National League Division Series Game 2: Cubs 4, Diamondbacks 8
0-for-Arizona
Box Score, Play by Play, Photos
W - Davis, getting the heck out of Arizona. L - Lilly, 8 hours of sleep. Series stands 2-0 Diamondbacks Things to Take from This Game 1. Body Snatchers Davis pitched like Lilly, and Lilly pitched like Davis. Lilly didn't have command of anything, was continually battling back from behind in the count, while Davis was getting ahead (with some help from the Cubs batters) and racking up a lot of strikeouts. Just pretty clear, pretty early, which pitcher was going to have the easier time of it. 2. Trading Homers in the 2nd Soto gave the Cubs a 2-0 lead on a home run, but Chris Young came back with a bomb of a 3-run home run in the bottom half of the inning. Byrnes also tripled in a run that inning. 3. Augie Ojeda vs. the World. Ojeda is threatening to outhit Soriano, Lee and Ramirez combined. Two more hits, including an RBI single that also took Eyre out of the game with an owwie finger. 4. Need Coffee. I think this game must have set some sort of record for 3-2 counts. Wood finally came in and threw strikes, gets some quick outs. Dempster also pitched a quick inning. But wow, other than that, lots of long at bats and base-runners all night. Not much to analyze with this game. Lilly got hit hard, and while the Cubs had a runner on base every inning, the hitters repeatedly failed to convert them into sustained rallies. But it's a best of five series, not a best of 3, and we have at least one more game to enjoy. The time-for-bed details, below. Game Recap Inning 1 - Top- TNT interrupts "A Time to Kill" in order to bring us another cheesey promo for game 2 of the series. I'd rather watch A Time to Kill.
- And we get to hear the broadcasters do the second-guessing Lou game.
- Davis throws strike one called to Soriano.
- Soriano rips a fastball directly back to the screen, foul, 0-2. Didn't fool him.
- Wow, does Davis have a deliberate motion from the windup.
- Soriano K's swinging at a big curve in the dirt. Ball gets away, thrown out at first. Soriano with terrible pitch selection on that one.
- Theriot lines a 1-2 pitch into left for a single. Sinker that got elevated just a bit.
- Can hear the Cubs starting a "let's go cubbies" chant, and the AZ organ starts up a beat to get the fans to respond with "let's go D-backs."
- Davis working hard to keep Theriot close to first.
- Lee hits a slow roller to Ojeda, who shovels to Drew (just as Theriot is running past Ojeda) for the force. Drew's throw back to first is high, causing Jackson to have to leap off the bag. Lee safe at first, now 2 outs.
- Ramirez K's swinging.
- 3-1 count on Young. Lilly loses him with a fastball that's two feet high.
- Lilly comes back to K Drew on the hard curve. Haven't really seen the Lillyhammer yet.
- Lilly really has Young fooled at first over his legkick.
- The graphic that TBS/TNT uses to show gradations in leads off from first, from not stealing to stealing, is ridiculous. The outer third of their lead off range is so far off of first base, I don't think I've ever seen a runner stray that far from the bag on their normal lead
- Bizarre non-play. 3-2 count, Young tries to steal. It's called ball four, but Young recognizes that Soto's throw down to the bag would have him dead to rights, and so he hit the breaks and was running back to first, thinking it was a strikeout. Upshot is, runners on 1 and 2, 1 out, Lilly struggling with command.
- Jackson hits a chopper to Derosa, who gets a high bounce, does a slightly awkward shovel to Theriot, throwing off the timing. Theriot's throw is just a bit low, getting to Lee's glove at almost the exact moment that it also hits the dirt. Lee can't quite handle it, dropping it, and Jackson safe at first. Young to third. Two outs.
- Reynolds up. Goes to a full count, as Lilly continues to struggle wtih the fastball. He also still seems to be avoiding the big slow curve, favoring the hard one instead.
- NEARLY gets a strikeout on the slow curve, Reynolds just does get a piece of it.
- Gets Reynolds swinging at a fastball, 2 stranded, 26 pitches for Lilly in the first. But no harm done.
- Just saw the full LouPa Aquafina commercial for the first time. It's great.
- Murton chops a slow curve towards shallow third. Reynolds tries for the bare-hand, can't make it. Murton would have been safe, anyways. Leadoff single.
