Cubs not giving up hope in 2-0 win over Astros

Out of it? Don't say that to the Cubs.

They beat the Houston Astros 2-0 Wednesday at Wrigley Field, and although it may be too little, too late, they've suddenly won four of six to keep their faint pulse alive in the wild-card race, where they are in fifth place.

The Cubs certainly have heard since last week about how they're all out of it, and they're running out of things to say.

"Talk about what?" asked pitcher Ted Lilly, who tossed 8 shutout innings to join Randy Wells as Cubs 10-game winners. "There's not a lot to talk about. We're fully aware. What we need to do is win the game, whatever game we're playing, regardless of what's going on.

"It's simple. You've heard it 1,000 times. We don't have any influence on who wins the games that we're not playing. We go there and put all of our concentration and physical and mental energy into the game that we have to deal with, and we're putting ourselves in the best chance to win."

Lilly did his part by being efficient and effective. He threw 105 pitches in 8 innings before Carlos Marmol came on to earn his eighth save.

The Cubs aren't exactly an offensive juggernaut, but mainstay Derrek Lee led a makeshift lineup by belting his 27th home run, a 2-run liner to left off Felipe Paulino in the fourth.

As a team leader, Lee has been the go-to guy for inquiring minds who want to know the Cubs' approach over the final month.

Last year, the Cubs were sitting pretty atop the NL Central in September. This year, they're the chasers, which means they have to win their game and wait for help.

"That's the only way you can do it," Lee said. "I was thinking about it. I've been getting that question a lot. Even if you are out of it, it's not like you roll over. You still play to win. There's only really one way to play. We're going to finish the season as strong as we can."

About the only fault anybody could find with Lilly's game was an ill-fated stolen-base attempt after he had singled with one out in the third. With Kosuke Fukudome at the plate, Lilly took off for second and was tagged out easily.

Did he have the green light?

"The light was red as hell," said manager Lou Piniella, laughing. "I'll tell you that. It's all right. Teddy just brainstormed that one. You know what? He tried to make things happen."

Lilly, who likes hitting and running the bases, was a bit sheepish.

"Obviously, it didn't turn out too well," he said. "I thought I could get a good jump. I started to, and I hesitated at the last second. Really, the combination of the pitcher and the catcher and my speed doesn't suit up well for me to steal that base."

So, pitching with a dirty uniform front, Lilly set down the Astros inning after inning. He got some nice defensive help. Backup shortstop Andres Blanco lunged to snag Jeff Keppinger's liner in the third, and second baseman Mike Fontenot ran toward the visitors bullpen and made a sliding catch on Kaz Matsui's foul fly in the sixth.

"That should be the No. 1 Web Gem," Lee said of Fontenot's catch. "That was one of the best plays of the year, catching it and sliding into their bullpen."

Lilly gave way to Marmol, who allowed a hit and a walk but got pinch hitter Geoff Blum on a popout to end it.

"Wonderful, wonderful game," Piniella said.

<p class="factboxheadblack">Bruce Miles' game tracker</p> <p class="News"><b>Make mine a 'Stros:</b> The Cubs improved to 11-6 against the Astros. The 11 wins match the franchise mark, established in 1964. Starting pitcher Ted Lilly extended his winning streak over Houston to seven. </p> <p class="News"><b>All heart:</b> Houston's Aaron Boone, who came off the DL this week following open-heart surgery in March, played for the first time this year and went 0-for-3 but received cheers from his teammates.</p> <p class="News"><b>More quality:</b> Lilly turned in the Cubs' second quality start in two days. He worked 8 shutout innings, giving up 4 hits. The Cubs are 51-28 in quality-start games, and the starters have an ERA of 2.11 in those games. </p> <div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=318531">Lee returns to '05 form<span class="date"> [9/2/09]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>