10

Ron, we'll miss you here at CMN.

We'll miss you for your play all those years as the BEST third baseman in the NL and the Hall of Famer that you were in our eyes.

We'll miss you as the Cubs every day radio announcer.

We'll miss your endless charity work with JDRF

We'll miss you wearing your heart on your sleeve while calling games.

We'll miss your raw emotion.

We'll miss your chemistry with Pat in the booth.

We'll miss you being the fan in the booth calling the game just as all of us at CMN would if we were in the booth ourselves.

You gave us a reason to tune in even when the Cubs were terrible, year after year.

You gave us a reason to care about the attendance game and root for you vs. Pat.

We'll remember all the years you gave to the Cubs organization as a player and announcer. All years you gave to the fans. All years you gave to the the players.

Most of all Ron, we'll remember and miss you as the friend you came to be to all Cubs fans over the years.

RIP Ronnie.

79

Cubs Win!! Big Night for Aramis Ramirez

What a night for Aramis Ramirez and the Cubs, as they beat Houston 14-7 in another high scoring game. His three, that's right, three home runs and 7 RBI's helped to clobber the Houston Astro's after they gave all of us fans a case of deja vu by scoring 4 runs early in the game. Ramirez wasn't the only Cub having fun tonight, with Starlin Castro, Alfonso Soriano, Geovanny Soto, and Derrek Lee all helping to secure the win tonight.

Of course, all this came on the heels of this afternoon's announcement that "Sweet Lou" Piniella will be retiring from baseball after the season. I know that this season and last season were disappointing for all Cubs fans, and I know that there where many calls for Lou to fired in the first half of this season, but it will be a very sad end to the year when Lou does hang up his hat for good. Go Cubs, let's end this season in the right way, with a ring for Lou and for all of the faithful fans.

81

The Site is Back from Anger Management

Just like big Z, we have gone to therapy and are accepting the situation as it is. We see that the Cubs are 8 1/2 games back with less than 80 games to play. We see that the Cubs have less than a half season to play. We see that the Cubs have an uphill battle. But... The NL won the allstar game, which of course means...

CUBS NEED TO DO IT THIS YEAR!

Don't ask us how. Just ask us why. The Cubs need to do it this year because the home field advantage is with the Cubs in the World Series. The gates have been opened. Let Z lead the way!

97

THE MAGIC HAS BEEN SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY

Cubs take one at the Cell, but have shown that bottom is being hit. I thought the drama of indefinite suspensions ended when Milton Bradley left to Seattle. Nope. I've been wrong.

I'm not sure where this season is going, but the new owners are going to wake up soon. They are sitting with the hand they were dealt and will likely be preparing for their next hand. I see Fukudome leaving shortly for what? no clue. Zambrano is likely a gonner but to where? I hope he takes some time and then reconciles. As I see it today, he's not trade-able. But I thought that with MB and he was traded.

Time to clean house. Let's start working on the team of tomorrow.

104

Offense Comes Out to Play in Cubs Win over A's!

Even though this is an inter-league game, a win is a win, and the Cubs looked great in this win. Ryan Dempster looked good as he pitched into the seventh inning, with 5 consecutive scoreless innings. But, the big moments from this game came from Alfonso Soriano. Yes, that Soriano. The same player that we have all called out for being payed way too much for producing so little on the field gave all Cubs fans a great game (and win) tonight. Not only did he have two RBI's tonight, but Soriano put down a great sacrifice bunt and almost beat out the throw to first. Soriano was hustling, yes hustling, down the line. Go Cubs!!! Now let's beat the Oakland A's tomorrow.

107

Cubs Win With Outstanding Pitching

For the record, the inter-league games are not our favorite games here at Cubs Magic Number, but the great pitching performance by Ted Lilly is one reason why the crosstown rivalry will never die. Lilly's near no-hitter could not have come at a better time for the southpaw, especially since he has been on the losing end of his last games (to be fair, most of those games were lost by the poor offensive production). Once again, the offense for the Cubs has decided to take a break, and therefore the pitchers are being asked to steer the team in the winning direction. Now, I know it is the year of the pitcher, but come on Cubs... we, the fans need to see some effort put forth for hitting and scoring.

