Recap: Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati
Sports Network | August 21, 2008
Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - Carlos Zambrano was brilliant on the hill and helped his own cause with a home run as Chicago edged Cincinnati, 3-2, in the rubber match of a three-game set at Wrigley Field.
Zambrano (13-5) allowed just one run on six hits in seven innings for the NL Central-leading Cubs, who have won three of their last four games and eight of 10. Mark DeRosa added a homer and Ryan Theriot finished 2-for-4 for Chicago.
Jay Bruce and Joey Votto both homered for the Reds, who have dropped four of their past six encounters.
Josh Fogg (2-6) surrendered three runs on four hits in four innings en route to the loss and is now in the midst of a six-outing winless skid.
The Cubs grabbed the early lead with a run in the first. Alfonso Soriano led off with a walk and quickly went to third on Theriot's single before crossing the plate when Derrek Lee grounded into a 6-4-3 double play.
Chicago added a run in the second after DeRosa turned on a Fogg fastball and crushed it over the wall in left for a solo homer, his 15th of the year.
Zambrano made it a 3-0 game in the third by leading off the frame with his fourth homer of the season.
The Reds finally got to Zambrano in the sixth after Bruce belted a one-out solo homer to right-center, his 13th on the year.
Votto tightened things up even further with two outs in the eighth when he crushed a Carlos Marmol offering onto Sheffield Avenue to make it a one-run game, 3-2.
After Marmol managed to get Edwin Encarnacion to line out to end the eighth, Kerry Wood came on to record a 1-2-3 ninth to secure things and pick up his 26th save for the Cubs.
Seven of Votto's 15 home runs this season have come against the Cubs...Marmol was working on a 16-inning scoreless streak when he gave up the homer to Votto...Zambrano set the Cubs franchise record for most home runs in a season by a pitcher with four...Zambrano is 7-1 at Wrigley this year and is 14-9 against the Reds in his career...The Cubs have now won seven consecutive series.
