Not only has Cub first baseman Leon Durham lifted his batting average to .290 with 15 homers, but the Bull has sparkled defensively.
Durham, who has hit successfully in 17 of his last 20 games, made three diving stops that prevented extra-base hits during the Houston series.
”Durham looks very comfortable around the bag this season and he has done a very good job,” said manager Jim Frey.
— The Cubs will go on a commercial flight from O`Hare to St. Louis Thursday afternoon for the first time this year. Steve Engel (1-2) will oppose Danny Cox (14-8) in Thursday night`s strike makeup game in St. Louis.
— Cub third baseman Ron Cey left Wednesday`s game after the fifth inning, complaining of a migraine headache and blurred vision.
”I`ve had this problem in the past,” said Cey. ”There`s just not much you can do. I`ve had a headache for the last couple of days. When I ran from first to third on the last out it really went out of focus. When you can`t see it`s obviously the time to go.
”I had this problem once last year, too. Usually the best thing to do is take some medication and lie down. Usually in about an hour it goes away. I feel better now. Hopefully that will be the end of that.”
— Wednesday`s crowd of 9,136 was the second smallest of the year in Wrigley Field.
— Dennis Eckersley is scheduled to start Saturday`s game against the Reds and throw approximately 50 pitches. Jay Baller will take over for Eckersley.
— The Cubs` public relations office is scrambling to make preparations for the national media influx for the Reds` series that begins Friday. Pete Rose will have an opportunity to break Ty Cobb`s hit record in Wrigley Field. — A reminder that Saturday`s game has been switched to a 12:20 p.m. start.
— The Cubs` Class A Winston-Salem team defeated Lynchburg 7-3 and leads 2-0 in their best-of-five playoff series. Left-fielder Jim Dickerson of Winston-Salem has a league-high 28 homers.
Peoria of the Midwest League beat Beloit 7-2 in the first of the best- of-three playoffs Tuesday. But Beloit rebounded to win Game 2 Wednesday 9-2.
