Cubs get de-pantsed by Nationals

I last wrote on August 18th and said I felt the season was over, now after the ensuing road trip and last night's game, I KNOW the Cubs' season is over. There was a weird vibe to the Wrigleyville neighborhood before the game as scalpers (lots of them) were selling tickets for "half price".

For some reason my friends and I decided to go to the game. Originally we tried to barter with another friend for his tickets but he would not meet our low price, confident we could get cheap tickets we headed off for the game. We took the X80 Irving Park bus down to the game and as soon as we stepped off, a cougar in a convertible asked us if we needed tickets. We approached her car and she said she'd take $20 apiece for all 4, we said we needed only 3, so she sold us all 4 for $59, my friend, Steve, only gave her $19. The seats were solid, Aisle 135, Row 13, Seats 1-4, $60 face value. Next, since we were on a budget, we headed to the liquor store to pick up some flasks/pints to sneak into the game, I purchased a small bottle of Captain Morgan. For the record sneaking booze into Wrigley is awesome and easy, it also saves you tons of money you would have spent on beers, and saves you many trips to the bathroom. Everyone should do this, from now on, I will try and do this for every game.

Too bad the game itself sucked last night, I personally would blame Lou Piniella, because he managed the game like an ass, here is why I think this:

1.) When we were down only a few runs in the early stages of the game (I believe it was 3-1) Aramis Ramirez led off with a single. Then inexplicably, Lou called for a hit-and-run with Fukudome at the plate who wiffed on strike-3 leaving Ramirez hung out to dry and then gunned-down at second base. Way to run your team out of an inning Lou, using your slowest base-runner, and a poor contact guy. This was a wasted opportunity and seemed to kill any momentum the Cubs had going.

2.) The Pitching. Need I say more? Carlos Zambrano was terrible: 4.1IP, 8ER, 7H, 3BB, 4K. Way to step up Z with your season hanging by a thread you come out and pitch your worst game of the season, you should be real proud of yourself. Then when Lou finally pulled Z down 5-1 with the bases loaded and one out, who did he bring in? None other than Aaron Heilman. What a bad decision! Heilman did strike out the first batter he faced, but then right on cue gave up a Grand Slam to Elijah Dukes that still has not landed. The Cubs season ended right there, how fitting for this season, Lou bringing in the wrong pitcher at the wrong time, a theme for the whole year. Heilman had no business being in the game at that point, he is not a long reliever! Furthermore, he has no business being on the roster. Jim Hendry should release him right now, he is not signed beyond this season anyway. I still can't believe Heilman thought he could be a starter when this season began, what a jackass.

3.) Mike Fontenot, Aaron Miles, and Geovany Soto. None of these jerks belongs on the field. I will start with Fontenot who was 0-2 BB and made a throwing error in which he looked like an ass. He is hitting .222 on the season and has shown no signs of improvement, I said as soon as he came up in the second that he should not be out there, rather Jeff Baker should. I was proved right in the 9th when Baker blasted a solo HR. Baker is hitting .284 and is one of the hotter hitters on the team, there is no reason whatsoever Fontenot deserved to start last night, he is a loser, and should be playing elsewhere in 2010. Miles, in his only at-bat, struck out and got booed off the field. He is now hitting .177 and has 5 RBI this season! Seriously, he has no business being in MLB. Why Andres Blanco is at Iowa, while Fonty and Miles are here, I will never know. Lastly, Soto is a fat waste of space and a huge disappointment. His ROY season in 2008 is looking like a fluke and he looks like the next Rick Wilkins. If Soto wants to play next season he should be forced to go through extensive conditioning drills in the offseason. Another problem with Soto is that he can not hit a breaking ball, he is a real-life Pedro Cerrano, from Major League.

There were VERY few bright-spots last night but here they are: Milton Bradley had a nice game going 4-4 HR, RBI, 2R, BB and also made a great catch against the right-field wall late. Bradley hustled and played hard all night, and really has all season. He is the one guy who still seems to be trying out there. Our infielders: Derrek Lee, Ryan Theriot, Ramirez, and Fontenot seemed to be out of it last night, standing listlessly around the diamond. This was probably due to the fact that all the balls the Nats hit last night were hit hard to the outfield, mostly to Jake Fox, who looked as bad as Alfonso Soriano out there (but gets a pass because he is tyring and is not a dick). Bottom Line: Bradley played well last night, hopefully he can play well the rest of the way and carry that into 2010. Also, I gave him a standing-ovation when he hit his HR and made his catch, I have stuck by him all season and am proud of it!

The final score last night was 16-5, by far the worst loss I have ever been to, but I had a good time nonetheless. Eddie Vedder sang the 7th inning stretch admirably. Last night may just be the last game I will go to in 2009, mostly because I do not want to give this pathetic excuse for a team any more of my money (I don't have much). Last night, the fans finally seemed to turn on this team, lots of booing, and there was hardly anyone left by the end of the game (I stayed til the very end!).

My personal record in 2009: 8 and 4.
Next game I am going to as of right now: TBA.