Don't Freak Out, But...(Part II)

Welcome back to our regularly scheduled broadcast.

To recap: A young, post-graduate struggles through one of the most tumultuous periods in recent American history by pinning an alarming amount of his hopes on a continuously disappointing baseball team, a staggering move that will lead to an incalculable amount of devastation OR verify that there truly is hope in faith, even in a universe that allowed

Call it naivete. Call it idiocy. Just don't call it sanity.

Enough though, there is fun to be had in Pittsburgh. My dad used to tell me that to be a contender in college basketball, you had to win all of your home games and at least 50% of your road games. A similar philosophy is certainly applicable here, especially when dealing with the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 2008, the Cubs went 14-4 against the Bucs, winning their first seven games of the season series. To catch the St. Louis DeRosas, the Cubs are going to have to replicate that feat.

Rich Harden helped right the ship with a 3-1 victory, throwing seven strong endings that ended with a fabulously turned double play. Milton Bradley emerged from his hole long enough to go 2-4 with an RBI double. Ryan Theriot's season-long power surge continued, with the LSU alum rekindling thoughts of how far you can send a ball with an aluminum bat with his 3rd inning solo shot.

The real star was Harden though, as the beleaguered starter had his longest outing since May 6 in Houston. Impressively, Harden held the free-swinging Pirates to one BB, an area he has struggled with as of late. Coupled with nine strikeouts, Harden was the key in a game (and a series) that the Cubs have to have. While the rotation has been one of the strong points this season, given the recent struggles of Mount Zambrano, the Cubs NEED Harden to show off his 2008 form after his acquisition from the A's.

The game also saw a starting pitcher go seven innings, Carlos Marmol throw a perfect eighth, and Kevin Gregg throw a perfect ninth. For those of you keeping score, that's what management intended when they left Spring Training. Somewhere, Lou Piniella's heart is rejoicing.

It's also worth discussing Theriot and Bradley. After his early-season chat with Lou Piniella, Theriot has tried hitting for more power, and his power numbers have been off of the charts when compared to his career numbers. However, Theriot's greatest strength has gone by the wayside, as he struggles to go to the opposite field. That was what made Theriot such a dangerous hitter; he was a sniper with a bit, always able to move runners over from second to third or come through with the big single when the Cubs needed it. Now, he's pulling out of his swing, taking his eyes off the ball, and running the risk of sending disks in his back into the upper deck with such a jerky motion.

While the home run is far more glamorous, and last night's was certainly gorgeous, for Theriot not only to remain with the Cubs but in the majors, we need him to redevelop the same approach that had him leading the team in batting average last season.

That brings us to Bradley. Milton Bradley is going to hit. He's going to get on base. That doesn't mean that he's going to recreate what he did last year in Texas, but the man is too good of a hitter to have this kind of season. Now that it's out that he isn't the most sociable Cub, this team is going to make a greater effort to welcome him, I guarantee it. You would have to be a fool to think that you can win without Bradley's best at the plate, and his best trumps every right fielder we've had since He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named (oddly enough they both wear No. 21). Whether's it's Derrek Lee, Alfonso Soriano, or one of the other presumed clubhouse leaders, there will be a greater effort to make Bradley feel welcome. Once he's more comfortable, he'll start hitting. And once that man starts hitting, Wrigley Field will treat him like a king. It's baseball's version of the domino effect.

The Cubs resume play with Ted Lilly on the mound. Lilly has been a huge stopper the past two years, and while we're not coming off of a loss, this is still must win territory. Rumor has it Aramis Ramirez is rejoining the team soon, and with the team only sitting 3.5 games back in the division, this is the perfect moment to steal some ground.

Don't Freak Out, But...

In the universe’s fun fashion of tricks and turns, I need the Chicago Cubs. I need the team that sits 3.5 games out of first place in a tight division. I need the team that is two games under .500, handed the White Sox the weekend series, and now has to watch Mark DeRosa suit up as a Cardinal.

I need the underachievers to overachieve for once.

Graduating from college and suffering through unemployment proved to be an inevitable fate, as did a mid-season swoon. The fact that they coincided is about as entertaining as watching a colonoscopy in HD. But as fun as this mid-season colonoscopy is, I need it.

Oh, the trying times of a young American man. Cue Nebraska-era Springsteen.

The only predictability in my life comes in the form of a dysfunctional baseball team. Fittingly, this team is predictably unsettling. There's the question marks surrounding Aramis Ramirez's return, Carlos Zambrano routinely resembling a Michael Bay action sequence, Milton Bradley's descent into "Worst Signings of 2009," Kevin Gregg's entrance into a witness protection agency by the All-Star Break, Rich Harden's disappearance (which unsurprisingly coincided with the NHL Playoffs and seems to have come with a Playoff hangover), The Curious Case of Lou Piniella, and finally the offensive power outage, courtesy of everyone not named Derrek Lee. And that's just scratching the surface. Now we have to deal with DeRosa as a Cardinal.

Cue Charlie Brown's Christmas theme.

Alfonso Soriano hasn't homered since June 7 and is hitting a paltry .235. Lee leads the team with an unastoundding 39 RBI. Reigning ROY Geovany Soto may be turning the corner, but he's only hitting .223 with 7 home runs. That doesn't even begin to cover situational or timely hitting, categories the mashers aren't contributing to in a positive fashion either.

But before you break out grandpa's cough medicine or buy into Ozzie Guillen's clamor, consider this: on June 2, 2007, the Cubs lost their sixth game in a row and sat nine games under .500. The Cubs rebounded the next day with a 10-1 win over Atlanta, but the most memorable moment from that series came the game before when Lou serenaded the umpiring crew with one of his infamous tirades. The move seemingly took the pressure off of the Cubs and acted as a catalyst for the rest of the season. What the catalyst will be in 2009, or if one actually exists, remains uncertain. The point is, despite what happened with the White Sox, this season is far from over.

Welcome to life as a naive Cubs fan. But that's part of the game. It boils down to a combination of numbers and an outrageous amount of faith. Sometimes that's all it takes, an outrageous amount of faith, even when odds that seemingly favor Dusty Baker are stacked against you. Hope, faith, and Old Style.

Mankind has gotten by on worse.