Game 35 Recap: Cubs 3, Diamondbacks 1

Pitchers Duel

W - Lilly (3-4), batter's interference calls

L- Haren (4-2), jerks who didn't start Lilly in their fantasy leagues

S - Wood (6)

Box Score, Photos

 

Things to Take from This Game

1. Lilly Comes Through

Facing the best offense in baseball, one dominated by right-handed hitters, Lilly shut down the Diamondbacks to the tune of three hits, two walks, one earned run on a Chris Young Home Run, and ten strikeouts. He spotted the fastball well, with more velocity as the day went on, and had his harder curve and/or slider working for him. A really remarkable performance for Lilly.

2. Haren's good, not great

Haren also pitched very well. The key moment came in the fifth, when with a runner on second and two outs, he walked Johnson to get to Lilly. Lilly then singled through the middle for an RBI, and Soriano dropped a double in down the left field line. Lee added a home run off of Cruz in the eighth, completing the day's scoring

3. A Dominant Ninth for Wood

Wood threw nine strikes in the ninth, completely overpowering Young, Jackson and Upton. Easily the most dominant I've seen Wood, this year.

The this-is-what-I-get-for-not-being-a-fantasy-baseball-homer details, below.

 

 

Game Recap

Pregame

• Pretty weak National Anthem. A voice that generously would be called smokey, but I'll call it raspy and sort of nasal. They also seem to not want to put the woman singing it on camera, at all costs.

Inning 1 - Top

• Byrnes, leading off for the fourth time this year, makes a really weak check-flail at a fastball that would have been called strike three, anyway. Nice start to Lilly
• He then puts Drew in a 0-2 hole.
• Drew with a soft roll-out to DeRosa.
• First pitch to Chris Young, and he hits it into the left-field well. We have seen this before. Fastball down the middle. 1-0
• Jackson pops to DeRosa

Inning 1 - Bottom

• Soriano works a 2-2 count, a minor victory. Bounces out to Reynolds at third
• I guess I haven't seen Haren pitch much, before. Really odd delivery, with a major hitch,or pause, in the leg kick
• Theriot smokes a fastball to left, but that all-mouth, no mind, surfing pretty-boy Byrnes makes a nice diving catch, and smiles and hugs Young in center, afterwards. Go away, pretty-boy surfer.
• Lee taps one out in front of the plate, easy play for Snyder

Inning 2- Top

• Upton K's swinging on a changeup
• Lilly K's Reynolds swinging at an inside fastball. Radar gun put the fastball at 86.
• Snyder hits a 66 MPH curveball into left field for a single.
• Burke pops a high fastball to Lee, in foul territory.

Inning 2 - Bottom

• Ramirez grounds to Drew
• Fukudome K's looking, pitch looked high.
• Soto rolls to Reynolds. Easy game so far, for Haren

Inning 3- Top

• Haren flies to right
• and Byrnes to Left.
• Drew hits a sinking liner to center, and Johnson makes a dive for it. It one-hops him, pretty badly, and the ball rolls straight behind him. Drew "triples."
• Young K's looking at a breaking pitch. Drew stranded

Inning 3 - Bottom

• DeRosa hits one that deflects off of Haren's glove. Harn runs after it, throws, DeRosa slides head first as the throw is offline, and is safe at first.
• Johnson with a long AB, gets to 3-2 count.
• DeRosa runs, and Johnson grounds out to Drew. Runner is able to advance to second.
• Lilly pulls a grounder to second, on a broken bat, advanced DeRosa to third. Two outs.
• Soriano grounds out to third, inning over. Mild grumbling from the fans

Inning 4 - Top

• Jackson walks
• and steals second without a throw. Huge jump on Lilly. Huge.
• Upton strikes out swinging, again. And I started him, not Lilly, in my keeper league.
• Lilly with nearly a wild throw on a pickoff attempt at second. Nice save by DeRosa.
• And Reynolds also K's swinging. This is what I get for not having faith in my Cubbies.
• Mark Grace is singing the Stretch. Who will he "root, root root" for - the Cubbies, the D-Backs, or some cop-out?
• Lilly K's the side, on a foul-tip by Snyder. Fantasy Baseball Zeus is punishing me for my lack of faith.

