Cubs

CHICAGO - Forty-two days before the Phillies gathered Thursday at Wrigley Field, they won a game. It was opening day, they had a winning record, and everything was according to plan. "I think we've proven we can play in close games," manager Charlie Manuel said that day, April 5, in Pittsburgh. The Phillies promptly spent the next month-plus losing many close games. Finally, after a five-game winning streak punctuated by an 8-7 victory over the Cubs, they are above .500 again for the first time since being 1-0. At 20-19, they have successfully treaded water in the schedule's weak beginning.

DIDN'T SOMEONE PROOFREAD the slogan emblazoned on T-shirts worn by several Cubs players as they worked out before batting practice on Tuesday? Oh, the words were spelled correctly, but their meaning could be taken in a rather beastly way. Seems there can only be one reason why the Cubs are one of the worst teams in baseball: the dreaded "Curse of the Billy Goat. " The curse dates to 1945 when a fan was asked to leave a World Series game between the Tigers and Cubs at Wrigley Field because his goat had BO. Upon leaving the fan vowed that the Cubs would never win a World Series.

8:05, Wrigley Field, Chicago. TV: Channel 17. Radio: WPHT (1210-AM); WUBA (1480-AM) Spanish. Phillies RHP J.A. Happ (8-2, 2.74) vs. Cubs RHP Rich Harden (7-7, 4.41) Phillies update: Happ grew up 2 hours outside of Chicago, spent 3 years at Northwestern, and lived in the Windy City in the offseason while preparing for a looming spring-training roster battle. Now, he returns riding the wave of the most impressive start of his career, a shutout of the Rockies in which he threw a career-high 127 pitches ... Happ's previous career-high pitch count was 112 ... Since replacing Chan Ho Park in the rotation, Happ is 6-2 with a 2.80 ERA and has held opponents to a .230 batting average.

The Chicago Cubs began a thorough inspection of the concrete on the underside of Wrigley Field's upper deck yesterday after a team employee found a third piece of concrete that apparently fell from the 90-year-old stadium's upper deck. After concrete chunks fell at different spots on June 9 and July 16, a team employee found a fragment Wednesday that was "relatively small, palm-of-your-hand" sized, said Mike Lufrano, the Cubs' vice president for community affairs. Shane Spencer cut his right foot when he stepped on some broken glass in a New York bar, and the Mets outfielder was placed on the 15-day disabled list.

Slugger Sammy Sosa yesterday depicted a fractured relationship with Don Baylor in the wake of the manager's unflattering comments about his defense, and he criticized the Cubs organization for what he deemed as a lack of respect. Over the weekend, Baylor said the Cubs would have to consider trading Sosa if they fell further out of contention. To Sosa, the comment was Baylor's latest shot in a series. Baylor talked about making Sosa a more "complete" player moments after being hired on Nov. 1. At the time, Baylor also said scouting reports about Sosa's defense were "not favorable.

The Chicago Cubs are back on track, even if Sammy Sosa isn't. The visiting Cubs moved into a tie for the National League wild-card spot, snapping a three-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers last night. No thanks to Sosa. Chicago's slugger is mired in his worst slump of the season (0-for-21 and counting) at the worst time of the season. "Everybody knows I've been in a tough situation, but I'm going to come back," pledged Sosa, whose Cubs are tied with New York, 5-3 losers to Montreal last night.

The Cubs might very well be able to beat the Giants in the best-of-seven National League Championship Series that begins tonight at Chicago's Wrigley Field. But they most likely won't have an easy time doing it. There is no such thing as a safe lead against the NL West-winning Giants, who refuse to get rattled no matter how many runs they are down going into the ninth inning. "Somewhere along the line, that club, like our club, got the idea that there was no deficit that was too big for them to come back from," said Cubs manager Don Zimmer.

THE CHICAGO CUBS' dugout rarely has been a safe place to be, whether you're a teammate, a manager or an umpire within chasing distance. On Wednesday, pitcher Carlos Silva and third baseman Aramis Ramirez added to the legend of the unfriendly confines. The trouble erupted when a frustrated Silva was upset with the fielding behind him as he came off the field following a three-error, two-homer, six-run first inning against Milwaukee. Ramirez, who dropped a pop fly in the inning, had to be separated from Silva by teammates and coaches.

They've been playing professional baseball games at night for 53 years now. They've been playing them in Cincinnati and Los Angeles and New York and San Francisco and Baltimore. They've been playing them in Amarillo and Reno and Fresno and Spokane. But they have never played one in Chicago at Wrigley Field. Until tonight. Tonight, to the joy of some and the disgust of others, the Cubs finally are going prime time. They will face the Phillies in the first of seven night games to be played at Wrigley this year.