- Soto hits a pretty lame fastball down the middle, gets it into the first or second row in left field. 2-run HR. Can hear the fans cheering. On the radio, Santo is screaming and hollering like there's no tomorrow. The TBS broadcasters are acting like we've gone a week without getting a base hit, until this.
- Derosa K's looking
- Nice AB by Jones, a 4 pitch walk.
- Two foul bunts from Soto.
- Lilly K's on another foul bunt. Not happy with himself, he really does take his ABs seriously.
- Soriano K's swinging. Yet Again. 2-0 Cubs
- Snyder singles back up the middle.
- Full count, Upton walks.
- Ojeda K's looking at a slider on the outside corner.
- Davis bunts towards third, the ball gets under Lilly's glove, as he came in too far and couldn't readjust. Ramirez comes in and gets Davis at first, Derosa covering. Runners move up to 2 and 3, two outs for Young.
- 3-2 fastball to Chris Young, middle to outer third and up in the zone. Young hits it out maybe 20 rows up into the left field stands. 3 run HR, 3-2 D-backs. Lilly whips his glove into the ground, in disgust.
- Drew hits one up the middle, just to the right of second base. Theriot gets to it, gets a bad hop, juggles it, off-balance throw, Drew easily safe.
- Lilly really hasn't found the command of any of his pitches.
- Is the home plate ump mic'ed up? Can hear him yell "ball that's outside."
- Lilly gets another fastball up and over the plate, and Byrnes hits it off of the top of the left field wall. Soriano leapt for it, misjudging and missing, and the ball then hops over Jones who was backing up perhaps too closely. Jones throws it in, airmailing home plate, but Byrnes stays at third. Drew scores, 4-2
- Kevin Hart warming up.
- Jackson given a 3-0 green light, swings, and grounds out 5-3. Odd call, there.
- This game isn't going to be over until way past my bedtime.
- Theriot grounds a high fastball to Ojeda at second, one out.
- Lee flails at a fastball on the outside corner for strike 2. How are we making this chump look so... adequate?
- This chump bounces a breaking pitch about 10 feet in front of the plate. (Lee doesn't swing.)
- Lee takes a curve outside for a walk.
- After looping a liner foul that Jackson couldn't get to, Ramirez pops another one foul. This time, Jackson sort of gives up on it to let Ojeda take it, but Ojeda overruns it, tries to slide to stop his momentum and reach back for it, but fails. Ramirez stays alive.
- Ramirez lines out to Drew at short. Tries to double off Lee, but Lee gets back.
- Murton chops to third, force at second.
- Reynolds gets jammed by a fastball, fights it off for a single to right.
- Snyder hits a sharp two-hopper to Theriot's right, he makes a very nice scoop, a jump-twist-throw to Derosa, who grabs the slightly low throw, and passes it on to first for a very impressive 6-4-3.
- And Soto with a nice backhanded catch of a popup foul, by the protective screen. Really needed that inning.
- Soto K's swinging at a slow curve from Davis.
- Derosa reaches for another slow curve on an 0-2 count, hits it sharply up the middle. Drew sort of dives early for it, the ball rolls into his already-dived (doven?) outstretched glove, he gets up and throws out Derosa.
- And now Jones grounds one to Drew, it bounces off his glove, and Jones gets an infield hit.
- Lilly up, and is showing bunt! Two outs, he tries to sort of drag bunt. Not much to recommend his effort.
- Another slow curve, for strike 3 called. That's 7 K's on the game for Davis so far, and he's winning the battle of the slow curves.
- Ojeda pushes a bunt up the first base line. Lee has to come in for it, and lunges for Ojeda as he's running up the line. Ojeda dives head-first for the bag, but as he does so, takes a couple of steps outside of the second chalk line, the one to the right of the foul line. Lee can't reach him (Lee's body is clearly in the middle of the base lane, and so when Ojeda moves himself out of Lee's reach, it pretty much has to be proof that he's gone beyond the lane.) Lou comes out to object, briefly, but Ojeda stays at first. Lee comes up from the play a bit shaken up, but stays in the game
- Davis strikes out, whiffing on the bunt attempt
- Why does TBS think it's a good idea to interview Lou in the middle of an inning in the middle of a game that his team is losing? Good grief.
- Young walks. 4 walks by Lilly, and when he's missing, he's missing by wide margins.
- Runners on 1 and 2 for Drew. Hart warming up, again.
- Rothschild finally comes out for a visit.
- 2-2 count after Drew guesses fastball and gets something offspeed, but next pitch Drew lines into the right field corner. Stand-up triple. 6-2 D-backs
- Kevin Hart in.