Inning 4 - Bottom

• Theriot K's swinging.
• Lee flies lazily to Right.
• Len and Bob comment on Snyder's all-black catching gear. heh. I think he's just Goth.
• Ramirez K's swinging. A beautifully pitched game, so far

Inning 5- Top

• Burke with a slow roller to straight away shortstop, Ramirez gets there to make the throw to first, just getting Burke.
• Haren fouls out.
• Byrnes rolls out to Ramirez

Inning 5 - Bottom

• Haren strikes out Fukudome for a second time, here on a breaking ball
• And Soto on a called strike three. Uff da.
• DeRosa doubles into the left field corner.
• Reed Johnson gets walked to face Lilly. Runners on 1 and 2, two outs for Lilly
• Lilly takes a fastball back up the middle for a base hit. Young's throw home is terrible, almost hitting Johnson as he's rounding second base. DeRosa scores without a play. 1-1
• And Soriano hits one down the left field line, scoring Johnson. Lilly to third, Soriano doubles. 2-1 Cubs
• Theriot grounds out to Drew.

Inning 6 - Top

• Drew lines one to the warning track in Right, Fuludome catches it without problem.
• Young K's swinging.
• Nice catch by a fan in the first row of the upper deck. Leans over, catches the foul ball with his bare hands. Spiffy jacket he's wearing, too. You go, fan.
• Jackson walks.
• Gun has Lilly in the low-90s for Upton's PA.
• Upton looks at a fastball on the outside corner, strike 3.

Inning 6 - Bottom

• Lee grounds out to Drew.
• Haren seems to have landed a bit funny on a pitch to Ramirez. Is slowing down his pace even more.
• Ramirez pops to Drew
• Fukudome works a walk. Nice AB.
• Wrigley's pretty quiet, so you can hear a couple leather-lunged guys yelling GEE-OH SOH-TOH
• Soto Lines out to Young.

Inning 7 - Top

• Reynolds pops to second
• Some morbidly obese guy is out in the little park area next to my window. He's smoking and starting up the grill. No good can come from any of this.
• Snyder K's on a 3-2 breaking ball at the bottom of the zone. Snyder not happy about it. 10 Ks for Lilly.
• Burke lines out to Johnson

Inning 7 - Bottom

• Mark Grace sings the stretch.
• "It's always great to come back home."
• Good for Mark Grace. He says "it's root root root for the CUBBIES. If they don't win it's a SHAME." Quite emphatically
• "I love you guys."
• M.O. guy is just staring at the grill as it heats up. Go away, M.O. guy.
• DeRosa grounds out to Drew.
• Johnson singles to center.
• Oh my god, M.O. Redneck guy has been joined by some cute little puppy. HE'S GOING TO GRILL THE PUPPY!!!
• Fontenot in to hit for Lilly.
• Fontenot flies to Young in left-center
• Grace needs to be informed about how the Cubs are doing this year.
• Grace bagging on the competition in the NL West. Heh.
• Soriano rolls to Drew for a 6-4 force.

Inning 8 - Top

• Augie Ojeda in to hit for Haren, Marmol in for Lilly
• Ojeda vs. Marmol, and guess who wins the battle: Ojeda dumps a single into right. (Actually, just as I'm about to type it, Len also points out how Ojeda has had a nice renaissance in his career)
• Hit and run, and Byrnes' dramatic "flying nun" helicopter backswing catches Soto on both the backswing and then the recoil from it. The home plate ump calls interference, so it winds up being a weird strike-him-out, caught-stealing double play, scored "two, unassisted". Otherwise, Ojeda would have stolen the bag easily.
• Drew flies to shallow right, inning over

