Pirates end 17-game road skid, beat Cubs 2-1

[June 29, 2010]  CHICAGO (AP) -- Paul Maholm pitched a season-high eight innings, Jose Tabata hit a go-ahead double in the ninth and the Pittsburgh Pirates ended a 17-game road losing streak with a 2-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on Monday night.

The last time the Pirates won on the road was May 25 in a 2-1 victory at Cincinnati. It was their third win in 21 games overall.

The Cubs dropped to 2-8 against last-place Pittsburgh this season and are 10 games below .500.

Maholm (5-6) allowed one run and seven hits. He did not walk a batter.

Octavio Dotel hit Aramis Ramirez with a pitch leading off the ninth but rebounded for his 15th save in 18 chances.

Before the game, Carlos Zambrano was placed on the restricted list and the Cubs expect to be without the hot-tempered pitcher until at least the All-Star break.

Zambrano has been suspended by the team without pay for the past three games, after he threw a tirade in the dugout Friday that led to a verbal confrontation with teammate Derrek Lee.

"Beginning Wednesday, Carlos will undergo a treatment program with mutually agreed upon doctors from the Players' Association and Major League Baseball," general manager Jim Hendry said Monday. "Basically, he will have to follow the treatment for his issues and be evaluated properly, and if the program is acted on properly in accordance to what the doctors they signify he needs to work on and improve on, and follow their directives, Carlos will not be reinstated any time until after the All-Star break."

Hendry said Zambrano and his agent have not asked for the right-hander to be traded or released. Zambrano is in the middle of a $91.5 million, five-year contract extension he signed in August 2007.

On an unseasonably cool summer night with the wind blowing in at Wrigley Field, both teams struggled to get anything going until Ryan Doumit led off the ninth with a single off Cubs reliever Andrew Cashner (0-2).

After a sacrifice bunt by Ronny Cedeno, Cashner walked pinch-hitter Ryan Church. Cubs manager Lou Piniella brought in Carlos Marmol, who was greeted by Tabata with a double over the head of center fielder Tyler Colvin, who moved from right field after a double switch.

Ramirez singled with one out in second inning. With two outs, Geovany Soto hit a blooper down the right-field line. Pirates right fielder Lastings Milledge came charging in, while second baseman Bobby Crosby was sprinting from his position to get under the ball in the outfield. Milledge and Crosby collided right before the ball dropped between them.

Both players got knocked to the ground, but Crosby got the better of it. Soto ended up with a double after the collision and Ramirez went to third. After the play, Crosby was looked at by a team trainer, but stayed in the game temporarily before leaving in the bottom of the third with concussion-like symptoms.

Starlin Castro followed with a routine grounder to third baseman Pedro Alvarez, who tried to throw out Ramirez at the plate. But the poor, one-hop throw got by Doumit, allowing Ramirez to score.

With two outs in the third, Andrew McCutchen hit a liner in the direction of Colvin in right. Colvin had a chance to make the catch but took a bad route as the ball got by him and rolled to the wall. Tabata scored on the triple to tie it at 1.

Marlon Byrd made a diving catch in center on Garrett Jones' drive, stranding McCutchen.

Cubs starter Randy Wells allowed one run and three hits in six innings. He struck out six and walked four.

NOTES: In the first inning, second base umpire Jerry Meals called Ryan Theriot out at second base on a force play even though Cedeno wasn't close to stepping on the bag. Cedeno unsuccessfully tried to turn a double play on Colvin's ball. Despite the blown call by Meals, Piniella and Theriot never argued. ... With a brief ceremony before the game, the Cubs saluted radio analyst and former third baseman Ron Santo, two days after the 50th anniversary of his major league debut. ... Cubs reliever John Grabow left the game after with a sprained left knee in the seventh after throwing a 1-1 pitch to Maholm. Brian Schlitter replaced Grabow and struck out two in his big league debut.

[Associated Press]

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