Who`s in first? The Cubs, naturally. No that`s not an Abbott and Costello routine, although there were moments of low comedy Monday night when the Cubs got the jump on the Montreal Expos in the biggest series of the season-so far. ”We`re happy to be in first place, but other than that it doesn`t mean much,” said Greg Maddux after pitching the 5-2 victory that gave the Cubs sole possession of first place in the National League East for the first time since June 24-when the Expos knocked them out of it.
”What it did for us,” insisted first baseman Mark Grace, ”was let us realize we have the ability to beat these guys. They`d been kicking our butts all year; I mean the games haven`t even been close games.”
The largest crowd of the season-39,002-roared with delight as Grace and Ryne Sandberg each hit a two-run homer to give Maddux all the cushion he needed.
Maddux, who went the distance on three days rest, was shaky in the first two innings and trailed 1-0 before the Cubs took the lead for good in the third on Jerome Walton`s triple, Dwight Smith`s single and Grace`s homer.
”I loosened up a bit after we scored some runs,” said Maddux. ”I wasn`t trying to make every pitch a perfect pitch after that.”
”Even so,” mused Cubs manager Don Zimmer, ”he just had a 3-1 lead, and in this park, things can happen quick. I think maybe when Sandberg hit the two-run homer (in the seventh) he can relax a bit and just go after `em.”
Sandberg`s homer, his team-leading 17th, came off reliever Andy McGaffigan.
It didn`t take any extraneous forces to loosen up Montreal starter Pascual Perez, who almost precipitated an ugly incident in the fifth when he threw the ball into the Cubs` dugout after taking a line smash by Walton off his non-pitching arm.
Two baseballs came sailing back out of the Cubs` dugout, followed by Zimmer, who was outraged.
”What if that had hit somebody in the face,” wondered the Cubs`
manager. ”Here you have two good teams playing and everybody`s having fun and you don`t know what this could have caused. Somebody could have gotten hurt.” Nobody got hurt, but crew chief Harry Wendelstedt said Perez would be fined, along with Rick Sutcliffe and Lloyd McClendon, the two Cubs fingered for retaliating.
”I guess he`s crazy,” said Walton, who had three hits to extend his batting streak to 18 games. ”He jumps around on the mound and you never know what he`s going to do.”
Walton`s bat was smoking all night and his leadoff triple in the third was the catalyst for the Cubs. ”The guy`s been outstanding,” marvelled Grace. ”It seems every time you look up, Jerome Walton`s on second or third.”
Every time you looked up Monday night, Perez was hotdogging it. In the first, he spiked the ball behind his back after making a putout at first base, and several times he had the crowd stirred up with his super slo-mo changeup that had the Cubs tied in knots.
But he threw a fastball to Grace in the third and the first baseman tied into it, sending a towering drive to the opposite field that just made it into the left-field seats.
It was one of four homers for the night, the Expos` runs coming on solo shots by Tim Wallach in the second and Tim Raines in the eighth.
Maddux, the first Cub pitcher to try the new four-man rotation, said he was not bothered by the shorter rest period between starts.
”I don`t think it`s going to have any effect,” said the 23-year-old right-hander. ”If it does, it won`t be until after maybe five or six starts. I actually felt better tonight.”
”I asked him in the eighth, `How do you feel? Be honest,` and he said,
`I feel great,` ” reported Zimmer.
The Cubs felt great after beating the Expos for only the third time in 10 games, but ”this one game doesn`t mean anything,” reminded Grace. ”I don`t think this series is going to be for the champiything let`s show we can play with these guys. If we`re going to have any shot in September we have to beat Montreal once in a while.”
