Chicago Cubs: Breaking The Curse: 103 Years and Counting (The Show 12)

[Getty51]

Mid May Report

Team Stats (Majors)

2012 Chicago Cubs (Updated May 15) Stats - Hitting
NAME	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	CS	BA	OBP	SLG
Tony Campana	114	16	31	3	2	0	8	4	12	12	6	.272	.289	.333
Starlin Castro	136	13	37	5	1	2	21	5	18	14	5	.272	.292	.368
David DeJesus	134	17	40	4	4	3	19	6	12	11	3	.299	.333	.455
Ian Stewart	125	12	32	11	0	4	12	5	21	0	1	.256	.285	.440
Jeff Baker	56	4	17	1	0	1	3	3	6	0	0	.304	.339	.375
Joe Mather	55	5	15	3	1	0	6	4	6	0	0	.273	.322	.364
Alfonso Soriano	127	14	28	4	1	7	18	3	17	1	3	.220	.238	.433
Darwin Barney	120	8	22	3	0	0	5	4	20	0	0	.183	.210	.208
Steve Clevenger	39	3	9	2	0	0	1	1	6	0	0	.231	.250	.282
Bryan LaHair	115	10	26	9	0	1	7	4	19	0	0	.226	.252	.330
Adrian Cardenas	32	3	7	1	0	0	2	2	5	0	0	.219	.265	.250
Geovany Soto	105	14	19	1	0	8	15	8	19	0	0	.181	.246	.419
Reed Johnson	49	2	11	2	0	0	4	2	8	5	1	.224	.278	.265

2012 Chicago Cubs (Updated May 15) Stats - Pitching
NAME	GP	GS	W	L	SV	QS	HLD	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	ERA
Carlos Marmol	13	0	1	2	9	0	0	14.0	12	5	3	1	8	0.93	3.21
Kerry Wood	12	0	0	2	0	0	7	11.2	13	3	0	2	9	1.29	2.31
James Russell	11	0	1	2	0	0	2	10.0	9	4	1	0	6	0.90	3.60
Rafael Dolis	10	0	2	0	0	0	1	12.1	6	1	1	0	10	0.49	0.73
Shawn Camp	13	0	1	0	0	0	1	15.2	21	7	3	2	7	1.47	4.02
Michael Bowden	12	0	2	0	0	0	2	19.1	7	0	0	0	14	0.36	0.00
Lendy Castillo	10	0	1	0	0	0	2	15.0	11	0	0	1	8	0.80	0.00
Ryan Dempster	8	8	3	3	0	7	0	57.2	59	17	4	2	52	1.06	2.65
Matt Garza	8	8	2	0	0	8	0	60.2	41	8	1	3	48	0.73	1.19
Jeff Samardzija	7	7	4	1	0	6	0	44.2	42	10	5	2	38		2.01
Chris Volstad	7	7	3	1	0	4	0	44.1	46	18	4	3	28	1.26	3.65
Paul Maholm	7	7	2	4	0	4	0	48.0	49	16	1	5	31	1.32	3.00

Stats (Top 20 Prospects, According to MLB.com)
*Not in game are #11 Ronald Torreyes, #12 Ben Wells, #15 Gioskar Amaya, #16 Marco Hernandez, #18 Pin-Chieh Chen (These 5 were substituted for top 5 players with under 1 year of MLB expeirence)

