Powerful message
With three HRs, Cubs bounce back like a champion as Lilly wins 15th
Lou Piniella took a measurement of his Cubs in their five-run fourth inning Monday against the St. Louis Cardinals.
''Where has that been?'' the manager said with a smile after a 12-3 victory brought to life the dormant Cubs bats -- and put one more hurt on the Cardinals' hopes to surprise in the National League Central.
''Where has that been?'' the manager said with a smile after a 12-3 victory brought to life the dormant Cubs bats -- and put one more hurt on the Cardinals' hopes to surprise in the National League Central.
But Aramis Ramirez, who erupted with a 4-for-5 day and his first multihomer game of the season batting in the fifth spot, had another yardstick for the game.
(AP)
PHOTO GALLERY
Cubs beat Cardinals
But Aramis Ramirez, who erupted with a 4-for-5 day and his first multihomer game of the season batting in the fifth spot, had another yardstick for the game.
''To bounce back after a loss like [Sunday's 10-5 defeat in Pittsburgh], that's what championship teams have to do,'' the Cubs third baseman said. ''Everyone in here thinks we can do it. We won't give up. We've had some tough losses and we haven't played the way we liked, but we're still right there.''
Meaning contention, as the Cubs regained a share of first place in the NL Central after the Brewers lost to the Pirates 9-0 on Monday night.
For now, the makeup game with the Cardinals at Wrigley Field scheduled to replace a washed-out Aug. 19 contest will trigger hopes for the win streak Piniella and the Cubs keep yearning for.
And perhaps a fading future for the defending champion Cardinals, who lost their fourth in a row.
''Absolutely,'' Mark DeRosa said of the importance of defeating and deflating the Cardinals, whom the Cubs face four more times this weekend in St. Louis. ''It's us, them and Milwaukee. We don't play Milwaukee anymore, so when you play head-to-head, there are big swings.
''But every win is big for us now. There's no room for error.''
The Cubs belted 17 hits against a parade of the Cardinals' wounded pitching staff, but their six runs off Joel Pineiro (4-3) in 3 1/3 innings was plenty for lefty Ted Lilly (15-7), who scattered the Cardinals' five hits through seven innings, two of them homers -- by Jim Edmonds in the second and So Taguchi in the sixth -- accounting for the scores.
''After [Sunday's] game, I think a lot of guys were pretty upset about it,'' said Lilly, who tied Carlos Zambrano for the staff lead in victories and became the 25th lefty in Cubs history to reach the 15-win mark. ''They didn't roll over and definitely took it out on the pitching today.''
Even Lilly contributed an RBI double in the explosive fourth that started with Derrek Lee's 18th home run and included the first of Ramirez's two (his 21st and 22nd). Lee was 3-for-5 with a double, hiking his September average to .410 and extending his hitting streak to seven games.
It was the fourth time this season Lee and Ramirez both homered in a game, a stat Ramirez knows won't necessarily translate to success.
''This is not about me and D-Lee and Alfonso Soriano,'' he insisted. ''This is a team. If we all don't do our jobs, if the pitching doesn't come through and the bullpen and the hitting, we won't win. Everyone has to do their part.''
Piniella was happy to see it all coming through in the fourth.
''That was a thing of beauty,'' he said. ''We hit for power, we hit the ball in the gaps, we hit the ball with men in scoring position. That's really what we needed. A game like this? It can really get you going.
''Lilly pitched another good ballgame, but today the hitters stepped it up. It's been a while since we put together a real nice inning like that.''
Ramirez's effectiveness hitting fifth pleased Piniella, who said to expect to see him hitting there again tonight when the Cubs open a series in Houston. That will be fine with Ramirez.
''I'll hit anywhere,'' he said. ''I don't really care, as long as I'm in the lineup.''