By one percentage point the Cubs have hurdled the Reds and are now in 3rd place of the NL Central.  If they don't straighten up it will be the closest they get to the Brewers and Cardinals.

Randy Wells -- who I now think looks more like Sam from True Blood than K-Fed -- delivered another strong performance.  He went 6.2 innings, surrendering 2 runs off of 7 hits and 1 walk.  And thanks to the offensive contributions of Ryan Theriot and Derrek Lee, he exited the game in the 7th with another shot at his first win.

Then, Carlos Marmol came in and walked the only 2 batters he faced.  Wisely Lou yanked him immediately -- Piniella really needs to start getting stiff with Marmol -- and while Aaron Heilman managed to mostly get the Cubs out of a bases-loaded jam, he was unable to do it before allowing one run to be sac flied-in by ex-Ray Johnny Gomes.  More on this play later.  With that run went Randy's win, and so our troubles began.

Between the 9th and 14th innings, the Cubs had multiple opportunities to score.  They left multiple runners on in all but the 12th inning.  They made numerous bonehead plays, like when Theriot botched a hit-and-run with Blanco by striking out, resulting in a double play.  In reality the Cubs sloppy offensive play contributed toward this simple conclusion: they did not deserve to win today.

This conclusion is supported by the sloppy defensive play too.  In the 8th when the Reds tied it up, Reed Johnson failed to throw a caught ball to the right base resulting in a loss of a double play opportunity.  It didn't directly come back to bite the Cubs on the ass but Reed's pointless attempt to gun out Nix at third is just one example of the defense not playing good, fundamental baseball.

Nevertheless, once Marmol was chased into the showers the bullpen did its job rather well.  Gregg, Ascanio, Patton, and Guzman combined to give the Cubs six innings of scoreless ball.  On a team in which the bullpen is one of the weakest points they delievered.  They were able to keep the game tied until the Cubs offense woke up, exploding for 3 runs against the depleted Reds in the 14th.  Soriano homered, Fontenot drove in Theriot, and Reed doubled in Fukudome.  Just like that an excrutiating game turned into a late blow-out.

So, now the Cubs are in third place.  They next travel to Houston to take on the hapless Astros who, despite their haplessness are almost as close to the Cubs as the Cubs are to the Brewers.  Just some perspective for ya.

Current Record: 28-26
Position in the NL Central: 3rd place, 3.5 games out
Best Possible Record: 136-26
Worst Possible Record: 28-134
Record needed to win 110: 82-26
On Pace For: 84-78

^{Randy Wells (0-1, 1.69 ERA) vs. Bronson Arroyo (7-4, 5.37 ERA)}

Story-lines

I saw Randy Wells pitch in person on Tuesday in Atlanta, and I thought that he was finally going to get his first victory.

I had an internal debate whether or not that I should pull out the camera to shoot the final couple innings. That debate was ended when Chipper Jones slapped a single to left. In the end, Wells was once again the unluckiest pitcher in Major League Baseball History as Carlos Marmol and Kevin Gregg blew the game.

As for Bronson Arroyo, he might be the luckiest pitcher in the NL. Somehow he's won 7 games with a 5.37 ERA. What gives? Wells has been almost perfect and can't buy a win, while Bronson's won 7. It just doesn't seem fair.

Last night the Cubs defense allowed 3 unearned runs, and now they find themselves 4.5 games behind the Brewers. The Cubs still have a chance to win the series.

Who's Hot

Derrek Lee - Lee had two more hits yesterday as his average moved closer to .270.

Geovanny Soto - Ok, it's a stretch that he's really hot, but he hit a home run. That's good in my book.

Angel Guzman - After years of frustration, Guzman has gotten his act together. In my book, he's been the biggest surprise this year.

Who's Not

The Cub Defense - Two errors and a bad route by Mike Fontenot in the 11th caused the Cubs to drop a game they could've really won.

Conclusions

This has been an up and down week for the Cubs. So, they might as well end on a positive note with a series win over the Red.

Trivia question: how do you lose a game 4 to 3 in extra innings while only allowing a single earned run?  Answer: start a second baseman at third and watch the magic happen.

It's pretty ridiculous on the surface.  Ryan Dempster gave the Cubs 6 solid innings of 6-hit, 2 walk baseball.  He struck out 7.  He lowered his ERA to 4.12.  But because Mike Fontenot mishandled a ball in the first the Cubs were trailing from the get-go. 