2012 Cubs Top 20 Prospects (Mid May) Stats - Hitting
NAME	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	CS	BA	OBP	SLG
Anthony Rizzo (AAA)	164	29	50	14	0	3	21	26	34	0	1	.305	.401	.445
Brett Jackson (AAA)	147	20	45	11	2	5	20	10	17	3	0	.306	.360	.510
Javier Baez (AA)	66	7	19	4	1	0	8	3	6	1	1	.288	.315	.379
Matt Szczur (AA)	138	18	33	6	0	3	15	6	23	6	3	.239	.281	.348
Reggie Golden (A)
Junior Lake (AA)	137	18	39	4	0	6	22	14	23	9	0	.285	.349	.336
Josh Vitters (AAA)	141	15	36	8	0	6	21	9	21	0	0	.255	.296	.440
Dan Vogelbach (AA)	39	4	12	1	0	1	7	1	5	0	0	.308	.333	.410
Jeimer Candelario (AA)	76	14	25	5	0	1	10	10	16	0	0	.329	.422	.434
Dave Sappelt (AAA)	117	15	38	7	1	4	19	16	12	2	0	.325	.407	.504
Jorge Soler (AAA)	77	11	20	5	2	3	9	9	7	1	0	.260	.345	.494
Wellington Castillo (AAA)	115	13	26	6	1	2	8	8	19	1	0	.226	.274	.348

2012 Cubs Top 20 Prospects (Mid May) Stats - Pitching
NAME	GP	GS	W	L	SV	QS	HLD	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	ERA
Dillon Maples (A)
Trey McNutt (AA)	5	5	3	0	0	4	0	34.0	35	8	2	7	27	1.24	2.12
Robert Whitenack (A)
Zach Cates (A)
Tony Zych (A)
Casey Coleman (AAA)	8	8	2	1	0	4	0	38.0	49	20	2	15	24	1.68	4.74
Blake Parker (AA)	9	0	0	1	0	0	4	9.1	5	5	2	5	11	1.07	4.82
Jay Jackson (AAA)	8	8	4	2	0	3	0	47.0	43	24	2	26	31	1.47	4.60

NL League Leaders

MLB League Leaders - Updated: May 15, 2012
Batting Average		AVG	Home Runs		HR
	1. Jason Heyward	.375		1. Andre Ethier	9
	2. Jason Castro	.364		2. Corey Hart	9
	3. Jon Jay	.340		3. Lance Berkman	9
	4. Hunter Pence	.336		4. 6 Tied at	8
	5. Corey Hart	.333		5.
Runs Batted In		RBI	Stolen Bases		SB
	1. Dan Uggla	32		1. Starlin Castro	14
	2. Logan Morrison	28		2. Tony Campana	12
	3. Chris Young	28		3. David DeJesus	11
	4. Hunter Pence	27		4. 3 Tied at	10
	5. Ike Davis	26		5.
Wins		W	Saves		SV
	1. Tim Lincecum	6		1. Huston Street	16
	2. Cory Luebke	5		2. Javy Guerra	12
	3. Josh Johnson	5		3. Santiago Casilla	12
	4. Daniel Hudson	5		4. Jonathan Paplebon	12
	5. 9 Tied at	4		5. 2 Tied at	11
Earned Run Average		ERA	Strikeouts		K
	1. Matt Garza	1.19		1. Cliff Lee	79
	2. Jeremy Guthrie	1.51		2. Clayton Kershaw	61
	3. Barry Zito	1.90		3. Tim Lincecum	59
	4. Jeff Samardzija	2.01		4. Ian Kennedy	57
	5. Yovani Gallardo	2.02		5. Stephen Strasburg	56