115

Veteran Hitter's Bring The Win!!

Veteran hitters started showing some signs of life tonight in the Cubs 8-5 win over Houston. Marlon Byrd and Derrek Lee broke their slumps with some hits, and Aramis Ramirez looked like the Aramis Ramirez of the past with his power, including the home run off of Roy Oswalt in the second inning. One of the bright spots so far in the year has been the young guns for the Cubs, and tonight Tyler Colvin kept that shining moment going with his home run. Hey hey, look at Colvin's batting average standing strong at .300.

Go Cubs and Hawks!!

117

Cubs continue to have trouble with Pittsburgh which they need to turn around starting today. They're 6 games out, in 3rd place and it's officially June. You can't argue that it's still early in the season.

Ramirez is still doing terrible. Theriot, Lee & Byrd are all fighting slumps (you could argue Lee's been a slump all season) and our starting pitching suddenly looks quite vulnerable.

Well, at least the Blackhawks are up 2-0 over the Flyers and are 2 wins away from their first championship since 1961 when the NHL season was done by mid-April.

Go Hawks and Cubs!!

119

Carlos Silva Brings the Win!

This game belonged to Carlos Silva, and what a game. Silva is now 7-0. At this point in the season, I would have thought the other Carlos (Zambrano) would have been the better starting pitcher, not Silva. But, we will be seeing Big Z starting in Pittsburgh, and most likely we will be seeing some new faces coming up from Iowa to help out in the bull pen. Exciting stuff Cubs fans, now let's see if these moves bring us those much needed wins. As for the hitting, it was nice to see Mike Fontenot with those beautiful triples, and hit in nearly the exact same spot. Ryan Dempster takes the mound tomorrow for the Cubs.

GO BLACKHAWKS!!! It is a great time to be a Chicago sports fan.

120

Cubs come through with a BIG RBI double by Colvin in the 8th. Combined with Lilly's 3 hit shut out over 7 innings, the Cubs are able to take 2 of 3 from the Dodgers! Good thing Lou put Colvin in LF as part of the double switch in the 8th. A hairy pitching appearance by Marshall in the 8th is still enough to get the job done while Aramis gets a much needed day off and hopefully will be back in the lineup by Friday.

Bring on the Red Birds!!

Go Cubs!

121

Cubs shut out the opener with Dodgers 3-0. Dempster pitched a gem (and finally got a W for it) and D Lee showed signs of snapping out of his slump by knocking in all 3 RBI with a HR. Meanwhile the Cubs are now only 4 games in back of the slumping Cards and surging Reds. Looks like the NL Central is shaping up to be a good race this year.

Let's see Cubs, D Lee & Gorzelanny repeat that performance again on Wed. night!

Go Cubs!

123

Cubs are coming off a nice road trip and are starting to play some good ball. Let's hope it continues into this week's home stand. Carlos Silva continue to be surprisingly affective earning Hendry at least one A+ for this past off season's work in having traded him for MB. Check out Dave Kaplan's assessment of the Cubs here for more.

130

Nice extra inning W last night despite the blown save. The mighty Cardinals have fallen and the Cubs, as of today, are chasing the Reds. Time for them to start winning and make good on Marlon Byrd's guarantee.

Cubs go for the sweep today. Yes, it's a two game series, but a sweep's a sweep!

Go Cubs!

134

Cubs beat the fish to stave off a sweep at home. May has not be too kind to the Cubbies. They need to step it up soon before being out of contention for the division by June.

Let's Go Cubs!

138

Hey Kid, Welcome to the Big Leagues!

What a great night! Starlin Castro was the big "star" of the evening as he lived up to all the hype that we Cubs fans have been hearing about. What a night, 6 runs batted in, and to start of his night, he gave us all a great show with a three-run-home run. Carlos Silva looked decent again last night as he logged his third win, but overall, Starlin Castro was the hottest Cub last night.