Amazingly, they would then pitch nine consecutive innings of shut-out ball, including efforts from Aaron Heilman, Carlos Marmol, and Angel Guzman while slowly nicking away at the Reds' lead.  Bobby Scales! would homer, Geo Soto would homer, and even the seldom-used Jake Fox sac-flied in a run.

Then in the 11th Sean Marshall lost it.  He walked Jay Bruce, advanced him to second on a wild pitch, walked Ray Hannigan, and then Bruce scored on another Fontenot error.

Its not Mark DeRosa I miss, as he is presently leading all AL third basemen in errors, but instead it's Aramis Ramirez himself. 

The thing is, I understand that the Cubs offense is sluggish and they are trying to get their best hitters in the lineup but Fontenot can't possibly be the best fielding third baseman on the team.  No way.  I wonder if he's even better than Fox (I assume he must be).  Why not leave him at second base even if third becomes an offensive vacuum? 

Anyway, it's no third place for the Cubs although a win today could put them within percentage points.  But the Reds are not a good team.  The Cubs could have swept, perhaps they should have, and last night's loss was a heart-breaker.

^{Ryan Dempster (4-3, 4.48 ERA) vs. Matt Maloney (0-0, 0.00 ERA)}
Story-lines
The Cubs go for the series win in game two tonight against the Cincinnati Reds, which is something we haven't said a lot this season it seems. Ryan Demspter, who hasn't pitched since May 30th, is coming off his best start of the year. He threw 7 shutout innings against the Dodgers and didn't walk a batter. Hopefully, Dempster has turned the corner and is more of the guy who threw in the regular season last season.

For the Reds, Matt Maloney makes his Major League debut today (which is never a good sign for the Cubs). Maloney, originally drafted by the Phillies, came over in a deal for Kyle Lohse in 2007. Since then, he has pitched fairly well for the Reds, which includes 58/9 K/BB ratio this season in Louisville. Also, since he's a lefty that means Reed Johnson will get the start in center. It could also mean a start for Jake Fox finally, but I doubt it happens.

The Cubs offense went to sleep last night, with the GWRBI coming from Carlos Zambrano last night. If there is any good news it is that Zambrano can pinch-hit again if Lou keeps burning players in double switches like in Atlanta.

Who's Hot
Cubs Starting Pitching - The Cubs starters have really gotten the job done in recent weeks. That continued last night when Zambrano threw 6 2/3 innings of shutout ball. Ted Lilly and Randy Wells also added great starts this week, so all those people calling for Jake Peavy might want to hold off for a little bit.

Mike Fontenot - He had the huge hit against Derek Lowe on Wednesday. He followed that up with a bases-loaded two-out walk and another hit last night. He's up to .232 overall.

Who's Not
Micah Hoffpauir - Just goes to show that it is never easy coming off the bench after his 0-for-4 night, including a one-out bases-loaded strikeout in the first inning. Granted, he did come up with the game winner on Wednesday. So, I'll give him a little slack, even if he is 1-for-8 in his last five games.

Alfonso Soriano - It's hard to put a guy with a four-game hitting streak in the cold section, but Soriano has seen his batting average drop during this time. We've all seen him go through these slumps before, but he's down to .244 overall. Right now, I just feel that he can't be counted on to come up with the big hit. While I was at the games this week it was obvious that people are just setting him up for sliders and breaking balls away. I'm ready for one of those crazy hot two weeks where he carries the Cubs.

Conclusions
I really don't like this matchup with the way the Cubs are swinging the bats. A lefty rookie with good control doesn't give me the greatest feeling inside. Hopefully, Maloney will be nervous and give up a couple long balls that lead to a 4-2 Cubs win.

The story of the season -- for good or bad -- has become Carlos Zambrano.  On the day in which he won his 100th game of his career the Moose declared his intentions to retire ... in four or five years.

It probably stems from a pretty frustrating two weeks for Carlos.  He's been ejected, suspended, fined, disciplined, criticized, and his children apparently dumped his comic book collection into the bath water*.  On the heels of all that he went out and had a no-hitter through the 5th inning plus he hit what turned out to be the game-deciding homerun.

