Pregame Thread: Cubs vs. Cardinals, Tuesday 9/9, 7:15 CT
Chicago Cubs @ St. Louis Cardinals
Per Bruce Miles, the Cubs have called up Felix Pie and purchased the contract of Randy Wells:
It looks like the Cubs will place pitcher Jon Lieber on the 60-day DL to make room for Wells on the 40-man roster.
Randy Wells threw in one game for Toronto this year after the Jays picked him in the Rule 5 draft, then he was returned. He's not really a prospect at age 26, but who knows? An extra arm can't hurt.
Baseball-reference.com has been, for the last couple of weeks, keeping track of all HR hit, because the 250,000th HR in major league history was approaching. One of the least likeable guys in the game, Gary Sheffield, hit it last night in Detroit. According to this list, the very first ML HR was hit by a member of the Chicago National League Ball Club, Ross Barnes, on May 2, 1876.
Other milestone HR hit by or off of Cubs (no matter what the team nickname was at the time, it's the franchise we root for):
#1000: Ned Williamson on July 4, 1884. Williamson set the single season HR record that year (27), a freak because of the short dimensions of Lake Front Park, where they then played their home games (the location is now in Millennium Park).
#10,000: Joe Tinker on September 5, 1903. Oddity: Tinker hit it off Mordecai Brown, a future teammate. It was Brown's only year as a Cardinal; Tinker hit only 31 career HR.
#100,000: hit by Hal King of the Braves off Fergie Jenkins on April 30, 1970.
#120,000: hit by Barry Foote of the Expos off Bruce Sutter on May 24, 1977. Foote had only 81 AB and 3 HR that year; this HR, hit in the 8th inning, tied that game and the Expos won in 15 innings. Less than a year later Foote and Sutter were Cub teammates.
#150,000: hit by the Phillies' John Russell off Rick Sutcliffe on August 3, 1986.
Now, on to the business of getting some home runs -- or better yet, just a lot of runs -- against the Cardinals tonight.
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Kyle Lohse has one good game (which the Cubs should have won anyway) and one bad game against the Cubs this year. Mark DeRosa and Mike Fontenot have homered off Lohse this season, but the Cub who hits him best is Alfonso Soriano (13-for-32, 3 doubles, 2 HR). Aramis Ramirez is 5-for-8 off Lohse.
Ryan Dempster beat the Cardinals at Wrigley Field on August 10. The opposing starter was Chris Carpenter, who left the game with arm problems; we now learn that Tony LaRussa may try Carpenter at closer. The Cardinals have 30 blown saves this year. Dempster handles most of the Cardinals well, including Albert Pujols. Pujols is hitting .267 (7-for-26, 1 double, 1 HR) lifetime off Dempster and is finally considering elbow surgery in the offseason.
Today's game is on WGN, and cable in the St. Louis area. For more options check the MLB.com Mediacenter.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Once again, a reminder that you can find the overflow comment threads, including the first pitch thread, on the right sidebar of both the front page and any interior page in the box headed "RECENT STORIES IN GAME THREADS". Today's first pitch thread posts at 7 pm CT, and the overflow comment threads will post at 8 pm, 9 pm and 9:45 pm CT.
Discuss amongst yourselves.
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Comments
First
win in a long winning streak tonight
"Destiny is a matter of choice, not chance"
by MerlinDog on Sep 9, 2008 4:16 PM CDT 0 recs
losing streak
were going on a long losing streak. lohse is an awesome pitcher and our garbage offense cant hit him. Our pitching especially sucks and pujols and glaus are the best. I hate this team and hope they get their brains beat out tonight. cubs dont deserve to win. ok ok ok that oughtta do it cause i cant type that filth much longer.
from the mouth of Uecker:
"Am I the only one who’s glad it’s only a 4-game series? If was a 9-game series, I think the Cubs would win them all."
by cubsluver22 on
Sep 9, 2008 4:54 PM CDT
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lol
ya had me for a second.