141

Cardinals drop to Philly in the 10th. Cubs lost a close one in Pitts.

142

Home stand was a good stand. Off to Pitts.

143

Cubs with a strong come from behind win against the DBacks. Finally, rubber game, on now. Go Cubs!

144

CUBS WIN!!

What a great rebound game for the Cubs, especially after yesterday's horrible performance. It was nice to see some great home run love for Alfonso Soriano and Kosuke Fukudome. The back-to-back-jacks from Geovany Soto and Marlon Byrd also looked great for the Cubs hitters. If only those seagulls started attacking the Arizona Diamondbacks, like in the Alfred Hitchcock movie "The Birds."

Updated to 144, Cardinals lost to the Reds.

146

Crazy wind and a walk off walk in the 10th all add up to a Cubs W.

Hawks also win to advance past Nashville. Good night for Chicago sports!

147

CUBS SWEEP THE BREW CREW!!!

Oh what a glorious day. The Cubs have once again won, sweeping the Milwaukee Brewers at Milwaukee. The bats were alive once more, giving Randy Wells more than enough support for his wonderful outing. Great pitching and hitting, am I dreaming? Now, let's see the Cubs keep this up at home, as well as on the road, and let's take care of our competition in our division.

148

Cubs win again in Milwaukee. Sweep possible today. GO CUBS!

150

CUBS WIN, CUBS WIN, CUBS WIN!!!

Yes Cubs fans, it feels like any Cubs win this early in the season must be cheered and trumpeted to the highest rafters. We here at Cubs Magic Number have heard and seen the anguish and anger in all Cubs fans across the country, and we know that one win is not going to calm the fears, so let us begin the debate of what should be done for our beloved team.

By now we know that one of the most consistent pitchers that we have had in the last two years is going to be back and starting for us tomorrow night. That is right, Ted Lilly is back, but is he ready to start? His minor league games were great and Lilly himself was quoted as saying that he feels ready and that he is locating his pitches. But let's be realistic, he just had shoulder surgery. Granted, Lilly is a workhorse and will make sure his body is ready to go, but should Lou Piniella push him so fast? At this point, having a solid and consistent starting pitcher would be nice, and maybe Lilly will have a good effect on all of the the pitching staff. As for the starters, Ryan Dempster looked great again in tonight's game, and Carlos Silva has looked great recently. Tom Gorzelanny and Randy Wells have been decent, but they have not gotten the run support and bullpen support they need, and "Big Z" is helping the bullpen (and himself) by taking a little hiatus from the starting ace position and bringing some love to the 'pen. What a crazy move. How many starting ace's are moved to the bullpen, and at the beginning of the season? Let's hope that Lou's move pays off.

Our hitters also got something going tonight. Kosuke Fukudome and Tyler Colvin homered, and Ryan Theriot and Derrek Lee got some RBI action. Maybe it will be okay if the Cubs keep hitting against our opponents in the Central Division (we will forget our home stand against the Houston Astros). It is frustrating however, when the Cubs can't bring their batting strength against teams that were absolutely pitiful last year (hello, did we forget that the New York Mets are horrible or have they rebuilt that quickly?). Whatever way you look at it, the Cubs hitters need to get going. Yes it is still early in the season, but if we do nothing now, then the Cubs should just throw in the towel. Let's see if the Cubs can bring their bats out again tomorrow night against the tricky Brew Crew. Go Cubs!

152

Big Z to the bullpen and Soriano hits a triple sparking the dormant Cubs offense! Are these the first signs that the apocalypse is upon us?

153

Cubs can't seem to win, but at least the Cards finally lost.

154

Cubs can't be dropping 2 of 3 to Houston at home. Need to pick it up.

155

Yes. Good game.

156

* Update *

Astros finally win a game, Cardinals lose. Number Drops. Too bad the Cubs could not pull off a rally.

