October 2, 2008
By
Zeldink
Posted at 10:22 am
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Dodgers (1-0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 1 |
| Cubs (0-1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 1 |
W: Lowe (1-0)
L: Dempster (0-1)
Boxscore
That didn’t take long. There’s been a lot of optimism and positive vibes for the Cubs this year. They decimated their competition and appeared to have assembled the best Chicago team in my lifetime, if not ever. So how would they do when they reached the playoffs? So far, it’s the same old story as the last 99 years. And this time they didn’t even need Dusty Baker’s mismanagement.
Ryan Dempster started game 1 for the Cubs and was the Dumpster Reds fans have come to know and love. Dempster was bad. He allowed 4 runs in 4 2/3 innings, walked 7 and struck out 2. 2 of those walks were to the pitcher. Not a good first game. (Incidentally, I blame the guy wearing a Dempster jersey at my wife’s office. If that’s not asking for some kind of baseball punishment, I don’t know what is.)
Like the Brewers, the Cubs find themselves in a hole, but also like the Brewers, they have a better pitcher starting their next game. Well, arguably better. Carlos Zambrano will try to right Chicago’s ship. Considering his often erratic, emotional behavior, I would be nervous were I a Cubs fan.
October 2, 2008
By
Zeldink
Posted at 10:12 am
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Brewers (0-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| Phillies (1-0) | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 3 | 4 | 1 |
W: Hamels (1-0)
L: Gallardo (0-1)
S: Lidge (1)
Boxscore
The Brewers have been the epitome of a team playing for this year. They traded away their best prospect for a half-season rental of a starting pitcher. They fired their longtime manager with two weeks to go to jump start the team. And they routinely had their rental starter pitch on short rest. So it should come as no surprise that they picked Yovani Gallardo to pitch the opening game of their best of 5 against the Phillies.
Gallardo spent the vast majority of the year on the DL. He started 2 games in April, 1 in May, and then nothing until right before the season ended in September. Surely, he’s not rusty. No, what a nonsensical notion.
The crazy thing is that Gallardo was effective. He threw 4 innings and allowed no earned runs. But it was the defense and the unearned runs that doomed Milwaukee yesterday. The Brewers converted a bunt that should have been a double into no outs. And then Mike Cameron compounded problems when he misjudged a fly ball in the wind. All this allowed 3 unearned runs to score in the 3rd, and the Brewers never came back against the Phillies Cole Hamels.
It’s always tough to come back from a game 1 loss in a short series–most teams don’t–but most teams don’t have the inhuman C. C. Sabathia starting game 2. We’ll see if there’s more peeing in Milwaukee’s future.
