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Cubs drop three straight to struggling crew

By Tony Rusch




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The Cubs completed their double-header against Milwaukee last night with two obnoxiously loud CLUNKS in the loss column. The two L's drop the Cubs to 48-58 which places them a mere 2.5 games above the Brewers who are currently warming the floor in last place.

Carlos Villanueva took the mound in game one of the double-header Wednesday afternoon to face off against Milwaukee ace Yovani Gallardo. Rookie sensation Jean Segura drew the game's first blood with a fourth-inning solo blast to put the Brewers up 1-0.

The lead quickly changed in the fifth when Yovani Gallardo exited the game with an apparent hamstring injury. The Cubs took advantage of the pitching change when Villanueva started a chain of four consecutive RBI singles off of a struggling John Axeford to put the Cubs up 5-1.

However, the lead would shift again.The loveable losers imploded in the seventh inning when James Russell served up a game-tying, three-run bomb to Khris Davis and later a go-ahead RBI double to Jean Segura. The Cubs failed to cross the plate in the final two innings and Milwaukee's Jim Henderson sealed the deal with his thirteenth save of the season.

Much of the talk surrounding game two of the double-header involved Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta who was recently acquired from the Baltimore Orioles in a trade for pitcher Scott Feldman and catcher Steve Clevenger. Arrieta, who was the opening day starter for the Orioles just two years ago, has struggled this season and came into Tuesday's game with an ERA over 7.00. He would take on Brewers newcomer Tyler Thornburg for his debut at the Friendly Confines.

Despite concerns of his early season struggles, Arrieta posted a solid start giving up only two hits (one of which was a Juan Francisco solo-shot in the fifth) and recording two strikeouts over six innings pitched. The Cubs finally got on the board in the seventh inning when David DeJesus knocked in a two-run double to give the Cubs a 2-1 lead. True to form, game two ended with just more of the same as Cubs fans watched Kevin Gregg blow his third save of the season after Milwaukee's Jeff Bianchi slapped a bases-loaded, two-tun single off the glove of a diving Starlin Castro in the top of the ninth. Henderson was clutch again in the bottom of the inning recording his 14th save for the crew.

Despite the absence of the now-controversial Ryan Braun, the Brewers still managed to outscore the Cubs 14-7 over the past three games which has proven sufficient for three W's. The Cubs starting pitching can only be held accountable for five of those runs, leaving the remaining nine on the shoulders of the bullpen. The culprits, however, are surprising. Pedro Strop, who had an ERA of 0.00 entering Monday's game, was primarily responsible for the five-run meltdown in game one of the series and Gregg, who has been statistically fantastic since rejoining the club, blew last night's save opportunity (Watch highlights from Arrieta's start here).

The Cubs entered the series Monday coming off a successful west coast road trip (6-4) to face a Brewers side that had only won two games in its last seven. Despite their recent slide, the Brewers look to sweep the series tonight against their division rivals. The Cubs' three-game skid comes at no surprise, however. Simply put, the Brewers have had the Cubs number for a while now. After yesterday's victories the crew now posts a  commanding 8-3 record in the 2013 season series with the Cubs.

Edwin Jackson will look to continue his recent success when he takes the mound tonight against Milwaukee's Willy Peralta. The keys to tonight's game are contingent on whether or not the Cubs can somehow patch up their leaky bullpen and kickstart their struggling bats.