CHICAGO SPORTS - ZAMBRANO’S RETURN – JUST WHAT THE CHICAGO CUBS NEEDED
Cubs' ace right-hander Pitcher, Carlos Zambrano, returned from the disabled list to hold the Cardinals scoreless in six innings while allowing only six base runners. Zambrano showed why the Cubs need to be able to trot him out to the mound every fifth game as his energy and intent to win was very evident.
Zambrano threw 87 pitches of which 53 were strikes. He recorded just five ground ball outs while he struck out five batters and walked two. He also had a base hit in the game and showed the energy the Cubs needed as they entered the final destination of their longest road-trip of the season. The win put the Cubs ahead of the Cardinals by 3.5 games and sets the tone for today's match up where the Cubs will look to win the series by throwing left-hander, Ted Lilly against Cardinals right-hander and ace, Kyle Lohse who has won 10 games this year.
The Cubs hobbled into St. Louis having lost five of seven games on this road trip with some glaring problems to address, namely the ineffectiveness of reliever, Carlos Marmol. Marmol has been a mystery since mid June and really has struggled to remain a top-notch late-inning pitcher. Cub manager, Lou Piniella, didn't use Marmol in tonight's game and that turned out to be a good decision. Zambrano's performance paved the way for the Cubs to use three relievers: Bob Howry, Neal Cotts and closer, Kerry Wood. With Marmol clearly struggling lately it was nice for the Cubs to get such a great start from Zambrano.
The Cardinals will come back with a vengeance today in a day game at Busch Stadium and the Cubs will have an opportunity to add to their lead in the division. It makes for exciting baseball and with a win today the Cubs could be looking at a sweep of their nemesis, the St. Louis Cardinals.
JEFF ARDITO & DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO
