Carlos Zambrano

Lou Piniella made a bold move Wednesday, sending temperamental ace Carlos Zambrano to a shaky bullpen that threatened to derail the Chicago Cubs' season. "You look at these box scores every day around baseball and these games, especially in the National League, they're won in the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth innings," said Piniella, in his fourth season as Cubs manager. "There are few blowouts early. There's some obviously but not [a lot]. "Look, this makes all the sense in the world.

It's a question Clayton Kershaw can't answer off the top of his head: What size bat does he use? So the Dodgers' star pitcher reached above his locker, pulled out one of his black bats, and scanned the bottom of the handle. "Thirty-four inches, 311/2 ounces," he declared. No surprise that Kershaw has to check — pitching is his priority, obviously — but one pleasant surprise for the Dodgers in their dreary season is that Kershaw and fellow starter Chad Billingsley have been among the better-hitting pitchers in the National League.

Carlos Zambrano went on a tirade after being ejected, and was gone when Reed Johnson hit a tiebreaking home run in the eighth inning that lifted Chicago over Pittsburgh, 5-2, on Wednesday. Zambrano was ejected by Mark Carlson in the seventh inning after Nyjer Morgan scored the tying run on a wild pitch, beating catcher Geovany Soto's throw to Zambrano at the plate. Zambrano jumped up, argued the call and appeared to nudge the umpire.

At least the Dodgers didn't have to worry about who would be their closer Wednesday. On a day when incumbent closer Jonathan Broxton and hot-hitting Andre Ethier joined third baseman Casey Blake on the sidelines because of elbow problems, the Dodgers used a patchwork lineup that included only one player, Matt Kemp, batting over .250. That proved no match for Chicago Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano (4-1), who held the Dodgers to one run through eight innings, and home runs by a trio of Cubs powered Chicago to a 5-1 win in an afternoon game at Dodger Stadium.

Josh Willingham had two homers and six RBIs, Elijah Dukes hit a grand slam in a six-run fifth inning and the Nationals rocked Carlos Zambrano in his return from the disabled list, routing the Chicago Cubs, 15-6, on Tuesday night. Dukes drove in a career-high five runs as the Nationals sent the Cubs to their 13th loss in 18 games, bringing out the boos at Wrigley Field. Chicago fell nine games out of first in the NL Central. Willingham was four for four with a solo homer in the fourth off Zambrano and a three-run shot off Tom Gorzelanny in the eighth.

On the air: TV--TBS. Radio--790, 930. Update: Chad Billingsley didn't look particularly sharp in his last two starts, but the Dodgers' early clinching of the NL West title allowed him to get some extra rest. Instead of starting the regular-season finale Sunday as planned, Billingsley pitched two innings in relief, both of them scoreless. He lost in his only start at Wrigley Field this season but didn't pitch poorly, as he limited the Cubs to two runs over six innings. Carlos Zambrano no-hit Houston on Sept.

Carlos Zambrano controlled his temper and his pitches. After a meltdown in his previous start that included a fight with his catcher, Zambrano struck out a season-high nine and led the Chicago Cubs over the Milwaukee Brewers, 6-2, on Wednesday. Going into this game, Zambrano said he told himself, "Tomorrow is the season opening, opening night for you. Forget about anything else."

at Philadelphia 7-6, Milwaukee 3-1: Brett Myers (10-11) pitched a two-hitter in the second game, and the Phillies moved to within one game of first-place New York in the NL East. Shane Victorino was four for four and Pat Burrell hit a home run. In the first game, Ryan Howard and Victorino each hit a home run. Atlanta 7, at New York 4: Fill-in closer Luis Ayala (2-9) gave up a go-ahead home run to pinch-hitter Greg Norton and the Braves rallied for five runs in the ninth inning.

Tuesday through Thursday: Cubs at Chicago Friday through Sunday: Rockies at Denver The Dodgers don't have a proven ace, but the Chicago Cubs do, and that's a problem for both teams. As the Dodgers push Clayton Kershaw to the front of a thin rotation — in a year in which he might have been a college senior — the Cubs are about to put Carlos Zambrano back in their rotation. In 2007, with Zambrano on his way to finishing fifth in the Cy Young Award voting for the third time in four years, the Cubs signed him to a $92-million extension.

Normally excitable, Carlos Zambrano was perfectly calm before taking his no-hit bid into the eighth inning Monday night. In fact, he even said it'd be all right if the Houston Astros broke it up. A few batters later, they did. Zambrano held Houston hitless for 7 1/3 innings before Preston Wilson grounded an opposite-field single, leading the Chicago Cubs over the Astros, 8-0. Moments earlier, Zambrano said he told pitching coach Larry Rothschild: " 'Whatever happens in this inning, will happen.