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on
Sep 9, 2008 4:56 PM CDT
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What an exquisite second that must have been!
As I've told you before, I never repeat myself.
by santoswoodenlegs on
Sep 9, 2008 4:58 PM CDT
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Second
win in a row will be tomorrow night
Current temperature in hell: 44 degrees F - and falling!
by wnielsen on Sep 9, 2008 4:18 PM CDT 0 recs
Let's hope that tonight's gamethread is a winner.
The other sports are just sports. Baseball is a love. ~Bryant Gumbel
by Blue W on Sep 9, 2008 4:22 PM CDT 0 recs
Gotta win the first one to start a streak
Lets go streakin!
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on Sep 9, 2008 4:22 PM CDT 0 recs
back in the day
streakin’ meant something altogether different… just saying ;-)
This is the time now where people that are getting the job done are the people that are going to play. Plain and simple. -- Lou
by Emelie on
Sep 9, 2008 4:38 PM CDT
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i know
i was trying to make people laugh.
:-P
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on
Sep 9, 2008 4:39 PM CDT
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Go Cubs Go !!!
Put the Cards out of their misery
"I don’t believe that things go your way," said Lou Piniella, the Cubs manager.
"I believe you make things go your way."
by Basman on Sep 9, 2008 4:23 PM CDT 0 recs
It's time for the Viktory!

As I've told you before, I never repeat myself.
by santoswoodenlegs on Sep 9, 2008 4:23 PM CDT 0 recs
You have received my endorsement
Current temperature in hell: 44 degrees F - and falling!
by wnielsen on
Sep 9, 2008 4:24 PM CDT
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Wait, so you guys are communists now?
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:24 PM CDT
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No way
They don’t share the wins with any other team.
Current temperature in hell: 44 degrees F - and falling!
by wnielsen on
Sep 9, 2008 4:24 PM CDT
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"Now" would imply they werent before...
Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand. - Homer J Simpson
by MikeOxbyg on
Sep 9, 2008 4:27 PM CDT
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Down with the bourgeoisie!
Theriot, Fonty, and Johnson = The Scrappy Pyramid of Victory
by BrewCrew'sPrinceofDarkness on
Sep 9, 2008 4:42 PM CDT
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I'm still waiting for a cushy government job before I cast my vote, hey this is chicago
Fat , drunk , and ,stupid is now way to go through life son.
by alabebo on
Sep 9, 2008 5:51 PM CDT
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Love the optimism !!!!
"I don’t believe that things go your way," said Lou Piniella, the Cubs manager.
"I believe you make things go your way."
by Basman on Sep 9, 2008 4:23 PM CDT 0 recs
Looking forward to a slice of PIE
I've been bleeding double blue Cubbies & NY Rangers
by parrotinct on Sep 9, 2008 4:23 PM CDT 0 recs
I think I might sacrifice a body part...
…to see Felix come up with a big hit tonight just to prove MDBNIU wrong.
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:25 PM CDT
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That's a little steep, don't ya think?
Can I talk you down to a pinky toe or something?
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:27 PM CDT
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but Blue Mike was willing to give up said body part...
why can’t you?
by tootle on
Sep 9, 2008 4:28 PM CDT
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seems to me, its prolly easy to give up, what you don't have...
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on
Sep 9, 2008 4:29 PM CDT
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Good point.
I hear he got kicked off eBay after that deal.
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:30 PM CDT
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OMG. LMAO
your feisty this afternoon arent you?
"A catchers biggest concern behind the plate is to make his pitcher pitch a little better than he can" Roy Campanella
by Madison Cub Fan on
Sep 9, 2008 4:36 PM CDT
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yes. yes i am.
i’m not a good loser. this sucks.
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on
Sep 9, 2008 4:36 PM CDT
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Bears winning had to help some for you yesterday
"A catchers biggest concern behind the plate is to make his pitcher pitch a little better than he can" Roy Campanella
by Madison Cub Fan on
Sep 9, 2008 4:38 PM CDT
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It helped me
a ton. I felt like crap all afternoon and evening until I watched the game with a Colt fan friend of mine. His stunned silence the whole game made me feel so much better.
