2008 Chicago Cubs: Coming Together

2008 Chicago Cubs: Coming Together

2008 Chicago Cubs: Coming Together

Coming off their early exit from the 2007 postseason, the Chicago Cubs came together as a team and aimed to do better the following year. 2008 was overall a more productive year for the Cubs, though the end result would still be the same. The Cubs made one intriguing move in the 2007-2008 offseason by signing Japanese right fielder Kosuke Fukudome to a 4-year, $48 Million contract on December 11, 2007. Fukudome became a novelty and a sensation to Cubs fans at Wrigley Field as merchandise relating to Fukudome and his Japanese culture flew off the Chicago shelves.

In the 2008 MLB season the Cubs went 97-64, finishing 7.5 games ahead of the Milwaukee Brewers to win the National League Central division. The Cubs went 9-7 against the Brewers in head-to-head play. The Cubs went 55-26 at home and 42-38 on the road. Their 97 wins in 2008 were tied for the most in a single season since 1945, and returning to the postseason, the Cubs made consecutive playoff appearances for the first time since 1907 and 1908.

Shortstop Ryan Theriot batted .307 with 178 hits, 19 doubles, 4 triples and 22 stolen bases. Second baseman Mike Fontenot batted .305 with 74 hits and 22 doubles in 119 games. Center fielder Reed Johnson batted .303 with 101 hits and 21 doubles in 109 games. First baseman Derrek Lee batted .291 with 20 home runs and 90 RBI’s off 181 hits, 41 doubles and 8 stolen bases. Third baseman Aramis Ramirez batted .289 with 27 home runs and 111 RBI’s off 160 hits and 44 doubles. Second baseman Mark DeRosa batted .285 with 21 home runs and 87 RBI’s off 144 hits, 30 doubles and 6 stolen bases.

Catcher Geovany Soto exploded onto the scene in the North Side of Chicago in 2008 as he would win the National League Rookie of the Year award. Soto batted .285 with 23 home runs and 86 RBI’s off 141 hits and 35 doubles.

Left fielder Alfonso Soriano batted .280 with 29 home runs and 75 RBI’s off 127 hits, 27 doubles and 19 stolen bases. Center fielder Jim Edmonds had 19 home runs, 64 hits and 17 doubles in 85 games. Kosuke Fukudome had 10 home runs, 129 hits, 25 doubles and 12 stolen bases.

Making the transition from relief pitcher to starting pitcher, Ryan Dempster went 17-6 with 187 strikeouts and a 2.96 ERA, recording 1 complete game. Ted Lilly went 17-9 with 184 strikeouts. Carlos Zambrano went 14-6 with 130 strikeouts and a 3.91 ERA, recording 1 complete game and 1 shutout. Jason Marquis went 11-9 with 91 strikeouts. Rich Harden went 5-1 with 89 strikeouts and a 1.77 ERA. Closer Kerry Wood went 5-4 with 84 strikeouts, 34 saves and a 3.26 ERA. Relief pitcher Carlos Marmol had 114 strikeouts, 7 saves and a 2.68 ERA. Bob Howry went 7-5 with 1 save. Michael Wuertz went 1-1 with a 3.63 ERA. Chad Gaudin went 4-2 from the bullpen. Sean Marshall had 1 save and a 3.86 ERA despite going 3-5.

In Fukudome’s debut in Major League Baseball, he would go 3-for-3 with 1 walk on March 31 against the Milwaukee Brewers. In the bottom of the 9th inning down 3-0, Fukudome gave the Cubs a second breath of life by blasting a 3-run home run. However, the Cubs would still lose to the Brewers 4-3 in 10 innings.

One of the most impressive wins the Cubs had in the regular season occurred on April 19 at Wrigley Field as they pounded the Pittsburgh Pirates 13-1. Jason Marquis pitched a solid game as he went 6 innings deep and gave up 6 hits, 1 walk and 1 run, but he managed to record 7 strikeouts. In the bottom of the 1st inning Derrek Lee smacked a 2-run home run. In the bottom of the 2nd Geovany Soto had an RBI double. In the bottom of the 3rd Mark DeRosa had an RBI single, and then a wild play occurred on the base paths. Kosuke Fukudome stole third base and DeRosa stole second base, and a throwing error would allow Fukudome to score. DeRosa would later score from third base off a wild pitch. Jason Marquis then helped himself out by getting an RBI double. Pittsburgh’s only run came in the top of the 5th when second baseman Freddy Sanchez got an RBI double.

In the bottom of the 6th Fukudome drew a bases loaded walk to score Ryan Theriot, DeRosa had a sacrifice fly, and second baseman Ronny Cedeno had a 2-run single. Chicago’s rout of Pittsburgh ended in the bottom of the 7th when pinch hitting first baseman Daryle Ward launched a 2-run home run.

Once again Chicago’s ship was steadily guided by 2nd year skipper Lou Piniella, who would win the National League Manager of the Year award. Unlike 2007 the Cubs had a winning record for every full month of the regular season except for September. The Cubs went 17-9 in April, 18-11 in May, 15-12 in June, 15-11 in July, 20-8 in August, and 12-12 in September.

Much like 2007, however, the Cubs would have another early exit from the postseason as they would fall to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Division Series, going down in a 3 games to none sweep. The Cubs lost Game 1 on October 1 by the score of 7-2, and then lost Game 2 on October 2 by the score of 10-3, and would be swept in a 3-1 loss in Game 3 on October 4. Though he was a novelty and a sensation throughout the regular season, Kosuke Fukudome faded down the stretch, and in the postseason he would only go 1-for-10 with 1 single.

This would mark the last time Lou Piniella would guide a team to the postseason as 2009 and 2010 were both unpleasant for him and the Cubs. Chicago still put up a respectable 83-78 record in 2009 but missed the playoffs. In 2010 the Cubs were 51-74 when Piniella resigned as manager after August 22’s game. Piniella stated that he wanted to take care of his 90-year-old mother, who had been ailing. Piniella had voiced his intention to retire after the season on July 20, 2010. The Chicago wouldn’t get back to the postseason until 2015.