Shake-up pays dividends for Pinella
With just three wins in 12 games and Alfonso Soriano still weeks away from returning to the lineup, Cubs manager Lou Piniella has found himself searching for ways to jump-start his struggling club.
It led him to juggle his lineup Wednesday night against the Reds at Wrigley Field. Piniella batted catcher Jason Kendall second, played rookie Jake Fox in right field and hit Jacque Jones eighth.
Not exactly a Tony La Russa-like shakeup in terms of boldness -- the Cardinals' manager has been hitting his pitcher eighth -- but an interesting lineup tweak nonetheless by Piniella.
And it paid off, first in a 3-run second inning when Fox, Jones and Kendall each doubled. Later in the fifth inning, Kendall hit a 2-run homer to put the Cubs ahead 9-6.
Kendall, a former leadoff man with Pittsburgh and Oakland, came into the game batting .300 as a Cub. It was his first time batting second here.
"We'll try it and see how it goes," Piniella said before the game.
When Kendall was acquired from Oakland on July 16, Piniella said he hoped to use him four or five times a week. Kendall's start Wednesday was his 14th in the last 16 games.
"We need offense, that's why he's catching," Piniella said, not needing to point out backup catcher Koyie Hill's .159 average. "(Kendall) has been an everyday catcher at the big-league level for a long, long time. He's experienced. He was brought here to help out and we're giving him every opportunity to do so."
Fox was recalled on Tuesday from Class AAA Iowa, where he had been on a hitting tear since being sent down by the Cubs on July 27 with a .328 average, 5 doubles, 5 homers and 13 RBI in 15 games.
"They told me to go down and get some at-bats," Fox said. "I knew I had to do something to earn my way back here."
Fox led off the second inning with a double to deep left for his first major-league hit. He had been 0-for-2 in his previous call-up.
Fox walked in the fourth and scored 1 of the Cubs' 3 runs in that inning.
A third-round draft pick as a catcher in 2003 out of the University of Michigan, the Cubs like him better as an outfielder and love his bat. Fox has hit all the way up in the minors. He split last season between Class A Daytona and Class AA West Tenn, with 21 homers and 86 RBI.
This year at Class AA Tennessee, his 18 home runs led the Southern League at the time of his first recall and subsequent promotion to Class AAA Iowa.
Piniella was looking for some right-handed pop from Fox with the Reds starting left-hander Phil Dumatrait.
The Cubs will see another left-hander starter today from the Reds in Bobby Livingston before the Cardinals come to town for a four-game series where they are scheduled to start four right-handers in Braden Looper, Anthony Reyes, Kip Wells and Joel Piniero.
The Cubs were 10-18 against left-handed starters this season prior to Wednesday.
"The guys that are in there have to get the job done," Piniella said.