AL League Leaders

MLB League Leaders - Updated: May 15, 2012
Batting Average		AVG	Home Runs		HR
	1. Chris Getz	.372		1. Albert Pujols	14
	2. Albert Pujols	.353		2. David Ortiz	13
	3. Alejandro De Aza	.347		3. Yoenis Cespedes	12
	4. David Ortiz	.340		4. Mike Napoli	11
	5. Ryan Sweeney	.339		5. Carlos Pena	10
Runs Batted In		RBI	Stolen Bases		SB
	1. Albert Pujols	48		1. Brett Gardner	17
	2. David Ortiz	34		2. Elvis Andrus	14
	3. Prince Fielder	32		3. Ichiro Suzuki	11
	4. Yoenis Cespedes	31		4. Austin Jackson	10
	5. Carlos Pena	31		5. 3 Tied at	9
Wins		W	Saves		SV
	1. Jered Weaver	6		1. Mariano Rivera	12
	2. Dan Haren	6		2. 5 Tied at	10
	3. Justin Verlander	6		3.
	4. 3 tied at	5		4.
	5.			5.
Earned Run Average		ERA	Strikeouts		K
	1. Philip Humber	1.68		1. Justin Verlander	66
	2. Hiroki Kuroda	1.88		2. Dan Haren	64
	3. Jeremy Helickson	2.12		3. Feliz Hernandez	59
	4. Jered Weaver	2.25		4. Yu Darvish	57
	5. Justin Verlander	2.33		5. Jered Weaver	57

Standings

MLB Standings - Updated: May 15, 2012
AL EAST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Yankees	22	15		173	136
Red Sox	20	17	2.0	145	164
Rays	20	17	2.0	164	163
Blue Jays	14	23	8.0	159	187
Orioles	14	23	8.0	164	204
AL CENTRAL	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Tigers	21	16		177	162
Indians	18	18	2.5	159	161
Royals	18	19	3.0	139	149
Twins	17	20	4.0	144	169
White Sox	16	21	5.0	166	135
AL WEST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Angels	25	12		193	123
Rangers	21	16	4.0	167	137
Athletics	16	20	8.5	137	175
Mariners	16	21	9.0	134	156
NL EAST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Marlins	22	15		131	118
Mets	19	17	2.5	156	149
Phillies	18	19	4.0	137	127
Nationals	18	19	4.0	136	128
Braves	17	20	5.0	160	167
NL CENTRAL	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Cubs	22	15		127	99
Reds	18	18	3.5	132	146
Cardinals	16	20	5.5	148	126
Astros	15	21	6.5	122	164
Pirates	15	21	6.5	125	170
Brewers	14	22	7.5	120	156
NL WEST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Diamondbacks	22	15		160	125
Padres	21	16	1.0	124	119
Giants	20	16	1.5	132	115
Rockies	19	16	2.0	127	115
Dodgers	15	21	6.5	116	129

[Getty51]

Bullpen Shelled as Cubs drop opener to Phillies

Chicago (AP) - The Phillies and the Cubs met at Wrigley field tonight to play the first of a two game set. The game pitted Jeff Samardzija against Cole Hamels. Samardzija was forced from the game after only going 5 innings because of a high pitch count, at which point it was left to the bullpen. That would prove costly as in the 8th inning it felt like the Cubs could not get anyone out and that ended up giving up 7 runs in the inning. Cole Hamels went 7 innings and left his team down by one, but they came up big for him in the top of the 8th as pinch hitter Lance Nix sparked the rally to get Hamels in line for the win.

Cubs Corner: Jeff Samardzija threw 95 pitches in just 5 innings of work...Michael Bowden gave up his first run of the season on a solo homer by Jim Thome...James Russel and Rafael Dolis combined to get 1 out in the 8th inning and give up a total of 7 earned runs....Game 2 of the series will pit Chris Volstad (3-1) against Vance Worley (2-2)...David DeJesus' 10 game hitting streak came to an end today...

Philadelphia Phillies at Chicago Cubs
May 16, 2012	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia ()	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	7	0	8	14	0
Chicago ()	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	6	0
W: Hamels (4-1) L: Russell (1-3)

Philadelphia Phillies
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Pierre	5	1	1	0	0	1		.291
Polanco	4	1	1	0	1	0		.266
Pence	5	1	3	2	0	1		.344
Thome	5	2	2	2	0	1		.240
Victorino	5	1	2	1	0	0		.308
Rollins	5	1	1	1	0	1		.210
Ruiz	4	0	1	1	0	1		.224
Blanco	4	0	1	0	0	2		.167
Hamels	1	0	0	0	0	0		.059
Nix	2	1	2	1	0	0		.269
BATTING: 2B: Rollins (5) HR: Thome (3) RBI: Rollins (10), Victorino (17), Thome 2 (8), Pence 2 (29), Ruiz (12), Nix (4) SAC: Hamels