(*may not be true)

I dunno.  Maybe Cub fans want that stoic ace, that guy who just goes in there and does his job.  Maybe they want him to expressionlessly deliver bland, cliche-riddled interviews.  But not me.  I like my players to have color**.  I want that guy who wins a big game and in the press conference says all sorts of funny, nasty things about his now-defeated opponents.  I want that guy who will charge a mound without hesitation if he knows he's getting thrown at.  And, sure, I want that guy who's so deranged that he'll threaten to retire in five years -- but maybe it's four years, because he doesn't even know when his contract is up*** -- on the heels of collecting his 100th career win in dominating fashion. 

(**not intended to refer to racial preferences in sports
***because he's just that cRaZee)

I'm probably alone in that.  But think back.  If you could have the boringest pitcher ever Steve Traschel with Zambrano's talent or Zambrano himself, who would you pick? 

Me, I'd take the guy who curses at God in Spanish every single time.

Carlos Zambrano (3-2, 4.22 ERA) vs. Micah Owings (3-6, 5.10 ERA)
Story-lines
It seems that whenever Carlos Zambrano is the story it's bad news.  Either he just punched out his catcher, or he ejected the umpire from the game (I always visualize Zambrano picking the ump up by the pants and heave-hoing him into the stands) or he's missed a team flight or he's breaking through walls or something. 

That's fine.  Zambrano has never shied away from drama and he's never wilted under the intense pressure of his own emotions.  And I certainly don't speak for Cub fans everywhere but it wouldn't bother me at all to see him acting like a child if he had a better record than 3-2, and a better ERA than 4.22.  If Carlos was 7-1 with a 2.65 ERA he could be drowning kittens between innings and I'd be mosty okay with it.

Tonight he's under the microscope.  As I am writing this a little late I'm pleased to note that he started out just fine, striking out swinging the first 3 batters he faced -- although he took 21 pitches to do it. 

Who's Hot (sorry, I'm just copying it straight from the last, rained-out GameCast)
The Gooz - He hasn't allowed a run since May 8th and
he has turned into the most reliable pitcher out of the pen.  I'm happy
to have apparently been wrong about him as I would have voted him off
the island back in March.

D.Lee - A .381 AVG in the past week is nothing to scoff
at.  Lee is still a ways away from being "on track" but at least now
he's on pace to hit 22 homers, 33 doubles, and to drive in 77 RBI. 
Wait -- 77 RBI?!  As he has only exclusively batted 3rd or 4th this
season, I cannot emphasize how tremendously this can be used to example
just how ridiculously bad the offense has been.  77 RBI.  Sheesh.

Kosuke Fukudome - Well, "hot" might be the wrong word for it.  More like "warm."  Fuku is batting .286 with an OBP of .353 in the past week.  He's slown down from his earth-shattering start, although I wouldn't scoff at his numbers.

Who's Not
T.Fonz - He's 5 for his last
28 with 9 strikeouts.  Fonzie is a hot-and-cold kind of player.  The
only problem is that he's been exclusively cold for a while now.  Lou
needs to think about sucking it up and dropping him in the lineup.

Geo Soto - Although Geo is indeed slumping, and may
indeed lose some play-time to Three Finger if Hill earns it, Soto
exited May with a .278 AVG, a .376 OBP, and a .730 OPS.  Not fantastic,
although that puts him in the top 6 among catchers with as many-or-more
at-bats as he had last month.  Just some levity for you.

Conclusions
State-the-obvious time: this is an important game and an important series.  The Cubs can get within range of first place if they can trounce the Reds.  As of this writing they are winning by 1 -- never a safe lead in Chicago -- and Zambrano is effective but wasting pitches.  Well, wasting pitches is fine.  Wasting opportunities to win is not.  That is all. 

Two teams enter.  Only one ... well, okay, both ... shall leave.  But it's very possible that after this upcoming series is played out the Cubs may find themselves leap-frogged in front of the Reds, who presently occupy third place in the NL Central.  Granted, they'd have to sweep.  On the road.  Against a team that has offensively owned them the last few years.  But it could happen!

Actually I'm very interested by the Reds nowadays.  They used to be just another NL Central team from an insanely religious* part of the country whose greatest all-time player is a scumbag.  Now they're the destination of Dusty Baker and any Cub fan worth his ilk not only detests Baker but also follows his career'S failings with a fervor. 

