The Cubs haven't gotten a clutch hit lately to save their lives, and with a bullpen that is almost unmanageable lately and extra innings looming on the horizon Saturday, I think Lou had enough. He's tired of watching this team struggle offensively and now he has to watch them slide dead even with the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central.

Saturday's game was about as ugly as they come. Harden received yet another 10-strikeout no decision as Jeremy Hermida defeated the Cubs 3-2. That's right, one man scored all of the Marlins' runs. It was the second game in a row where the Cubs had way more hits than runs and the result was the second time all year the Cubs have lost two in a row at home, the last time being the first two games of the season against...the Brewers.

All that should be enough to turn even the biggest believers into cynics. Even if this team is capable of getting to the playoffs as it stands, you certainly don't like their chances of doing anything better than what they did last year. Just a couple more losses and the Cubs will have been playing .500 baseball for two months now. April and May are looking more and more like fluke months.

I don't know what can be done other than hoping this team gets hot. No bats appear to be potentially added before the trading deadline and bullpen arms are in a similar place. You have to believe the Cubs have all the pieces to win a World Series on this team, but they're playing far from it.

It's way too early to back off the playoff and World Series possibilities with this team, but unlike in April and May, there is nothing exciting about watching this team play baseball. Nothing. Not even at home anymore after today's loss. I was fortunate enough to be invited to tomorrow's game and I can only imagine yet another Marlins pitcher will look like an ace against this over-swinging and unfocused Cubs lineup. Soriano refuses to take pitches and will forever be a streaky hitter it seems and Ramirez has the worst batting average of all Cubs everyday hitters players outside of Jim Edmonds who would be better if his Padres average didn't count. If Fukudome can't bring more consistency either, this team will continue to have offensive question marks.

Jim Hendry brought in Rich Harden thinking his team was good enough to improve with the addition of a pitcher who is dominant but can only go 6 innings on average. Unfortunately, between the hitting and the bullpen, he has been proven completely wrong and it's embarrassing.

If the Cubs lose tomorrow, I might be too taken up with praying the Brewers don't sweep us to actually post, so there's my advance warning.

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