Now back to Wednesday's post:

WOW! Big time come back for the Cubbies today! Hats off to Theriot & Fukudome with back to back clutch hits in the 8th. Off to a great home stand.

Remember to submit your pictures of opening day. Here's our first: Jim, Wayne Messmer and Marc enjoying the best opening day weather we can remember here at CMN before the first pitch.

Go Cubs!

157

Hey, Hey!!! Cubs Win Another Close Game!

Let the talking (some would say arguing) begin. This game was not very pretty for the Cubs, but we saw some great hitting in the bottom of the 8th inning to take the game away from the Milwaukee Brewers with a 7-6 win.

Once again, some bad defensive plays by Alfonso Soriano made this game a stomach churner, but thankfully, Lou Piniella made the great decision to make the double switch which bought in rookie Tyler Colvin. Is it time to bring up the kids from the minors? Maybe, but when we needed the older players to bring in their experience, Kosuke Fukudome and Ryan Theriot did just that. However, every baseball "expert" has said that the Brewers have the offensive power punch to give the St. Louis Cardinals a run for their money, but so far, the Cubs have managed to keep power hitters like Prince Fielder at bay.

As for the pitching, Randy Wells looked good, until Rickie Weeks adjusted to his pitches. The bull-pen looked shaky once again, but at least they didn't look as bad as Latroy Hawkins. It's nice to not see Hawking in a Cubs uniform anymore. With Ted Lilly getting ready to rehab in the minors, let's hope the bull-pen can hold on until Lilly can come back to his starting role and either Carols Silva or Tom Gorzelanny can give some much needed help to the bull-pen.

Bring out the brooms, Cubs fans. Hopefully, the bats and the pitching will propel the Cubs to another win tomorrow. Oh, and let's hope there are no more defensive errors.

158

Cubs Win! Welcome Home!

Ah, spring time is finally here in the Chicago area. Yes fans, baseball is back, and the Cubs are starting their home stay off right with a nice win over the Milwaukee Brewers, with the final score of 9-5. It did get a little scary with the 3-run homer by Ryan Braun in the 5th inning, but we saw some great pitching today by Ryan Dempster. Once again Carlos Marmol looked great in the 9th, and thank the baseball gods that the Cubs bullpen didn't look like they have over the last six games.

Alright fans, seven games are now in the books, and the Cubs are finally putting their bats to good use. So, if you make it out to Wrigley during this home stay, cheer our Cubbies on to some powerful wins. As always, we here at Cubs Magic Number would love to see some pictures, and if you have some quality opening day shots, send it to us with a description of what's going on in the photo and who happens to be in the photo. Go Cubs!

160

CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN!

Well, didn't see much of the game today because the weather was so beautiful in Chicago. Marmol was looking good. Jeff Baker with the pinch hit go ahead run. That's what we call nice.

No more losses to the Reds please. Come home .500!

161

CUBS WIN!

We're off to the races. Shut out! Cubs to avoid the sweep! Great outing by Wells tonight and Byrd has his 2nd homer for the series. Marmol with the (nerve racking) save! Cubs have a win under their belt.

I will admit after last night's fall behind and lose by one, I was getting ready to become a pessimist. No way does this team have the pitching or fielding or whatever you can think of... I listened to David Kaplan on WGN720 after Wednesday's game and he reminded me and the several irrational callers: "It's only been two games. The panic button is not necessary yet (wait for 10 Ls in a row)".

In 2008, the Cubs dropped their first two games at home against the Brewers. The Cubs weren't off to a great start. But they ended up winning 97 games.

Anyways, it is early. This team has potential. They are in a tough division, but hey. That's what this is all about. Nothing will come easy.

Baseball in April is always fun. Go Cubs!

163

Let the season begin! Be sure to check back here daily for your updated Cubs Magic Number all season long. Go Cubs!

8

Congrats Andre Dawson, HOF 2010!

We'll be back shortly with more posts.