CHICAGO - Forty-two days before the Phillies gathered Thursday at Wrigley Field, they won a game. It was opening day, they had a winning record, and everything was according to plan. "I think we've proven we can play in close games," manager Charlie Manuel said that day, April 5, in Pittsburgh. The Phillies promptly spent the next month-plus losing many close games. Finally, after a five-game winning streak punctuated by an 8-7 victory over the Cubs, they are above .500 again for the first time since being 1-0. At 20-19, they have successfully treaded water in the schedule's weak beginning.

At Wrigley Field, Chicago.   Wednesday at 8:05 p.m. RHP Kyle Kendrick (0-3, 7.32 ERA) vs. Chicago RHP Matt Garza (2-1, 2.56)   Thursday at 8:05 p.m. RHP Roy Halladay (3-3, 3.20) vs. RHP Chris Volstad (0-5, 6.92)

CARLOS ZAMBRANO pitched a three-hitter for his first win of the season and Giancarlo Stanton extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a two-run homer, leading the visiting Miami Marlins to their seventh straight win with a 4-0 victory over the Houston Astros on Monday night. Stanton's homer into the Crawford Boxes in leftfield put Miami up 2-0 in the fourth inning and gives him six home runs and 12 RBI during his streak. Logan Morrison walked with one out before Stanton went deep.

In the Phillies' seemingly interminable quest to score runs during the first three weeks of the season, the most conspicuous holes in the lineup were the ones where Jimmy Rollins and Placido Polanco used to hit. So, for all the negatives you could point to in a 6-4 win over the Chicago Cubs on Monday night, the lasting impression was left with two outs in the eighth inning, when Polanco laced a double to left field to send Juan Pierre and Rollins...

BY THE EIGHTH inning of their latest 2 1/2-hour siesta, the Phillies had reached a level that is normally inhabited by rush-hour car wrecks and inconsiderate ex-girlfriends and failing music careers: so bad, you can't help but watch. That was the case, at least, for a sizable bloc of fans who remained in their seats through the first seven innings of Sunday's debacle against the Cubs. For close to 2 hours, they watched as the Phillies stumbled around the field (an errant pickoff attempt that led to one run, a misplayed fly ball that led to another)

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel revamped his lineup in hopes of shaking up a struggling offense, and, at least for one night, he received the desired results. With Jimmy Rollins returning to the leadoff spot for the first time this season and contributing a two-run double, the Phillies defeated the Chicago Cubs, 5-2, on Saturday at chilly Citizens Bank Park. Manuel said before the game the move wasn't made specifically for Rollins, but more because he wanted to get others in the lineup.

And in the seventh inning, Juan Pierre walked. In terms of accomplishments, that was about it Sunday afternoon as the Cubs beat the Phillies, 5-1, at Citizens Bank Park to drop them to 10-12. Pierre's base on balls snapped a string of 19 consecutive batters retired by Chicago righthander Matt Garza, who allowed a single to Jimmy Rollins to lead off the game before mowing down the Phillies lineup inning after inning. Garza finished with seven scoreless innings, allowing two baserunners and striking out 10 on 103 pitches.

When Roy Halladay is at his best he can frequently help overcome the offensive inefficiency of the Phillies. These days if the righthander isn't totally on his game, winning can be an iffy proposition. For the second straight outing, Halladay wasn't his usual dominating self, and coupled with another lackluster offensive effort it equaled the end of the Phillies' modest two-game winning streak. Halladay allowed three runs in seven innings as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Phillies, 5-1 on Friday in the first of a four-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel revamped his lineup in hopes of shaking up a struggling offense, and, at least for one night, he received the desired results. With Jimmy Rollins returning to the leadoff spot for the first time this season and contributing a two-run double, the Phillies defeated the Chicago Cubs, 5-2, on Saturday at chilly Citizens Bank Park. Manuel said before the game the move wasn't made specifically for Rollins, but more because he wanted to get others in the lineup.

When Roy Halladay is at his best he can frequently help overcome the offensive inefficiency of the Phillies. These days if the righthander isn't totally on his game, winning can be an iffy proposition. For the second straight outing, Halladay wasn't his usual dominating self, and coupled with another lackluster offensive effort it equaled the end of the Phillies' modest two-game winning streak. Halladay allowed three runs in seven innings as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Phillies, 5-1 on Friday in the first of a four-game series at Citizens Bank Park.