Chicago Cubs
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
DeJesus	4	0	0	0	0	1		.290
Campana	3	0	0	0	0	1		.265
Castro	4	0	0	0	0	2		.264
Soto	4	2	3	0	0	0		.202
Baker	4	0	1	0	0	1		.300
Mather	4	0	0	0	0	1		.254
Johnson	3	0	1	2	0	0		.231
Barney	3	0	0	0	0	1		.179
Samardzija	1	0	1	0	0	0		.308
Soriano	1	0	0	0	0	0		.219
Cardenas	1	0	0	0	0	1		.212
BATTING: 2B: Soto 2 (3), Johnson (3) RBI: Johnson 2 (6) SAC: Campana

Philadelphia Phillies
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Hamels (W, 4-1)	7.0	6	2	2	0	7		2.41
Bastardo	2.0	0	0	0	0	1		3.75

Chicago Cubs
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Samardzija	5.0	3	0	0	1	5		1.81
Bowden (H, 3)	1.0	1	1	1	0	0		0.44
Camp (H, 2)	1.0	0	0	0	0	0		3.78
Russell (L, 1-3)	0.0	5	5	5	0	0		8.10
Dolis	0.1	4	2	2	0	1		2.13
Castillo	1.2	1	0	0	0	1		0.00

[Getty51]

Phillies stay hot, sweep Cubs

Chicago (AP) - Chris Volstad had no answer for the Phillies offense, giving up 9 hits and 5 earned runs in 4.1 innings pitched where as his counterpart Vance Worley didn't give up a hit until the bottom of the 6th inning. A scary moment came in the bottom of the 2nd for the Cubs when star outfielder Alfonso Soriano was injured while breaking up a double play after a walk to start the inning. Soriano was kicked in the arm and doctors feared it may have been broken but an X-Ray revealed that it was a deep bruise and that he may need monitoring but should be fine.

Cubs Corner: Chris Volstad fell to 3-2 on the season....The Cubs have dropped their 2nd straight game which is tied for their second longest losing streak all year....Bryan LaHair was the lone bright spot for the Cubs going 3-4 and hitting two doubles; LaHair also had the first hit for the Cubs in the bottom of the 6th inning, though they had already gotten two walks in the game.

Philadelphia Phillies at Chicago Cubs
May 17, 2012	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia ()	1	1	2	0	1	0	0	0	2	7	14	1
Chicago ()	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	5	1
W: Worley (3-2) L: Volstad (3-2)

Philadelphia Phillies
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Pierre	5	2	3	0	0	1		.302
Polanco	5	1	1	0	0	0		.264
Pence	4	1	3	3	0	1		.354
Victorino	4	0	1	0	0	0		.306
Rollins	4	0	2	1	0	0		.219
Ruiz	4	1	2	1	0	0		.233
Overbeck	4	0	0	0	0	0		.167
Fontenot	4	1	1	0	0	1		.233
Worley	3	0	0	0	0	1		.000
Nix	1	1	1	2	0	0		.296
BATTING: 2B: Pence (14), Ruiz (3), Pierre (10), Fontenot (1) HR: Ruiz (4), Nix (1) RBI: Rollins (11), Pence 3 (32), Ruiz (13), Nix 2 (6) GIDP: Rollins, Polanco
BASERUNNING: SB: Pence (1), Pierre 2 (11)
FIELDING: E: Fontenot (2)