Inning 8 - Bottom

• Juan Cruz in. With his cap off, it appears that Juan Cruz is quite bald. As in shaved head, but revealing stubble that suggests he's already lost most of the hair on the top of his head.
• Cruz K's Theriot looking at a fastball on the outside corner.
• Cruz doesn't get much attention, but he's turned into one heck of a middle reliever in the last two or three years.
• And of course, Lee then homers just left of the center field camera.
• Cruz walks Ramirez. While I don't have Lilly starting today, I do have Cruz active as a reliever. God, I suck.
• and Fukudome singles through the right-side hole. Ramirez to second.
• Soto K's looking at the fastball
• The Dog isn't outside any more, and the M.O. guy is eating something. This Can't Possibly Be Good.
• DeRosa walks on four pitches. Bases Loaded.
• Besides being bald, Cruz also has huge wrinkle lines. I wonder if he's secretly 45.
• 3-2 on Reed Johnson. Crowd on its feet.
• Johnson K's swinging at a 95 MPH fastball on the outside corner.

Inning 9 - Top

• Wood in for Marmol, Pie in for Johnson
• Wood blows Young away on three pitches. Not even close.
• Five pitches, five strikes so far for Wood, as Jackson's down 0-2.
• Jackson bounces to Theriot, two out.
• And it's 0-2 on Upton. Wood looks like this is the easiest thing on earth
• Upton gronds into the hole. Theriot gets him at first by half a step. Pretty amazed that Theriot's arm beats Upton's legs. Game over.

Parachat Recap

Inning 1

• Why no Pie?
• What's the dumbest question Rob's been asked? (Besides that one.)
• Why throw Chris Young a fastball?
• Marshal/Eyre/Gallagher/Lieber
• Haren's funky windup.
• No one likes Byrnes.

Inning 2

• Sexson going crazy last night
• Lilly should grow a Fu Manchu.
• Is Cedeno for real? (yes.)
• Round 9,132 of who should start at M.I.

Inning 3

• Johnson's missed catch.
• Some people just can't let go of those Middle Infield debates. Addiction is a painful thing to watch consume your loved ones and friends....
• And it continues. I look for a butter knife with which to give myself a lobotomize
• That didn't work so well. And now I've got a butter knife lodged in the side of my head that I can't get out. It seems to be stuck on something a couple inches in...
• Changing subjects, are Yost and the Brewers finished?

Inning 4

• Fielder's veganism.
• What's in your grocery cart?
• What will Grace "root, root root" for?
• Different fantasy baseball constructions.

Inning 5

• Haren is amazing. As in "unhittable," or as "dreamy"?
• Benson or the Cops?
• Best Hair in the Majors: Haren? Soto? Nomar? Utley?
• Offensive fantasy trade offers
• More fantasy formats
• Cheering runs.

Inning 6

• Cribs in Lake Michigan vs. Cribs on Lake Michigan
• Drowning Babies: your opinion?
• Laughing at those morons who didn't start Lilly in their fantasy leagues today. You know who you are. Morons.
• Would you trade for Harden?
• Can the bullpen keep the lead?
• Is The Heckler funny?
• If the Devil Rays are now the Rays, will the Diamondbacks become the Backs?
• Mark Grace, on his time living near Wrigley.

Inning 7

• Is a pederast a bicycling rastafarian? Evidently not.
• Then who is a pederast?
• Oh dear god.
• Classic poems about man-breasts
• Bunnies.
• Michaelweaselo asks "Which Cub would you fight and why?" Hilarity ensues.

Inning 8

• On to which president you'd buy a beer. Correct answer, Andy Jackson.
• How many dead guys are in your fraternity?
• The catcher's interference play.
• The Volquez/Hamilton trade
• More on Texas's mismanagement.
• Which outfielders are finished?
• Will Randy Johnson get 300 wins?
• Sexson's suspended, Mariners rejoice.
• Good Pizza Toppings.

Inning 9

• Cheering on Wood

 

Cubs record in games recapped moves to 4-2.