The not-so-good news is that after an eight inning, one hit, one unearned run, nine-strikeout effort, Carlos Zambrano ended up with no-decision. The good news - the game ended in ten innings with a 2-1 Cubs victory - their fifth in a row.

Before I talk more about a very exciting game, which pitted two great pitchers who gave great performances against one another, let me tell you a bit about my first visit to Chavez Ravine this year.I've been going to Dodgers games since I moved to Southern California ten years ago and as was noted yesterday the Dodgers fans have changed, but more on that later. The Ravine has changed too.  Some interesting pre-game notes about Dodger Stadium included the following 2005 additions: the rubber warning track is now dirt, the grass is now a Bermuda hybrid found in most other ballparks, and the largest strip of video projection screen is now in place around the stadium at the Loge level. These updates seemed nice.  I always thought the warning track looked a little funny, and I think the strip of video around the stadium is pretty common in other ballparks (e.g., the Big A) and makes for a bit of an updated look in an otherwise dated ballpark (see Josh's post from yesterday).

As for the "new" fans, for those of you who don't know the reputation, my experience in years past was that a significant number of Dodger fans don't show up until the third inning and almost as many leave in the seventh.  This is not meant to be a Dodger fan bashing, I know and respect many Dodger fans.  It's just a fact.  In the past I've thought much of this behavior may have been due to a laid back nature and have sat near fellow scorekeepers in Dodger blue and discussed baseball among other things in a cordial manner.  Of course there's always an obnoxious heckler here and there, but nothing out of the ordinary.  However, this time we had the mother of all bad hecklers sitting two rows behind us and when I say "bad" I mean really bad.  If you want to hear some original, witty heckling, go to Fenway.  But if you want to hear some of the most inane heckling, well I had to restrain myself from responding to the "heckles" I will share as I write a bit about the game (my inner thoughts in parentheses).

We arrived during Cubs batting practice as the sun was setting behind the third base line on another beautiful Southern California evening.  The stadium was near empty with handfuls of Cubs fans scattered throughout. As game-time approached and some Dodger fans began to arrive and this included some of the "pissy" fans referred to in previous posts.  I was surprised to hear three or four random "f#@* the Cubs!" remarks before the game.  I also noticed this chant occurring during the game in some areas.  I'm not sure where this bitterness has come from, perhaps a spillover from the Yankees visit last year (that was a tough game to sit through), the playoff failure last year, or the tough time the Dodgers have been having since their great start (?) Who knows?

The heckler behind me thought that since the Cubs were in their blues, a great taunt was "That's not Dodger blue! You wish you were in Dodger blue!" (I don't think so).

Penny got in a jam in the second giving up two hits and an infield sacrifice RBI to Henry Blanco. Zambrano didn't get into trouble until the third when Hee-Sop Choi (now a favorite of the Dodger fans) reached on a strike three passed ball. The pitch looked nasty from where I was sitting.  That is, if a catcher with a glove like Blanco's couldn't catch it I don't know if many catchers could. Two batters later Cesar Izturis hit a double for the RBI.

When this RBI was hit the heckler behind me yelled "Carlos is going back to Chicago!" (I hope so, he plays baseball there). It was also about this time the beach balls were beginning to arrive and the wave was being started in the bleachers.  (By the way, FYI, if you ever go to Dodger Stadium, know this, they do not serve alcohol in the bleachers. This mystifies me, because this is where all of the shenanigans seem to be most prominent).

Today, Neifi! had a not-so-good offensive day with one hit in five appearances (more on that hit later), but he had a defensive day that was, well, awesome.  If you didn't see it, look for highlights.  My scorecard has him making a GC! (great catch!) in the fifth and eighth, and I thought he made one more, but the one I remember most is when he went completely airborne and horizontal - believe in the Neifi! And vote for him to go to the ASG.

In response to this catch, the heckler yelled, "Tony Womack is a cheater, he's on steroids!" (I'm not kidding, that's what he yelled).

As I mentioned Zambrano had a great outing, striking out nine total, my favorite was when he ended the sixth with Werth and Drew looking at pitches and started the seventh with Kent looking at strike three.

The seventh inning was a strange one for the Cubs. Corey lead off with a single and then was "caught stealing" on a strike-out / throw-out that was actually due to an interference ruling. The umpire said that after swinging at the third strike, Dubois stepped in the way of Mike Rose, a catcher called up from AAA today, preventing him from throwing to second base. I don't know, but from where I sat it looked like it may have been a "flop" and that Rose purposely stepped into Dubois. But, I was way down the first base line, so those who saw replays will know more.

Before leaving sometime in the seventh the heckler thought he was a genius when he yelled "Where's Sosa?!" (Baltimore). It was also about this time the two children behind us were hitting their peak sugar-buzz and the backs of our seats as they had been eating the spun sugar and red-vines since the second inning. I suppose this is one reason Al sits where no one can sit behind him (?).

I thought we had it in the ninth with Ramirez on second and Burnitz on third and one out.  But Gagne is tough.  He through an 83 mph changeup and breaking ball, followed by a 93 mph fastball.  That's gotta be a tough adjustment. Weurtz followed Gagne in the bottom of the ninth with a BB, but then efficiently struck out the side.

In the beginning of the tenth the remaining fans had to be more than half Cubs fans (yes, we are everywhere). That's when we actually produced a run (note, not a single HR this game) with a single, a sac bunt, and Neifi's! one hit/RBI of the game (believe!).

Finally, our closer came in (yes, I used the c word), and Ryan Dempster scared quite a few people when he hit Antonio Perez in the helmet (or was it the bat - again, those who saw the replays know more than I). However, after a sac bunt, flyball, and 6-3 out Dempster got his sixth save in seven tries and ended a rather exciting game. I really enjoyed the game despite the bitter fans, and am headed back tomorrow and down to Petco this weekend.  If anything exciting happens I'll let you know.

Boy this ended up being a long post - sorry 'bout that.

Clay