When you're eight games behind, it's like eight miles; when you're eight games in front, it's like eight inches. ~ Ron Santo
by gwood on
Sep 9, 2008 4:39 PM CDT
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it did
but now i have to wait til next week to see them again…
i don’t want to wait that long to win.
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on
Sep 9, 2008 4:40 PM CDT
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LOL...
“This ain’t football. We do this every day.’” — Earl Weaver
As I've told you before, I never repeat myself.
by santoswoodenlegs on
Sep 9, 2008 4:41 PM CDT
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Packers winning last night did wonders for me
I just want now to see a Cubs win and that would be a great Monday/Tuesday combo.
"A catchers biggest concern behind the plate is to make his pitcher pitch a little better than he can" Roy Campanella
by Madison Cub Fan on
Sep 9, 2008 4:43 PM CDT
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that was the WORST penality ridden game i've ever watched
just.. wow.
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on
Sep 9, 2008 4:44 PM CDT
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It was very sloppy
but Rodgers looked pretty impressive. Green Bay, unfortunately, has something to look forward to in him me thinks
When you're eight games behind, it's like eight miles; when you're eight games in front, it's like eight inches. ~ Ron Santo
by gwood on
Sep 9, 2008 4:46 PM CDT
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I was pretty pleased with the Packers winning last night as well!!
Wasn’t pretty but hell last years opening season win wasn’t pretty either and that worked out just fine.
"Go Cubs Go"
by mkcubs21 on
Sep 9, 2008 4:58 PM CDT
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Like last year
It was a special teams play that turned the tide. Last year, it was JR Reed’s fumbled punt return, and this year it was Will Blackmon’s punt runback. And Rodgers looked pretty decent, all in all.
OK, enough about football. Let’s get a Cubs victory tonight!
by Clutch16 on
Sep 9, 2008 5:23 PM CDT
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My two favorite NFL teams:
Whoever’s playing the Packers, and whoever’s playing the Vikings.
Last night was a quandary indeed.
by MN exile on
Sep 9, 2008 6:32 PM CDT
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Yeah, but he got an ace-level starter in return.
I’m talkin’ about something like a bases-clearing double down the line here…
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:29 PM CDT
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noooooooo
you’re also buying the chance to shut BM up….
by tootle on
Sep 9, 2008 4:31 PM CDT
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uh...
NOTHING shuts BM up. He just ignores what he cannot understand.
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:32 PM CDT
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heh.
he ignored that too.
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:33 PM CDT
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Well, if we're talkin' about...
…shutting BM up permanently, a testicle might come into play. (Now there’s a sentence I never thought I’d write.) Let me speak with my attorney and get back to you with an offer.
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:34 PM CDT
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well,
it won’t take a testicle, but I wish the cubs would win the series…. and Pie hit a series winning homer to boot…. I think that that would shut him up.
by tootle on
Sep 9, 2008 4:35 PM CDT
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I'd love ANYONE to come up w/ a big hit
right about now.
Hey Chicago, what do ya say....
by halfblindcubbiegirl on
Sep 9, 2008 4:28 PM CDT
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Word
"WGN, Channel 9 Cubs Baseball, Excitingly, Importantly, Dramatically Yours." - Jack Brickhouse
by BigJohnAZ on
Sep 9, 2008 4:38 PM CDT
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I'd rather they waited until game time.
Or did you mean like a “Chart-topping” hit like American Bandstand?
’Cause I could go for that too, maybe some Huey Lewis & the News…
The other sports are just sports. Baseball is a love. ~Bryant Gumbel
by Blue W on
Sep 9, 2008 4:42 PM CDT
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It's Hip
to be Square.
