The Cubs made a quick side trip to Atlanta to play a game that was rained out earlier this year.  The results were not good, although there were some very good things to take from the game.  For instance, Ryan Dempster had a good outing even though he picked up the loss.  He went 6 2/3 innings, giving up eight hits and two earned runs.  He walked four and struck out six.  Honestly, now that I look at his stats I realize that they look worse than I thought.  His performance was actually not as bad as his game stats would have you believe.

The bullpen looked good again, allowing just one base runner (on a walk) in 1.1 innings pitched.  Sean Marshal came in to face one batter and Kevin Hart pitched a full inning.

At the plate, the Cubs cranked out 10 hits, which is good, but they were all singles.  They left 12 men on base and were 0-6 with runners in scoring position.  That’s not good.

The team hopped back on the charter following the game in Atlanta to head to Detroit.  I’m not sure if they showered or not first.  They’ll be taking on the Tigers for three games starting tonight.  Carlos Zambrano (4-2) will get the start for the Cubs against Edwin Jackson (6-4). 

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Over the weekend, the Cubs moved into third place in the NL Central.  They are 1.5 games behind second place Milwaukee and trail the first place Cardinals by 2.5 games.  Considering the struggles this team has had all year, they are in surprisingly good shape in the standings. 

Something else I found surprising is that the Cubs have outscored their opponents this year 280-270.  The reason I say I am surprised is because the Cubs have been shutout so often.  They’ve also scored two or fewer runs in a ton of games this year.  Even so, I guess the run differential shouldn’t be too surprising given the Cubs 34-32 record.  It’s a curse borne by Cubs fans to remember the losses much more than the wins.