Dempster 'rusty' in his return as Cubs lose 11-6 to Astros

The Cubs got the number of pitches they wanted out of Ryan Dempster on Tuesday night.

It's just that too many of them were in the wrong spots. And one key throw went the wrong way, too.

Dempster made his first start since July 2 as he came off the disabled list after breaking his right big toe. He left after 5 innings, and the Astros broke open a 6-6 game late to beat the Cubs 11-6 to snap the Cubs' five-game winning streak.

Manager Lou Piniella said Dempster looked "rusty." It was hard for Dempster to disagree.

"It looked like it," he said. "I felt good going into the game. I felt ready. I just didn't do a very good job tonight."

Astros second baseman Jeff Keppinger had a big night, with 2 singles, a double and a triple. Miguel Tejada hit a 2-run homer, a sacrifice fly and a run-scoring single.

Piniella talked before the game of getting 85 pitches out of Dempster, one night after the Cubs and the Astros played 13 innings.

Dempster did just that, but he allowed 9 hits and 6 runs (5 earned) in 5 innings. He left trailing 6-3, but Cubs batters got him off the hook in the bottom of the inning with 3 runs.

"We tried to get back in the game," said Piniella, whose team fell to 52-46.

Down 1-0, the Cubs appeared to get a break in the bottom of the second when Astros ace Roy Oswalt left with two outs because of a lower-back strain.

In the top of third, however, the Astros went ahead 4-0 on 3 hits and an error on Dempster. Reliever Wesley Wright led off with a single, and he went to second on Dempster's wild pitch.

Bourn's singled moved Wright to third, and Keppinger followed with an RBI single that scored Wright and moved Bourn to third.

Tejada bounced one back to Dempster, who had Bourn easily at the plate, if he would have gone there. But he went to second for a force and threw the ball into center field for an error that allowed Bourn to score. Carlos Lee followed with a sacrifice fly.

"I didn't do a very good job of inning management, knowing the game," Dempster said. "I've got a runner on third and none out down 2-0. Not only do I not get the guy at home, but I throw the ball into center field."

The Cubs got back into the game in the fourth, batting around and scoring 3 runs. Dempster gave 2 of those right back in the fifth, when Keppinger doubled with one out and Tejada hit a 2-run homer to left.

"It was frustrating; it was by no means by best performance," Dempster said. "I was disappointed, too, because we played 13 innings last night. I knew I was on a short pitch count, and I wanted to give the bullpen a little bit of a break. It just wasn't a very good performance."

The Cubs tied the game in the bottom of the inning, which began with an odd play. Kosuke Fukudome led off and bounced the ball back to pitcher Jeff Fulchino, who couldn't make a play because the ball wound up inside his uniform top.

After Ryan Theriot flied out and Derrek Lee walked, Aramis Ramirez unloaded a home run to left-center, tying the game at 6-6. The Astros moved ahead in the seventh, when Blum homered against Angel Guzman. They broke it open in the eighth against Jeff Stevens and Aaron Heilman.

Bruce Miles' game tracker

Astros 11, Cubs 6

Still hot: Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez hit a 3-run homer in the fifth. He has at least 1 extra-base hit in each of his last six games, a career best. He has 5 doubles and 3 homers in this run.

Oswalt out: Astros ace Roy Oswalt left the game in the second inning with a "left lower back strain."

Night of firsts: Astros reliever Wesley Wright picked up his first major-league hit when he singled in the third inning. Not to be outdone, reliever Jeff Fulchino doubled in the sixth for his first big-league hit.

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