Result: Cubs 9, Astros 0. Cubs lead the NL Central by 2 games over St. Louis and 3 over Milwaukee. San Diego's AAA club couldn't even manage to salvage one of its four games with the Cards, blowing a late lead Sunday, and the Brewers finished off a road sweep of the Giants. The Brewers and Cards start a four-game series tonight in St. Louis. The Cubs and D-backs meet for a three-game set starting tonight in Phoenix.
What happened: Ryan Dempster pitched 8 shutout innings to earn his first road victory of the season. The Cubs got to Houston's Brandon Backe for two runs in the first, and built a 4-0 lead before exploding for five runs in the ninth. Mike Fontenot had three hits, including his 8th home run of the season.
The game turned when Dempster worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the fifth by striking out J.R. Towles and Backe, then getting Kaz Matsui to foul out.
Concerns: Kerry Wood is expected to go on the DL today, meaning that Carlos Marmol and Bob Howry will be expected to close out games. Are they up to it? We'll see. ... The Cubs have failed to show any kind of offensive consistency on the road. They will need to score more runs in Arizona this week against a Diamondbacks team that, though they are under .500, are still in first place.
Up next: Cubs at Arizona tonight at 8:30. Rich Harden vs. Randy Johnson.
In Memoriam: Dickey Betts
8 months ago
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