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 Ryan Dempster pitched four-hit ball over eight scoreless innings,
and Chicago overcame another shaky performance by its closer to beat
Florida 2-1 Friday, snapping the Marlins' season-high, six-game
winning streak.
Dempster (7-6) struck out nine without a walk in probably his best
outing of the season as the Cubs won for the third time in nine
games, but the focus again centered on Marmol.
"We need him," manager Mike Quade said. "When you talk about the
bullpen, he's a pretty big part."
Right now, that part isn't working.
After the closer's ninth-inning meltdown Thursday, Quade had said he
wasn't sure he would use Marmol in a save situation, but he did
after talking to the pitcher, coaches and management before Friday's
game.
That backfired when they turned to Marmol in the ninth Friday and he
again didn't make it out of the inning. Sean Marshall got out of the
jam and will close for the next few days.
Marmol came in to boos on the heels of a miserable performance in
which he walked four of the five batters he faced and failed to
record an out. The Marlins scored six in the ninth to win that one
6-3 and they nearly pulled off another comeback Friday.
Marmol's latest troubles began when he walked Omar Infante on four
pitches to start the inning.
He caught a break with one out when center fielder Marlon Byrd threw
out Hanley Ramirez trying to stretch a single into a double.
"The guy made a helluva throw," Marlins interim manager Jack McKeon
said.
Quade would have lifted Marmol then had Ramirez not been thrown out.
Instead, he watched as Logan Morrison lined an RBI single to right,
cutting Florida's deficit to 2-1.
Marshall relieved Marmol and struck out Mike Stanton to end the
game, giving him two saves in four chances.
"We're trying to figure out things," Marmol said. "Hopefully, when I
get back, I'll be the old Marmol."
He insisted the problems are mechanical, not mental, and that he
still has his confidence. What he doesn't have is his control or
patience from the fan base.
"It's not as easy as people (think)," he said. "It's hard. When
you're not playing, you're struggling, you want to do the best --
especially in Chicago. I hate when the fans boo me. I hate it. I
don't think any players want to feel that way."
The Cubs took a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning when Infante misplayed
Alfonso Soriano's pop fly to second base, allowing Carlos Pena and
Byrd to score.
That was just enough for Dempster and the Cubs.
"It was a good way to bounce back after yesterday, get us back on
the right track," the veteran right-hander said.
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Ricky Nolasco (6-6) pitched about as well as Dempster but took a
tough loss.
Nolasco allowed two unearned runs and seven hits, and struck out
seven and walked one in seven innings. It was another strong
performance following his complete-game win over Houston on
Saturday. He also doubled off the wall with two outs in the
third, but the Marlins couldn't do much against Dempster.
Nolasco ran into trouble in the fourth when Pena singled with
one out and Byrd doubled, but he struck out Geovany Soto and
should have gotten out of the inning when Soriano popped up.
Infante raced out toward right field, and slowed as Stanton came
in. The ball appeared to tip his glove and fell in for an error,
allowing both runners to score.
"It was just unfortunate," Nolasco said. "It's not going to
happen very often, especially Omar how good he is. It's just one
of those things that you can't put any blame on it."
McKeon said it was an easy play for Stanton and he should have
made that catch.
"Hell, the right fielder has got to come in," McKeon said. "He's
standing alongside of him. He's got to take charge."
NOTES: The Cubs agreed to a minor league deal with veteran
pitcher Dave Bush. ... Cubs first base coach Bob Dernier missed
the game to attend his son's wedding in Kansas City. He is
expected back Sunday. Dave Keller, special assistant to Quade,
filled in. ... Florida's Emilio Bonifacio extended his hitting
streak to 14 games with a single in the sixth.
[Associated Press]
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
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