This is not the Cubs Dream Team that Sammy Sosa envisioned at the beginning of spring training.
The 8-15 start is more like a nightmare.
“In spring training I knew we had a great team, but we need to come out here and show it,” Sosa said after the Cubs fell to a season-worst seven games under .500 Sunday.
“One thing I like is that I see guys who haven’t given up yet. Hopefully we’ll pick it up a little more. And sometimes you have to give credit to the other side,” said Sosa, who is batting .318 with eight homers and 13 RBIs.
Sosa remains optimistic that proven sluggers Fred McGriff (.203) and Moises Alou (.154) will eventually return to their career averages.
“Good hitters always are going to make adjustments and try to find a way to get out of jams,” Sosa said.
Getting with the beat: Cubs manager Don Baylor figures his pitchers can help improve the overall team defense by picking up the tempo when they are on the mound.
“That has always been paramount as far as getting the guys off the field, especially when the weather is bad,” Baylor said.
“Let’s not stand out there and throw balls all the time. Let’s get quick outs. You saw it in Jon Lieber’s game (79 pitches Thursday). Lieber won that game.
“But if you’re behind in the count, guys have tendencies to make more errors, not having their heads in the game, throwing to the wrong base, doing all of those things.”
Ever ready: First-round draft pick Mark Prior struck out a Class AA West Tenn team-record 15 batters Saturday night in a 10-1 victory over the Diamond Jaxx at Chattanooga.
In his fifth pro start, Prior allowed one run on three hits and walked two in eight innings. He threw 109 pitches, 75 for strikes. The only run Prior allowed came on a bloop single in the fourth inning by Pete Rose Jr.
Prior (4-1, 2.22 ERA) also hit his first home run, a solo blast off Ben Lowe.
Prior leads the Southern League in strikeouts with 48 in 28 1/3 innings.
Asked his reaction to Prior’s performance, Baylor replied, “He’s not here yet.”
Road test: The Cubs will try to reverse their fortunes on a six-game West Coast trip that begins Tuesday night in San Diego with right-hander Matt Clement (1-2, 4.32 ERA) facing the Padres’ Brian Lawrence (3-1, 2.29).
“It has always been that if you can play on the West Coast” it’s a benchmark, Baylor said. “Normally teams struggle when they go west. Maybe the weather is too nice.”
Doctor’s appointment: Kyle Farnsworth, recovering from a broken foot, will not make the trip.
“The doctors have to see him on Wednesday,” Baylor explained. “The fracture has gotten better. Hopefully he will get clearance sometime next week [to] start throwing.”
Three’s a crowd: Todd Hundley made his first appearance behind the plate since April 13 in Sunday’s second game.
Baylor has played all three catchers–Hundley, Joe Girardi and Robert Machado–because of various injuries.
“When they are healthy, we don’t need three [catchers],” Baylor said.
“But the way the first month has gone, with Todd’s [thumb] injury, we needed three. When we have all three healthy, we probably will end up getting another pitcher.”
