On a perfect Tuesday evening for baseball at the A-Diamond last night, the Dodgers and Cubs got together to start Phase 2 of the regular season. The game followed a big upset in the 62+ Playoffs. The 6th seeded Reds upended the number 2nd-seeded Yankees, in the early game, and the Dodgers were intent on making it "Double Upset" night.
They jumped on Cubs' starter, Mike Girard, right away. Joe Careccia led off with an infield single, followed by a Marc Trinchillo walk and a Dennis Lane single that loaded the bases with no outs. Girard got an infield pop up before Jim Bradley lined a 2-RBI single down the 3rd baseline. Girard was able to get a grounder to second and a strike out to get out of the jam without further damage, but the Dodgers felt good about their chances after their first trip to the plate.
The Cubs answered right back, in the bottom of the first. Carlos Espada singled and stole second. Chris Dunn's ground out to second moved Espada to 3rd, and Girard brought him home with a RBI single. Dodgers 2 - Cubs 1, at the end of one inning.
Girard got 3 up and 3 down in the second with the help of a sharp double play after a lead off single by Don Ball. The Cubs' offense backed their hurler with a big rally in the bottom half of the second inning. Jim Bonaparte led off with a walk and PJ Martone blasted a long double to the fence in right center field. After Jon Atwell got a harmless ground out to short, Paul Miles singled and Matt Miles walked. After another infield out, Dunn reached on an error, and Girard doubled down the right field line, scoring 2. Jerry Rosen followed with a single and suddenly the Cubs' were owners of a 6-run rally and a 7-2 lead.
The Dodgers showed a ton of heart with a rally of their own, in the top of the 3rd inning. Careccia led off with a long double, followed by a RBI single from Trinchillo. After a Dennis Lane fielder's choice and a Cub's error, the Dodger's had crept to within 3 runs at 7-4.
For the next 3 innings, Girard faced only one over the minimum. He grazed Don Ball with a pitch in the 4th; and gave up another single to Trinchillo, who was erased on a 1-4-3 double play in the 5th. In the meantime, the Cubs bats were just getting going. They used 3 wallks (Mike Reutter, Bonaparte, and Ron Massaroni); two singles (Espada and Rosen); along with a loud double by Ron Lochner to score 4 in the bottom of the 5th, to expand the lead to 11-4.
The Cubs would eventually walk it off in the bottom of the 6th (due to the 10-run rule). Matt Miles reached on an error, to get the ball rolling. Espada singled him to 3rd, and Dunn plated him with another single. With runners on first and 3rd and one out, Girard took the first pitch allowing Dunn to steal second, then he drilled the second pitch to right center to plate Espada and Dunn, and the cooler session had begun. Cubs win 14-4. They keep their hold on first place with the win. Girard got the win, pitching 6 innings, allowing 4 runs (3 earned), scattering 7 hits, 1 walk, and 1 hit batter, while striking out 5, in his 6 innings of work. He and Espada led the Cubs' offense offense with 3 hits each. Jerry Rosen added a pair of hits, while Dunn, Lochner, Martone, McQuade and Paul Miles all added hits of their own.
The Dodgers' offense was led by Carreccia and Trinchillo, who had two hits each, while Lane, Bradley, and Ball each added singles.
The Cubs have two weeks off until they renew their rivalry with the Yanks on Tuesday 09/02; and with the Whiz Kids on Monday 09/08; both at the A-Diamond and both at 5:00 pm. These two important games will conclude the regular season and will have a lot to say about the seeding entering the playoffs. Don't miss it!
-- Edited by mgirard11 on Wednesday 20th of August 2025 01:59:59 PM
