Zambrano gets 13th win -- and 4th homer

While he may not have had his ace stuff Thursday afternoon, Carlos Zambrano proved once again that his ace mentality has never left.

And Big Z's big adventures were the big story of the day Thursday as he willed the Cubs to a 3-2 victory over Cincinnati on a gray, sticky, drizzly afternoon at Wrigley Field.

Consider Z's afternoon:

It started in the first inning when he walked the first batter he faced, Chris Dickerson, on four pitches and then summarily let himself have it.

"I was saying to myself that it's not that hard. C'mon, let's go," Zambrano said. "I'm tired of walking people; I don't like that. I would rather people go out there and hit a home run than walk somebody. I hate walks. I hate that. I know that I can get outs and I walked that guy, and it (ticked) me off."

"He's had conversations before," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said matter-of-factly, "and I'm excluded from those conversations."

In the third inning, after what appeared to be a battle of nerves with Reds pitcher Josh Fogg, Zambrano, one pitch after skipping to avoid a low, inside delivery, deposited the next one into the bleachers in right-center for what turned out to be the eventual game-winning run.

"It's special," Zambrano said. "Anything I can do for my team on the mound, running the bases or whatever Lou needs me to do. ... I can play first base, too, but not on this team."

Then in the fifth inning, Piniella and trainer Mark O'Neal made an unscheduled trip to the mound when they sensed Big Z was in pain during warmups. Turned out he was after cracking a molar and spitting it out on the ground.

What the ...?

"I don't know, I'm not a dentist, I'm a pitcher," Zambrano said. "I think I ate too much gum, and the gum has a lot of sugar. I keep telling my daughter not to eat a lot of gum, and I'm not a good example. I think my daughters will be all over me at the house.

"I accept it."

"I've been out to the mound many times to check a pitcher's injuries, but never for a cracked molar," Piniella said. "We needed a dentist.

"That's just a little Cubbie Occurrence."

Finally in the seventh inning, with two on and two outs, Piniella came out to the mound unsure of whether to go to the bullpen or let Big Z finish the inning.

"He asked me how I was feeling, and I said good," Zambrano said. "He asked Henry (Blanco), and he looked at me, and Henry said, 'He looks good.'

"(Lou) told me, 'Let's go, one more batter and you're out of the game.'"

Zambrano got Jeff Keppinger to ground out to end the threat. And with that he propelled the Cubs to their 78th victory and seventh straight series win.

"He threw well," Piniella said of Big Z. "He came out throwing from pitch one. His command could been a little better, but look, he pitched 7 innings of 1-run ball and kept the game in check and hit a home run. ... It's a really nice day for him, something for him build on."

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