Tuesday through Thursday: Cubs at Chicago Friday through Sunday: Rockies at Denver The Dodgers don't have a proven ace, but the Chicago Cubs do, and that's a problem for both teams. As the Dodgers push Clayton Kershaw to the front of a thin rotation — in a year in which he might have been a college senior — the Cubs are about to put Carlos Zambrano back in their rotation. In 2007, with Zambrano on his way to finishing fifth in the Cy Young Award voting for the third time in four years, the Cubs signed him to a $92-million extension.

Lou Piniella made a bold move Wednesday, sending temperamental ace Carlos Zambrano to a shaky bullpen that threatened to derail the Chicago Cubs' season. "You look at these box scores every day around baseball and these games, especially in the National League, they're won in the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth innings," said Piniella, in his fourth season as Cubs manager. "There are few blowouts early. There's some obviously but not [a lot]. "Look, this makes all the sense in the world.

Josh Willingham had two homers and six RBIs, Elijah Dukes hit a grand slam in a six-run fifth inning and the Nationals rocked Carlos Zambrano in his return from the disabled list, routing the Chicago Cubs, 15-6, on Tuesday night. Dukes drove in a career-high five runs as the Nationals sent the Cubs to their 13th loss in 18 games, bringing out the boos at Wrigley Field. Chicago fell nine games out of first in the NL Central. Willingham was four for four with a solo homer in the fourth off Zambrano and a three-run shot off Tom Gorzelanny in the eighth.

Carlos Zambrano homered and pitched into the seventh inning to earn his 100th victory as the Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds, 2-1, on Friday night. Zambrano didn't yield a hit until Adam Rosales lined a single to left with one out in the fifth inning. He gave up two hits and a season-high five walks while striking out seven. The right-hander reached the milestone in his third try since beating Florida on May 3 for No. 99.

Carlos Zambrano went on a tirade after being ejected, and was gone when Reed Johnson hit a tiebreaking home run in the eighth inning that lifted Chicago over Pittsburgh, 5-2, on Wednesday. Zambrano was ejected by Mark Carlson in the seventh inning after Nyjer Morgan scored the tying run on a wild pitch, beating catcher Geovany Soto's throw to Zambrano at the plate. Zambrano jumped up, argued the call and appeared to nudge the umpire.

On the air: TV--TBS. Radio--790, 930. Update: Chad Billingsley didn't look particularly sharp in his last two starts, but the Dodgers' early clinching of the NL West title allowed him to get some extra rest. Instead of starting the regular-season finale Sunday as planned, Billingsley pitched two innings in relief, both of them scoreless. He lost in his only start at Wrigley Field this season but didn't pitch poorly, as he limited the Cubs to two runs over six innings. Carlos Zambrano no-hit Houston on Sept.

The Chicago Cubs have a remarkably relentless lineup. The National League does not use the designated hitter, and yet the Cubs have a higher batting average from the bottom three spots in their batting order than any team in the major leagues. The Angels, with the best record in the major leagues, have the next-to-lowest batting average of any American League team in those spots. The Cubs, with the best record in the NL, have most commonly batted catcher Geovany Soto seventh and outfielder Reed Johnson eighth.

Carlos Zambrano took a no-hit bid into the seventh inning and struck out nine to lead the Chicago Cubs over the Milwaukee Brewers, 8-3, Monday at Chicago. "I thought this time I got it. The other three times, I didn't have that confidence. Today, I had the confidence," Zambrano said. Zambrano (12-7) last flirted with a no-hitter Aug. 22, 2003, when he took his bid into the eighth inning at Arizona before Shea Hillenbrand broke it up with two out.

at Philadelphia 7-6, Milwaukee 3-1: Brett Myers (10-11) pitched a two-hitter in the second game, and the Phillies moved to within one game of first-place New York in the NL East. Shane Victorino was four for four and Pat Burrell hit a home run. In the first game, Ryan Howard and Victorino each hit a home run. Atlanta 7, at New York 4: Fill-in closer Luis Ayala (2-9) gave up a go-ahead home run to pinch-hitter Greg Norton and the Braves rallied for five runs in the ninth inning.

The Chicago Cubs have a remarkably relentless lineup. The National League does not use the designated hitter, and yet the Cubs have a higher batting average from the bottom three spots in their batting order than any team in the major leagues. The Angels, with the best record in the major leagues, have the next-to-lowest batting average of any American League team in those spots. The Cubs, with the best record in the NL, have most commonly batted catcher Geovany Soto seventh and outfielder Reed Johnson eighth.