Clown-like Cubs blown to bits by Pirates
The good news out of Wrigley Field on Saturday was the rain that arrived late in the game was never heavy enough to cause a delay or require the tarp to be unfurled.
But it really didn't matter by that time because it wasn't a tarp that was needed on this gray afternoon, more like a tent for the circus that was the Cubs in their 10-0 loss to the Pirates.
And it all started in the fourth inning.
And it all started with a fly ball to left field off the bat of Neil Walker, which Alfonso Soriano turned what appeared to be a borderline tough catch near the vines into the easiest of doubles after flailing and missing.
That put runners on second and third for the Pirates and opened the floodgates to what would be a 5-run inning, capped off by a Ronnie Cedeno 3-run homer.
“A guy leads off with a single, it's not the end of the world,” Wells said. “You give up the double to left which I thought off the bat was a fly-ball out ... and all of a sudden you got your backs up against the wall.”
Were they ever.
That's because Pirates starter Paul Maholm was dissecting the Cubs en route to a complete game, 3-hit shutout.
That's the same Maholm who came into the game with a 1-7 record thanks to the Pirates mustering a total of 13 runs in his first 10 starts. They almost equaled that mark Saturday, feasting on Wells, James Russell, Scott Maine and John Grabow.
“You go out there and you do everything you can to make sure the team has a chance, and I think I've done that,” said Maholm, whose ERA fell to 3.18. “And today the guys broke out and scored a bunch of runs and made it easier on me. And going out there, every pitch wasn't a nail-biter.”
Soriano was in the middle of it again in the ninth inning when Garrett Jones' fly ball to left dropped in for a double, allowing the final run to score and allowing some of the fans who stuck around to voice their displeasure.
“The last ball, I didn't think he could've gotten to; those things start disappearing in the corner so maybe you guys have a better vantage point,” Cubs manager Mike Quade said. “The other ball, he gets back to the wall very similar to the way (Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen did on a Soriano double). It's not an easy play.
“Those plays in left, given what took place today, were the least of my worries to be honest with you.”
The second straight loss to the Pirates dropped the Cubs to 6-16 in their last 22 games against Pittsburgh. During that stretched they've been outscored 105-73.
“We still have an opportunity to end up with a good homestand,” second baseman Dawin Barney said. “Guys are still confident; we're not pulling out the flag yet.”