For most of the last six months, Sammy Sosa has put the Cubs on his back and carried them into playoff contention.
But in the final week of the season, with Sosa in his worst slump of 1998, it may be up to the rest of the team to finish the job.
Terry Mulholland was up to the task Tuesday night, throwing eight strong innings in the Cubs’ 5-2 victory over the Brewers that moved them back into a tie for the wild-card lead with the New York Mets. Each club has four games left.
New York lost 5-3 to the Montreal Expos at Shea Stadium, giving the Cubs an opportunity they couldn’t afford to pass up.
“We got a break tonight,” Cubs manager Jim Riggleman said, referring to the Expos’ triumph.
Sosa went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts, remaining two home runs behind Mark McGwire 65-63 in the Great Home Run Chase. In his last five games, Sosa is 0 for 21 with eight strikeouts. On Tuesday, it didn’t matter.
“That’s why it’s a team,” said Lance Johnson, who had two hits, including his second home run in two games. “We have to dig deep down and pick him up because he has picked us up all year. That would make it really special.”
Mulholland (6-5) gave the Cubs what they desperately needed. He shut out the Brewers through the first seven innings, finishing his eight-inning stint with one run on six hits, with four strikeouts and one walk.
After complaining earlier in the year about being relegated to the bullpen, Mulholland escaped in the nick of time. But there were no “I told you so’s” from Mulholland afterward.
“I’m just trying to get us to the playoffs,” he said. “That talk serves no purpose right now, to try and settle that issue. There’s four games left. All I care about is those four games.”
Rod Beck came on in the ninth and gave up a leadoff home run to Jeromy Burnitz and singles to Marquis Grissom and Brian Banks. But just after the pro-Cubs crowd of 52,287 let out a huge cheer after the Mets-Expos score was posted, Beck struck out Bob Hamelin to end the game with runners on second and third.
“We’re back to controlling our own fate,” Beck said. “This is fun. This is what you dream about–bottom of the ninth, two outs, World Series, seventh game. We’re not there yet. But this is about as close as you can come at this point of the season.”
Mulholland has won both of his starts since moving into the rotation last week in San Diego. In five starts he’s 3-0 with a 1.42 earned-run average. Since Kerry Wood left with a sore elbow after his Aug. 31 start, the only other Cubs starters to win games are Kevin Tapani (three), Mulholland (two) and Mark Clark (one).
“You’re my idol,” Beck said to Mulholland.
The Cubs have four road games remaining, but they have turned into road warriors over the last six weeks after being roadkill for all of ’97 and most of ’98. The Cubs are 14-8 in their last 22 road games. They were 24-31 on the road after St. Louis completed a sweep Aug. 7-9.
Sosa scored the first run on Mickey Morandini’s sacrifice fly to short center in the second–and put a large scare into the Cubs. When Sosa slid into the plate just ahead of Grissom’s throw, catcher Bobby Hughes’ shinguard slammed into him. Sosa lay on the ground for a minute or so, but eventually walked to the dugout.
Scott Servais’ run-scoring single made it 2-0,and Glenallen Hill and Morandini drove in runs in the third to make it 4-0. Johnson capped the Cubs’ scoring with his homer in the fourth.
The only suspense left came when a fan ran onto the field and got down on his knees in front of Sosa, saluting him before being carted off the field.
“I said, `Oh, my God, unbelievable,’ ” Sosa said. “He said, `You’re the man.’ “
But Tuesday night in Milwaukee, Mulholland was the Man.
