As the Cubs play their final nine games of the regular season starting Friday against the Pirates at Wrigley Field, they cling to the National League Central lead but can ponder what if?
What if they had won some of the games they lost? You know, the ones that got away. How would their lead look now if they had won two or four or six more “winnable” games?
Remember, losses count as much in April as they do in September, even though defeats in the final two weeks are magnified.
Ted Lilly, who pitched well Wednesday night in a dramatic victory over Cincinnati, put it all in perspective. Lilly was talking about himself, but he just as well could have been talking about his team.
“We’re not in May or June anymore,” he said. “I’m not saying those starts aren’t important, but you play this many games and it comes down to this. You look back over the season, you can second-guess a lot of things you did that maybe would have won a game.
“That’s one of the reasons this is such a great game to watch if you’re a baseball fan. You play 153 games, and here we are [in] first.”
Cubs fans might not entirely agree that it was great watching some of the early losses, or even surviving some of the heart-thumping victories. The stress would be much less if the Cubs had taken care of business earlier.
Here, then, are 10 games that slipped away. It is by no means all of them, but it’s a good cross-section of the season’s frustrations.
APRIL 13: Reds 6, Cubs 5
It was Mt. Lou’s first eruption after a meltdown by supposed ace Carlos Zambrano with a 5-0 lead. Oh, and Will Ohman contributed to Lou Piniella’s temper, throwing eight of his nine pitches for balls.
“What the hell do you think isn’t working?” Piniella roared. “You see the damn game. … I can start to see some of the ways this team has lost ballgames.”
It was an early awakening for the new Cubs manager.
“This guy’s your ace,” he said. “You have a 5-0 lead with the eighth and ninth hitters coming up. You feel pretty good about that, and all of a sudden it turns into a six-run inning. And then I bring in the reliever who’s throwing 30- or 40-foot curveballs to boot.”
APRIL 20: Cardinals 2, Cubs 1
A very strange day at Wrigley Field, just one of many this season, that left the Cubs in last place after a key umpire huddle went against them.
It happened in the bottom of the ninth inning with one out and Ronny Cedeno at first base. Not realizing Jacque Jones has been issued ball four, Cedeno ran as if stealing second, but he slid past the base and was called out.
Piniella screamed at umpires behind the dugout after the game but had calmed down by the time he met with reporters.
“They got both plays right,” he said. “We were just exchanging pleasantries in the runway. They told me where their dinner reservations were, and I told them where mine was.”
MAY 12: Phillies 11, Cubs 7
This had a little of everything rolled into one game: The Cubs had two runners thrown out at the plate, stranded eight, botched a suicide squeeze and gave up six two-out runs in the bottom of the seventh after scoring six in the top of the inning.
“How about that for a ballgame?” Piniella said. “Two outs, nobody on, they get six runs. That’s tough to do.”
MAY 14: Mets 5, Cubs 4
Michael Wuertz allowed a two-out single, then walked the next three batters in the ninth inning to force in the winning run, leaving the bullpen with a 2-10 record and seven blown saves in 15 opportunities.
“You know what?” Piniella asked. “I’m going to find out if there are some kids down in Triple A throwing the ball, and maybe that’s the answer — get some different kids in here who can throw the ball. I don’t know what else to say. I’ve tried everybody.”
MAY 27: Dodgers 2, Cubs 1
How about this one? The Dodgers win without putting the bat on the ball in the 11th inning, dropping the Cubs to 2-12 in one-run games.
“Oh, Lord,” an exasperated Piniella said. “Oh, Lord.”
That 11th featured two walks by Angel Guzman, an errant pickoff attempt by Michael Barrett, an intentional walk and, finally, a hit batter by Carlos Marmol that forced home the winning run.
JUNE 2: Braves 5, Cubs 3
One day after Zambrano bloodied Barrett’s face, a frustrated Piniella went ballistic — maybe on purpose — and was ejected in the eighth inning of a game that had been tied 3-3 an inning before. It was the sixth straight loss and 10 in 12 games, and it was ugly as fans littered Wrigley Field.
The Cubs stranded seven runners in a four-inning stretch, pitcher Rich Hill threw a ball into center field, relief pitchers gave up the two go-ahead runs, plus Hill and outfielder Angel Pagan were thrown out at third base with no outs.
“We made some mistakes again,” Piniella said. “We talked about those before. I’m not going talk about those anymore.”
JULY 27: Reds 5, Cubs 4
It could have been an inspirational victory after the Cubs rallied in the ninth for a 4-4 tie. But the potential winning run, Jacque Jones, was thrown out at home on a throw from center fielder Ryan Freel. Jones didn’t slide.
Asked to elaborate, Piniella didn’t pin the blame on Jones.
“Look, it was a bouncing ball, and I just assumed [he would score], nothing more,” Piniella said.
Bob Howry lost his sixth game of the season in the bottom of the ninth on Edwin Encarnacion’s walk-off single.
AUG. 3: Mets 6, Cubs 2
Another failure for closer Ryan Dempster against the Mets, as he ruined a tie game when he gave up four ninth-inning runs. Dempster also blew a game against the Mets on May 17, that one prompting Piniella to consider making Dempster a starter. Boos rained down at Wrigley afterward as the Cubs fell behind the Brewers.
“That’s the way it goes,” Dempster said of the boos. “We’re expected to win, so I’m fine with it.”
Cubs hitters were also to blame, going 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
AUG. 14: Reds 6, Cubs 5
Another Zambrano dud. He allowed six runs on 13 hits and two walks and didn’t strike out a batter, and the Cubs lost when Mike Fontenot’s long fly with two outs in the bottom of the ninth was caught in the vines.
The Cubs’ ninth loss in 12 games dropped them 1 1/2 games behind the Brewers.
“If we’d just go .500, we’d probably have a two- or three-game lead,” Derrek Lee said.
Amen.
As for Zambrano …
“I don’t have any explanation for it,” Piniella said.
SEPT. 11: Astros 5, Cubs 4 (11)
Proving the problems with leaving runners on base was not just an early aberration, the Cubs stranded 15, dropping them a game behind the Brewers.
Dempster lost the game, and the Cubs dropped to 2-8 in extra-inning games.
Asked if he was upset with the approach of his hitters, Piniella roared: “The hell with the approaches. It’s too late to worry about approaches. Worry about results.”
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dvandyck@tribune.com
