric Patterson and Matt Murton.

THE BAD NEWS: Micah Hoffpauir, Sam Fuld and Matt Murton.

Marshall started the opener and retired all nine batters he faced, six of them on strikes, as he pitch-counts his way back from an ill-advised audition for a spot in the Chicago bullpen.

The next night Gallagher tossed five economical innings, allowing only two hits and a run with one walk and five strikeouts.

Cotts went two perfect innings and fanned three in his only appearance so far.

In Saturday's day-night doubleheader you might say that Patterson rode a tandem cycle. After notching a single and a double in the matinee, he spanked a triple down the left-field line and pulled a homer over the scoreboard in right in the nightcap. He's been playing at second base.

Murton makes both lists because he's hit safely in every game and drawn a couple of walks to open at a .357/.471 clip, but all five hits are singles. He's scored once without driving in a run.

Hoffpauir tweaked an oblique in an exhibition tilt versus the University of Iowa and headed straight back to Arizona. He's expected back in another week or so.

Fuld is on the active roster but has played in only one of the first four games, going 1-4 when he patrolled CF in the opener of Saturday's DH. Probably not coincidentally, the weather Saturday afternoon offered easily the best playing conditions of the week.

Mark Holliman starts tonight in the opener of a four-game set with Albuquerque.

The five hits that did the most to enhance the Cubs' chance of winning this week, as measured by FanGraphs' Win Probability Added (WPA):

#5 Big Hit: Saturday v. Houston, 3rd inning--Derrek Lee cracks a solo home run off Roy Oswalt to tie the Astros, 2-2. Lee would later employ his game-tying skills to more good use. (See #4 Big Hit.) WPA .120

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