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:43 PM CDT
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Wow
So it took almost 100 years to hit the first 100,000 major league homeruns (from 1876 to 1970), and only 22 years to hit the last 100,000 (from 1986 to 2008). That’s inflated offensive numbers we can believe in!
by SuperContext on Sep 9, 2008 4:25 PM CDT 0 recs
Ah, the miracles of modern science.
I keed, I keed. Well, sorta.
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:26 PM CDT
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that's why it's called
the Dead Ball Era.
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:32 PM CDT
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20 extra teams didn't hurt
"WGN, Channel 9 Cubs Baseball, Excitingly, Importantly, Dramatically Yours." - Jack Brickhouse
by BigJohnAZ on
Sep 9, 2008 4:32 PM CDT
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oh, sure,
EXPANSION. :P
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:34 PM CDT
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And tonight the Cubs begin
The Dead Bird Era
By clubbing the Cardinals
by SuperContext on
Sep 9, 2008 4:33 PM CDT
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I 2nd that emotion!
"WGN, Channel 9 Cubs Baseball, Excitingly, Importantly, Dramatically Yours." - Jack Brickhouse
by BigJohnAZ on
Sep 9, 2008 4:36 PM CDT
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I'm ready...
…for the Cubs to push the magic number to zero, starting tonight. I’d love to see a confident, rested, ready team for the playoffs.
by Chadnudj on Sep 9, 2008 4:29 PM CDT 0 recs
Tonight is the beginning
of the final push to the post season. I’ve got a real good feeling about this game and this series.
by Carolina Cubbie on Sep 9, 2008 4:29 PM CDT 0 recs
A good start to the evening...
Soto voted NL’s top rookie in August
I heart the riot. (www.riotshirts.com)
by RIOTSHIRTS.com on Sep 9, 2008 4:32 PM CDT 0 recs
Awesome.
Let’s hope the ROY is soon to follow.
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:34 PM CDT
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If he doesn't win...
I might lose one of those appendages you were talking about earlier.
I love to play baseball. I'm a baseball player. I've always been a baseball player. I'm still a baseball player. That's who I am. - Ryne Sandberg
by Trey2317 on
Sep 9, 2008 6:31 PM CDT
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If you changed the first letter in Pie's name to an "H"
His name would be Helix Pie
“He-Licks Pie”
by scalmie on Sep 9, 2008 4:38 PM CDT 0 recs
I'm not even sure how to respond to that.
"I see the playoff schedule posted in the paper, and that stuff makes me nervous because you can't take anything for granted. We have a great team. We have a really good team. We're playing well, but we haven't won yet." - Jim Edmonds, 8/31/08
by dat cubfan daver on
Sep 9, 2008 4:40 PM CDT
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dive in.
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:43 PM CDT
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but hold your breath first.
As I've told you before, I never repeat myself.
by santoswoodenlegs on
Sep 9, 2008 4:44 PM CDT
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well, of course.
wouldn’t want to dry it out.
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:44 PM CDT
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Lineup
sori
font (2B)
lee
rami
dero (RF)
edmonds
soto
cedeno (SS)
demp
This is the time now where people that are getting the job done are the people that are going to play. Plain and simple. -- Lou
by Emelie on Sep 9, 2008 4:41 PM CDT 0 recs
Dome is in Lou's doghouse.
As I've told you before, I never repeat myself.
by santoswoodenlegs on
Sep 9, 2008 4:41 PM CDT
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and Cedeno isn't?
I wonder if we’ll see Pie later in the game.
Our 2008 Chicago Cubs -- FINDING WAYS TO WIN!
by drewishdrewid on
Sep 9, 2008 4:44 PM CDT
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think Lou wants Cedeno to get that error/double out of his system?
I love to play baseball. I'm a baseball player. I've always been a baseball player. I'm still a baseball player. That's who I am. - Ryne Sandberg
by Trey2317 on
Sep 9, 2008 6:31 PM CDT
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Man, I feel really bad for Dome, but.....
ya gotta produce. He has looked lost for what, three months now?
by Carolina Cubbie on
Sep 9, 2008 4:44 PM CDT
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