- 3-0 to Byrnes, battles back to 3-2 count. Strikes Byrnes out swinging on a fastball.
- Another 3-2 count, and Jackson K's looking at a slider on the outsider corner. Or at least in the proximity of the outside corner. Nice work by Hart to leave a runner on third when coming in with one out.
- Soriano one-hops one off the wall in left. A hard hit ball, and Byrnes makes a nice play, and with Soriano's legs, and a four run deficit, he makes a wide turn at first but holds.
- From 1-2, Theriot battles back to 3-2.
- Theriot lines one to deep left, Byrnes catches it on the warning track. I thought it was getting out. Nuts.
- 2-0 count to Lee, and he pops to very shallow center, where Drew catches it. Davis is sharp, for Davis, but we're making him look even better.
- 3-1 count to Ramirez, Davis now starting to regularly get behind in the count
- And Ramirez winds up striking out reaching for a curve. Good grief.
- Hart walks Reynolds on a 3-2 count. This game must be on pace to break a record for 3-2 counts.
- Snyder flies to Murton. God, this game is taking forever. I have school tomorrow.
- Wild pitch, Reynolds takes second. Just only a couple of feet away from Soto, who actually made a nice block on it.
- Upton Walks.
- Hart comes out, Eyre in.
- Eyre gets ahead of Ojeda 0-2, Ojeda battles back, and lines a shot past Eyre, who tries to bare-hand it, just knicking him. Gets through to center, for an RBI, runners on 1 and 3. Augie F'ing Ojeda. 7-2.
- Eyre appears to have hurt a finger from trying to grab the Ojeda single.
- Wuertz in.
- Davis with a great bunt, maybe 12 feet in front of home plate. Lee is right on top of it, shovels to Soto, but Soto is out in front of the plate, and Upton would have scored either way. Not sure if Lee had a play at first on Davis - as hard as he was charging, it would have been a tough turn around and throw. 8-2
- Young K's, and Drew grounds out, and we're out of the inning. Mercifully.
- Murton flies to right
- Soto hits a nice long shot to right-center, Upton catches it at the warning track, maybe 15 feet to the right of the (right-centerish) 413 sign. Nice running catch.
- Derosa gets a walk. We've had a baserunner ever inning.
- And Jones walks on a 3-2 curve. Two on, two outs.
- Cedeno in to pinch hit for Wuertz
- Cruz in.
- Ward now in to hit for Cedeno.
- Full count, Ward lines one off the very bottom of the wall in center, just to the right of the (other, more left-centerish) 413 sign. Two runs score on the double. 8-4
- Multiple Choice: Soriano...
- K's swinging
- K's flailing
- K's to end the inning
- All of the above
- Wood in.
- Wood K's Byrnes, 96 mph on the corner. 97 on the previous (Prior?) pitch.
- Murton makes a nice running catch on a line drive by Jackson.
- Reynolds flies softly to Murton. Mercifully, it's a quick half inning for a change.
- Theriot grounds to Clark, who just came into the game at first, 3-1.
- Lee singles to center.
- Ramirez bounces into a 6-4-3.
- Snyder grounds to short, Upton bloops one into left-center.
- Ojeda up. Wood gets the 6-4-3 from Augie.
- Lyon in.
- Murton grounds one to the left side hole, Drew makes a very nice play to get to the ball and throw Murton out.
- Soto walks.
- Derosa called out looking, outside corner.
- Dempster comes in to get some work in a non-save situation. Can any good possibly come from this?
- Maybe so. Clark and Young both K swinging. Drew grounds to first to end an easy inning for Dempster. Hooray for very thin silver linings.
- Valverde in. Fontenot in to hit for Dempster. K's swinging
- Soriano singles back up the middle.
- Theriot hits one back up the middle as well, and Drew makes a nice sliding stop. He might have tried to make the double play himself, but shovels to Ojeda. Ojeda doesn't have his eye quite on the ball, perhaps thinking that Drew will take it himself, and he bobbles it, with it bouncing off of his head. Everybody is safe.
- Lee up with two runners on and one out, down by 4
- Lee blows a low fastball past Lee for strike 3.
- Snyder lets a fastball get by him, runners advance a base. Just seemed to whiff at a fastball.
- Ramirez also can't catch up to the strike-two fastball.
- Or the strike-three fastball. Inning, game over.
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