(*experience tells me that I have to note the fact that I'm calling Cincinnati "insanely religious," rather than religion itself "insane."  Just making myself clearer here.  It's sort of like how if referred to the insanely hot Charlize Theron... I'm not implying that hot women are crazy with that statement, I'm just using "insanely" as an adjective to describe the ridiculous level of Theron's hotness)

I digress.  At this point in time, based on everything that's gone before, this is the most important series of the season.  A Cubs sweep translates to third place in the division.  If the Reds win the series, the Cubs exit Cincinnati a .500 team at best and in need of urgent action.

The problem is the stuff I mentioned earlier today... until Lou Piniella shakes up the bullpen and re-constructs the lineup the Cubs are in for some ugly losses.  Back when Dusty was here and he was refusing to shake up the lineup, I attributed it to a stubborn Me Against the World I Ain't Changin' attitude (sort of like how Dubya probably should have fired Rummy long before the Republicans lost the '06 mid-terms).  The thing is, I don't see Lou having that problem.  As far as I know he doesn't feel attacked, criticized, or scrutinized -- and even if he did, I doubt that would prevent him from making changes.  So Lou ... what the hell?

The Pitching Match-Ups
Friday, June 5th - Carlos Zambrano vs. Micah Owings
Back in March the GROTA crew unanimously predicted that Carlos would win 20 for the first time in his career in 2009 (Kyle even said it'd happen despite Zambrano being injury-plagued!).  Well, it's still possible but increasingly unlikely.  Carlos would need to put on a pitching clinic of '84 Sutcliffeian Proportions and the lineup would have to give him consistent run support.  That's a pretty tall order.

Micah Owings is another guy who needs run support; on his part it's because he's not exactly what you'd call "reliable."  In his third season with the Reds, he's 17-23 on his career with a 4.99 ERA.  This year he's 3-6 with an ERA of 5.10.  He's managed to escape Dusty's typical cycle of abuse, which leads me to think he's dogging it on purpose.  After all, Baker won't let him throw 120 pitches a game if he's giving up 5 or more runs each outing.  Genius plan, Owings!

Saturday, June 6th - Ryan Dempster vs. Matt Maloney
Two plus months into his big contract, Ryan Dempster has been a victim of love (and inconsistent pitching.  But mostly love).  But I dunno... take a look at his numbers.  He's on pace to throw 216 innings, surrender 191 hits, walk 85 batters, strike out 181, and win 13.  Last season he threw 206.2 innings, surrendered 174 hits, walked 76 batters, struck out 187 and won 17. 

His pitches per game started between this year and last year are nearly identical (101.2 compared with 100.8.).  His K/9 ratio: 8.14 to 7.51.  His K/BB ratio: 2.46 to 2.11.  AVG against: .227 to .240.  OPS: .641 to .713.  I dunno, maybe I'm missing something but it just seems as if those minor differences demonstrate why his ERA jumped from 2.96 to 4.48.  Either he was really lucky last year or he's been really unlucky this year.  I'm choosing to believe it's the latter (although it's probably actually a little bit of both), and if that's the case then I soundly expect Dempster to finish the year with more than the 13 wins he's on pace to have and less than the 4.48 ERA that he's presently got. 

Oh, and Matt Maloney is scheduled to make his big league debut.  I'm a little surprised by his presence on the Reds ... I always thought Charlie Brown would pitch for the Cubs.  (Look at him.  LOOK AT HIM!!!)  This year in AAA he's got a 2.00 ERA 10 starts.  Still, he'd have to be exceptionally special to overcome the First Start Blues. 

Sunday, June 7th - K-Fed Wells v. Bronson Arroyo
Randy Wells practically threw a no-hitter his last start.  He exited the game with something like a 5-run lead and he's still waiting for his first win.  What will he have to do to get the W?  I'm predicting an unlikely path ... Wells is going to get lit up like a gasoline-drenched fire cracker on Sunday but will get the win anyway because it's just going to be that kind of game.

In one of life's ironies, Bronson Arroyo has a 5.34 ERA and is on pace to win 20 games.  I guess the Reds offense must be that good.  He's got a long history of aggravating the Cubs, which means that he's due to receive some payback. 

Conclusions
No predictions, not this time.  The Cubs are capable of owning the Reds.  The Reds are playing better baseball than the Cubs.  We can only hope that it comes down to a contest of managers because as ridiculous as Piniella may sometimes appear to be, he makes Baker look like a buffoon. 