Chicago Cubs
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
DeJesus	4	0	0	0	0	0		.282
Campana	4	0	0	0	0	0		.256
Castro	4	0	0	0	0	1		.257
Soriano (INJ in 2nd)	0	0	0	0	1	0		.219
Mather	3	1	1	0	0	0		.258
Stewart	4	0	0	0	0	1		.248
LaHair	4	0	3	0	0	0		.244
Soto	4	0	1	1	0	1		.204
Barney	2	0	0	0	1	0		.176
Volstad	1	0	0	0	0	0		.000
Cardenas	1	0	0	0	0	0		.206
Clevenger	1	0	0	0	0	0		.225
BATTING: 2B: LaHair 2 (11) RBI: Soto (16)
FIELDING: E: Barney (2)

Philadelphia Phillies
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Worley (W, 3-2)	8.0	4	1	1	2	3		4.15
Qualls	1.0	1	0	0	0	0		2.93

Chicago Cubs
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Volstad	4.1	9	5	5	0	1		4.25
Camp	1.2	2	0	0	0	1		3.44
Bowden	1.0	1	0	0	0	1		0.42
Dolis	1.1	2	2	2	0	0		3.21
Russell	0.2	0	0	0	0	1		7.59

[Getty51]

Cubs win thriller in Kid K's finale

Chicago (AP) - In a day that dealt with a flury of activity coming out of the city of Chicago; not only were the cross town rivals facing off against each other but after the previous game against the Phillies there was a rumor circulating that Kerry Wood would be calling it a career. Wood came in in the 8th inning to face a former Cub (Koske Fukudome) who was pinch hitting; Wood proceed to strike out Fukudome on 3 pitches. He was then taken out and given a standing ovation by the crowd at Wrigley which was followed by a curtain call. As for the game Geovany Soto came up with his 9th homer to tie the game in the bottom of the 8th and Tony Campana got a walk off single tin win the game in the 9th. The story in Chicago is focusing on Wood though as Kid K finished his career in a fitting way, with a strikeout.

Cubs Corner: Kerry Wood Edition This will only be about Kerry Wood seeing as he is retiring following the game....Wood will finish his career with an 86-75 record with 63 saves....His career ERA will be 3.63....He will have amassed 1,586 strikeouts throughout his career which include his first and his last batter ever faced....Wood will retire with a carreer K/9 over 10....Wood spent 14 seasons in the Majors and will retire at the age of 34....The Cubs have decided to call up Casey Coleman from AAA Iowa to fill the spot; Coleman was 2-1 with a 4.12 era in 43.2 innings pitched in Iowa.

Chicago White Sox at Chicago Cubs
May 18, 2012	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago (18-21)	0	0	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	3	6	2
Chicago (22-17)	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	4	12	0
W: Castillo (2-0) L: Jones (1-1)

Chicago White Sox
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
De Aza	4	0	0	0	0	1		.323
Martinez	4	0	0	0	0	1		.000
Konerko	4	1	1	0	0	0		.279
Morel	4	1	2	2	0	1		.283
Rios	4	0	0	0	0	1		.192
Flowers	3	0	0	0	0	0		.340
Beckham	3	1	1	0	0	0		.276
Lillibridge	3	0	2	1	0	0		.233
Humber	1	0	0	0	0	1		.000
Fukudome	1	0	0	0	0	1		.295
BATTING: 2B: Lillibridge (2) HR: Morel (8) RBI: Morel 2 (25), Lillibridge (6) SAC: Humber GIDP: Rios
FIELDING: E: De Aza 2 (3)

Chicago Cubs
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
DeJesus	4	1	3	0	0	0		.294
Campana	4	0	1	1	1	0		.256
Soriano	4	0	0	1	0	1		.212
Stewart	4	0	0	0	0	1		.240
Soto	4	1	2	1	0	0		.213
LaHair	4	1	2	0	0	0		.252
Barney	4	0	1	0	0	2		.178
Cardenas	4	1	2	0	0	0		.236
Maholm	2	0	0	1	0	1		.142
Baker	1	0	0	0	0	1		.295
Mather	1	0	1	0	0	0		.269
BATTING: 2B: DeJesus (5) 3B: DeJesus (5) HR: Soto (9) RBI: Maholm (1), Campana (9), Soriano (19), Soto (17) SAC: DeJesus GIDP: LaHair
BASERUNNING: SB: DeJesus (12)

