Martin Slams Cubs, Lou at it Again

A baseball game almost always comes down to a few crucial moments. Last night in LA the Cubs failed in every single one of them. After Aramis Ramirez tied the game at two in the third inning, the Dodgers walked Kosuke Fukudome to get to Alfonso Soriano. Soriano struck out, followed by Jeff Baker striking out to end the inning.

Situation two: Top sixth runners on first and second with two out. Tom Gorzelanny, who has gotten the last 10 guys out, is up to bat. Lou takes him out of the game and pinch hits Aaron Miles. That's right Aaron freaking Miles. Miles grounds out to second base to end the inning and force a dealing starting pitcher out of the game.

Situation three: Bottom sixth Cubs walk James Loney to load the bases and face the struggling Russell Martin. Similar situation to what the Dodgers did to Soriano in the third inning. Martin hits the ball over the fence for a grand slam. Game over right there.

Three big moments in the game and the Cubs failed in all of them. That's why they lost the game last night, and why they have been losing big games all season. Execution in big moments is something good teams do. This year the Cubs haven't done it.