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Two games, twenty-three innings of baseball, two blown leads, one eventual victory.  This affair in Atlanta had a bit of everything, didn't it?  Mostly though the split series has left Cub fans feeling nauseous -- after all, the Cubs had the first game in hand before turning to their two "most reliable" relievers only to watch them squander and then blow the lead.

The team is at a cross-roads, whether they admit it or not.  Some people may blame the immature acts of some of the players -- Carlos, Milton, Lilly, Dempster.  Others might attribute this year's woes to the mass-slumps -- Lee, Soto, Fontenot, Bradley.  Still more might call to blame the series of injuries that have plagued the team -- Zambrano, Harden, Bradley.

Our Rob wants to blame Geo Soto, the QB of the defense.  I don't buy it for a bunch of reasons.  He hasn't been the offensive stud that he once was, but he's hardly an automatic out.  He isn't being the gun behind the plate that the Cubs probably need, but he never really was and I still believe he's nursing a shoulder injury.  I don't believe he's responsible and I'm not even particularly worried about his performance.  But I will say this: Rob has garnered himself a bit of a reputation for being the kind of Cubs fan (and blogger) that another kind of Cubs fan (and blogger) detest.  Apparently I'm forbidden from defending Rob to these people because I am always criticized by them when I do so, but that won't stop me from defending Rob now. 

I've spoken with some very intelligent, unbiased individuals who read this blog (read: they aren't Cub fans per se so they lack the pretty rose-colored glasses that the rest of us wear and they do not swill from the blue koolaid) and the general take I've gotten about Rob is that 1) he's a good writer and 2) his points aren't usually far off.  I happen to agree with those people; it just so happens that Rob's stance on the team is 100% of the time stiffer than mine, regardless of whether things are going good or badly.  Maybe this blog would be better if it was run by like-minded individuals and read by others who share many of the same opinions, but I disagree with that emphatically.  I happen to think that forums in general and GROTA in particular are never better than when people are heatedly disagreeing because it organically drives content and gives people something to read ... even if it's the rubber-neck effect and they just want to see how bad the wreck is. 

That said, let's go back and look at this paragraph:

The team is at a cross-roads, whether they admit it or not.  Some people may blame the immature acts of some of the players -- Carlos, Milton, Lilly, Dempster.  Others might attribute this year's woes to the mass-slumps -- Lee, Soto, Fontenot, Bradley.  Still more might call to blame the series of injuries that have plagued the team -- Zambrano, Harden, Bradley.

It seems to me that Milton Bradley is the only one who fits into all those categories of concern, but I don't really think he's to blame.  As Rob himself would point out, it's Lou Piniella.

Much, much earlier this season I prepped this blog for a Jump The Piniella moment. I think that moment is getting decisively closer.  

I'm not expecting Lou to come storming out of the dugout, spittle a-flyin', in order to rally the troops onward toward victory.  No, what Lou needs to do is something a lot simpler:

Fix the frickin' lineup and the goddamn bullpen.  He won't even need to get out of his chair to do it!

I believe - nay, I insist - that the Cubs already have the components they need to win.  They just have to tinker a bit.  But until that moment occurs we will be victims of offensive blackouts and late-inning blow-outs.  This series with the Braves gave us a little bit of both -- the team's reputed set-up man and especially its closer dropped dookie in their drawers.  Then the next night they slipped away with victory despite their inability to score lots of runs.

It's not too late.  Lou is not too old.  So what the hell is the hold up?

Current Record: 26-25
Position in the NL Central: 4th place, 3.5 games out
Best Possible Record: 137-25
Worst Possible Record: 26-136
Record needed to win 110: 84-27
On Pace For: 83-79

Carlos Zambrano (3-2, 4.22 ERA) vs. Jair Jurrjens (5-2, 2.59 ERA) 
Story-lines
Rob may have been the one to point out how the '09 Cubs are looking an awful lot like the '04 model.  They've got so much talent it makes you sick but various problems coupled with burn-outs mixed with a healthy dose of insane antics makes for a team that's hard to cheer. 

Still, that doesn't have to be the story of the season.  It needn't even be the story of June.  But one thing that needs to change is how the team plays on the road.  So far this year the Cubs are 10-15 outside of Wrigley Field, almost a mirror image of their 16-10 home record.