Chicago White Sox
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Humber	6.2	7	2	2	1	4		1.80
Reed (H, 2)	1.0	0	0	0	0	1		3.31
Marte (BS, 1)	0.1	2	1	1	0	1		33.75
Jones (L, 1-1)	0.1	3	1	1	0	0		2.13

Chicago Cubs
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Maholm	7.0	6	3	3	0	4		3.10
Wood	0.1	0	0	0	0	1		2.25
Castillo (W, 2-0)	1.2	0	0	0	0	1		0.00

Editors Note: I felt it was only fitting to let Kerry retire when he did in real life. The fact that I was also able to strike out his only batter was a huge deal to me personally as it was only fitting.

[Getty51]

Cubs Take game two as Dempster K's 11

Chicago (AP) - Ryan Dempster did everything he was asked to do today against the White Sox in the cross town rivalry. Dempster went the distance and gave up just one run, which was a solo homer by Connor Jackson, he also went on to strikeout 11 White Sox. The Cubs were sparked by a Two Run homer from Bryan LaHair to push the lead to 3.

Cubs Corner: Ryan Dempster is now 4-3 on the season....Bryan LaHair hit his 2nd homer of the year and is on his way up the lineup, today he was batting 5th...Tony Campana and Ian Stewart both hit triples, for Campana it was his 3rd and for Stewart it was his 1st...Alfonso Soriano picked up his 2nd stolen base of the season...Game 3 will pit Matt Garza (2-0) against Chris Sale (3-2) as the Cubs go for the sweep.

Chicago White Sox at Chicago Cubs
May 19, 2012	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago (18-22)	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	6	1
Chicago (23-17)	0	0	0	1	0	3	0	0	X	4	9	0
W: Dempster (4-3) L: Peavy (1-5)

Chicago White Sox
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
De Aza	4	0	1	0	0	1		.321
Fukudome	4	0	1	0	0	0		.295
Konerko	4	0	0	0	0	2		.272
Morel	4	0	0	0	0	3		.275
Beckham	4	0	1	0	0	1		.275
Jackson	4	1	2	1	0	0		.243
Flowers	3	0	0	0	0	2		.320
Martinez	3	0	0	0	0	1		.000
Crain	1	0	0	0	0	0		.000
Fukudome	1	0	1	0	0	0		.167
Lillibridge	1	0	0	0	0	1		.230
BATTING: 2B: Fukudome (13) HR: Jackson (2) RBI: Jackson (3)
BASERUNNING: SB: De Aza (7)
FIELDING: E: Crain (1)

Chicago Cubs
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
DeJesus	4	0	1	0	0	0		.293
Campana	4	2	2	0	0	0		.264
Castro	4	1	1	1	0	0		.257
Soriano	4	0	2	1	0	0		.221
LaHair	3	1	1	2	1	1		.254
Stewart	3	0	2	0	1	0		.250
Clevenger	4	0	0	0	0	2		.205
Barney	3	0	0	0	0	0		.174
Dempster	3	0	0	0	0	1		.231
BATTING: 3B: Campana (3), Stewart (1) HR: LaHair (2) RBI: Castro (22), LaHair 2 (9), Soriano (20)
BASERUNNING: SB: Soriano (2)

Chicago White Sox
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Crain	4.0	4	1	1	0	2		3.44
Peavy (L, 1-5)	2.0	4	3	3	0	1		5.74
Ohman	1.2	1	0	0	2	1		5.68
Thorton	0.1	0	0	0	0	0		3.86

Chicago Cubs
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Dempster (W, 4-3)	9.0	6	1	1	0	11		2.43

[k_mac]

What you did with Kerry is awesome, good luck on the rest of the season!

