Cubs come up empty against Braves

With his team in the midst of a stretch of 22 games in 22 days, Cubs manager Lou Piniella has to find a way to rest his regulars on occasion.

For Monday night's makeup game in Atlanta, Piniella opted to give outfielders Milton Bradley and the struggling Alfonso Soriano the day off.

"I was going to give three guys today off," Piniella told reporters, "but with Reed Johnson's back spasms, we were only able to give Soriano and Bradley a rest."

It probably didn't matter whom Piniella put in the lineup Monday unless they were able to produce more than a single and/or come through in the clutch with runners on base.

Neither came to fruition for the Cubs, who rapped out 10 hits (all singles) but left a dozen runners stranded in a 2-0 loss to the Braves.

"We got enough hits," Piniella said. "We just didn't hit with men on base. (Javier) Vazquez pitched well. Both starting pitchers pitched well.

"But when you get 10 hits, you figure you'll score a few. We just didn't do it."

The lack of timely offense spoiled yet another fine outing from Ryan Dempster (4-5), who allowed a pair of runs in 62/3 innings.

"I've lost before when pitching well, and I'm sure I will again," Dempster said. "But there have been times when I pitched badly and won.

"It evens out, but I'm not a happy camper when I lose."

The loss snapped the Cubs' modest winning streak at four games, a streak that featured a lot of scoring and a lot of clutch hitting. Certainly not the case Monday against Vazquez (5-6), who picked up his first win in his last 6 starts.

"We just couldn't get the big hit tonight," said Jake Fox, who struck out looking with a pair of runners on to end the game. "Some nights are like that.

"On nights like that you have to tip your cap to the other pitcher, He pitched a heck of a ballgame. He pitched where he wanted to. He was hitting his spots.

"As much as you're trying to get a hit, he's trying to get you out."

Mike Spellman's game tracker

Braves 2, Cubs 0

Thud: Was it just me or did this one have the feel of a spring-training, split-squad game?

After a stretch of games that featured four thrilling finishes, this one had all the pizazz of a Dick Jauron news conference on Day 3 of training camp.

D-Lee-tful: Courtesy of his first-inning single, first baseman Derrek Lee extended his hitting streak to a career-high 19 games. He also had a couple of real nice scoops at first to keep the game tight.

Dirty dozen: The Cubs stranded 12 runners, spoiling yet another solid start, this one by Ryan Dempster. It was the Cubs' 43rd quality start this season, tops in the majors.