First, though, they actually need to play this game.  Since there's a possibility of it being called due to rain before I hit "publish," this may be one of the make-up games the Cubs have later this season.  Still, on the assumption of baseball happening...

Who's Hot
The Gooz - He hasn't allowed a run since May 8th and he has turned into the most reliable pitcher out of the pen.  I'm happy to have apparently been wrong about him as I would have voted him off the island back in March.

D.Lee - A .381 AVG in the past week is nothing to scoff at.  Lee is still a ways away from being "on track" but at least now he's on pace to hit 22 homers, 33 doubles, and to drive in 77 RBI.  Wait -- 77 RBI?!  As he has only exclusively batted 3rd or 4th this season, I cannot emphasize how tremendously this can be used to example just how ridiculously bad the offense has been.  77 RBI.  Sheesh.

Kosuke Fukudome - Well, "hot" might be the wrong word for it.  More like "warm."  Fuku is batting .286 with an OBP of .353 in the past week.  He's slown down from his earth-shattering start, although I wouldn't scoff at his numbers.

Who's Not
T.Fonz - He's 5 for his last 28 with 9 strikeouts.  Fonzie is a hot-and-cold kind of player.  The only problem is that he's been exclusively cold for a while now.  Lou needs to think about sucking it up and dropping him in the lineup.

Geo Soto - Although Geo is indeed slumping, and may indeed lose some play-time to Three Finger if Hill earns it, Soto exited May with a .278 AVG, a .376 OBP, and a .730 OPS.  Not fantastic, although that puts him in the top 6 among catchers with as many-or-more at-bats as he had last month.  Just some levity for you.

Conclusions
Maybe I should create the Carlos Zambrano Meter of Diminished Expectations or something.  Probably not.  Still, I'd expect a win tonight if the game gets played. 

There was no moment more sickening last night than when the Braves spoiled a Ted Lilly's good performance by tying the game in the 7th.  Scratch that -- it got real sickening when it went to extra innings for the second straight night.

It's not that I lack faith in the Cubs' ability to win extra inning games.  No, my problem is more that the Cubs bullpen is built of balling wire and bubble gum right now and any game in which they are turned to excessively is a game that will be tough for the team to win.

Fortunately, the Cubs pulled out all the stops pitching-wise, turning to the Marmol-Guzman tandem for 3 straight innings.  Marmol in particular has been spotty, especially with his control, but he was balls-to-the-walls last night* and Guzman was his usual untouchable self.  I'm pretty sure that it was Goat Reader HarryCaray who proclaimed in Spring that Guzman would be important to the '09 team and so far he's been spot-on in that regard.

(*Disclaimer: I'm not actually sure what "balls-to-the-walls" means)

The only problem is that after the Cubs managed to snatch the lead in the 11th, thanks to a rare Hoffpauir-Lee tandem, Piniella turned to Kevin "Better Dead Than" Gregg for the save.  Surprisingly it was mission accomplished.  But I'll reiterate what I said yesterday evening... the Cubs need to re-assess their bullpen and Gregg needs a new role.  And if even Marmol can't handle the job, then at least the Cubs would know it and could add "closer" to their trade deadline wish list.

Incidentally, I wanted to note that Derrek Lee is now batting .263.  Hardly the stuff of legend but not bad for a washed up double play machine.  All told every Cub regular except Three Finger got at least one hit last night.  The Cubs need to better capitalize on their success at getting on and play for the series win tonight.

UPDATE FROM Yarbage: So, for the second straight night I made my way to the "Ted", only to see an extra inning game. I could really use a blowout tonight, but I doubt we'll get it with the pitching match up.

There were a few things that caught my eye last night from the stands. First off, the Cubs should really hold a bunting practice all day today. I'm not a fan of giving up outs, but if Lou's going to keep sending up people to bunt, they have to get it down. My buddy, Scott Lange, couldn't even watch when Ryan Theriot tried to lay down a bunt late in the game.

I never saw the replay, but it was nice to see Geovanny Soto throw out somebody. At this point, we'll take anything.

Finally, I hope the Braves get some bad luck tonight after cutting Tom Glavine to avoid a roster bonus. The players and fans had no clue that it had happened. We found out from somebody that got to the game about the second inning. I understand that Tommy Hanson is going to be a star, but you just don't treat players that way. If you were going to cut him, then why have him go through all that rehab?

If the rain holds off, I will add something for the game later.