[Getty51]

White Sox bats come alive, Clobber Cubs

Chicago (AP) - The Southsiders were all over the Northsiders today, a 2 run blast from lead off man De Aza in the 3rd started the scoring and an injury to Matt Garza in the 4th didn't help things. Garza had to leave the game and Casey Coleman made his first appearance of the year, Coleman proceeded to give up 4 unearned runs as both Starlin Castro and Joe Mather committed errors with 2 outs. Chris Sale was nearly perfect through 8 for the White Sox having only given up 1 walk and 2 hits prior to the 9th inning. One Cubs official was noted as having stated "He was really ontop of his game today, whatever he threw was perfect and it showed."

Cubs Corner: Matt Garza would be ok after being pulled from his start with what appeared to be nothing more than a hangnail....Starlin Castro stole his league leading 15th base....Geovany Soto got the first hit for the Cubs in the 6th inning with a Double....Joe Mather was the first Cubs base runner in the 4th with a walk....Castro committed his 8th error while Joe Mather commited his 1st...Casey Coleman allowed 5 runs on 6 hits but only 1 of those runs was earned....The Cubs will now travel to Houston to face the 17-24 Astros; Jeff Samardzija (4-1, 1.81) will face Bud Norris (2-2, 4.96) in game 1.

Chicago White Sox at Chicago Cubs
May 20, 2012	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago ()	0	0	2	4	0	1	0	0	0	7	10	0
Chicago ()	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	2
W: Sale (4-2) L: Garza (2-1)

Chicago White Sox
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
De Aza	4	1	2	2	0	1		.326
Fukudome	4	0	0	0	0	2		.286
Konerko	4	0	1	0	0	0		.271
Morel	4	1	0	0	0	0		.267
Pierzynski	4	1	1	0	0	1		.231
Beckham	4	1	1	0	0	1		.274
Rios	4	1	2	2	0	0		.203
Martinez	4	2	2	1	0	0		.181
Sale	4	0	1	1	0	1		.250
BATTING: 2B: Rios (4), Beckham (8), Martinez (1) HR: De Aza (3) RBI: Sale (1), De Aza 2 (12), Rios 2 (11), Martinez (1) GIDP: Morel, Martinez, Fukudome
FIELDING: PB: Pierzynski (1)

Chicago Cubs
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Johnson	4	0	0	0	0	0		.214
Stewart	3	0	0	0	0	0		.244
DeJesus	1	0	0	0	0	0		.291
Castro	4	0	1	0	0	2		.256
Soriano	4	0	2	0	0	0		.228
LaHair	3	0	0	0	1	1		.248
Mather	3	0	0	0	1	0		.257
Soto	3	0	1	0	0	2		.216
Barney	3	0	0	0	0	1		.170
Garza	1	0	0	0	0	0		.176
Baker	2	0	0	0	0	0		.285
BATTING: 2B: Soto (4)
BASERUNNING: SB: Castro (15)
FIELDING: E: Castro (8), Mather (1)

Chicago White Sox
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Sale (W, 4-2)	9.0	4	0	0	2	6		2.20

Chicago Cubs
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Garza (L, 2-1) (INJ in 4th)	3.1	2	2	2	0	3		1.40
Coleman	2.2	6	5	1	0	3		3.37
Camp	2.0	2	0	0	0	0		3.09
Bowden	1.0	0	0	0	0	0		0.40

[Getty51]

Quote: Originally Posted by MrCub

What you did with Kerry is awesome, good luck on the rest of the season!

Ya, I planned all along to have him retire when he really did. The fact that it worked out with a 3 pitch strikeout seemed like poetic justice not only in real life but for my game. It was almost like the game knew because the pitch sequence was exactly the same as his real life finale. Only way it would have been better is if it would have been if the same guy had been at the plate but he is injured in my Franchise.