Another 'Cubs way' to lose and the Cardinals to win
ST. LOUIS - The Cubs' 2009 time capsule got another addition Saturday.
The way this one was going, you just had to figure the Cardinals would find a way to win, and the Cubs would find a way to lose.
Actually they found more than one way, and the Cardinals walked off - literally - with a 2-1 victory at Busch Stadium.
Brendan Ryan's groundball single to left field off Carlos Marmol scored ex-Cub Mark DeRosa with the winning run as the Cardinals walked off as winners for the second game in two days.
The Cards moved 11 games ahead of the Cubs and reduced their magic number for clinching the National League Central to 4.
The Cubs may have been replaying this one in their minds afterward, but left fielder Bobby Scales was replaying it on a computer screen.
In the fifth inning of a scoreless game, Scales found a truly Cubs way to contribute to this loss.
Ryan led off and drove the ball to left-center. Scales, in infielder by trade, went back, jumped and made a play on the ball, but he knocked it over the fence for a homer.
The Cubs rallied to tie the game in the ninth, but that only set the stage for ultimate heartbreak.
"I caught the ball, and just the fence jarred it loose," said Scales, who also grounded into a double play to end the Cubs ninth. "That's all there is to it, really. I had it, and the top of the fence jarred it loose, and what are you going to do?
"I felt the ball. I felt two hits. The first one was me catching it. The second one was me hitting the fence - I'm going to be thinking about that one for a while. It just makes you sick because it was right there. There was a play to be made, and it's right there, and I didn't make the play."
The game featured a nice pitchers' duel between Cy Young candidate Chris Carpenter, and Ryan Dempster, who worked 8 innings of 1-run ball.
"You know you're in for a battle when you're facing Carp," Dempster said. "He was on his game for sure, and I just tried to match him. Unfortunately, I just gave up the home run that Bobby almost made an unbelievable play on."
Singles by Micah Hoffpauir and Geovany Soto in the ninth off Cards closer Ryan Franklin tied the game.
Marmol gave up a leadoff single to Ryan Ludwick. DeRosa bunted too hard, and the Cubs couldn't turn a double play as DeRosa beat the throw to first by shortstop Ryan Theriot. After Yadier Molina singled with DeRosa in motion, Ryan ended it.
"Two plays," said Cubs manager Lou Piniella. "The ball into left field and then the throw (by Theriot). That's a double play there if we just get a good throw to first base on the ball that DeRosa hit. But what are you going to do?"
<p class="factboxtest12col"><b>Bruce Miles' game tracker</b></p> <p class="factboxtest12col">Wasted quality: Ryan Dempster turned in a quality start but came away with a no-decision. He worked 8 innings, giving up 8 hits and 1 run. The Cubs are 55-33 in quality-start games, with the starters owning a 2.03 ERA in those games.</p> <p class="factboxtest12col">Same old story: The Cubs were 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left seven on base. Derrek Lee, Geovany Soto, Aramis Ramirez and Bobby Scales each grounded into inning-ending double plays.</p> <p class="factboxtest12col">Making the most: Micah Hoffpauir was a late sub in right field for Milton Bradley. Hoffpauir had 3 hits, all singles. </p>