What the F?: Flat Cubs Feebly Flail in 3-2 Failure

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Imagine this scenario: Ryan Dempster throws a quality start. Alfonso Soriano and Geovany Soto hit home runs. The opponent has lost 10 of 13, and the team ERA is a MLB-worst 6.71. Despite all these positive factors, the Cubs somehow lost to the Pirates, 3-2. Why? For starters, because they couldn't find their way home with a GPS. The North Siders went 1-for-8 with men in scoring position and ended up leaving 12 men on base. With the loss, the Cubs fall one game under .500. Gah.

ESPN Chicago: Pirates beat Cubs for first win in last four home games [+ video]
Chicago Tribune: Cubs stumble against pitching-poor Pirates
Daily Herald: Piniella talks of lineup changes after Cubs loss to Pirates
MLB: Lack of offense tells tale of Cubs' loss [+ video]

The Case of the Struggling Slugger: What's up with Aramis Ramirez?
For years, Aramis Ramirez has been one of the more dependable Cubs. This year, however... Yeesh. In 25 games, Ramirez is batting a lowly .149 and has a whopping 26 K's, and might end up lower in the order because of his struggles. He tells the Sun-Times, "Right now, I'm off everything. I'm late on the fastball, early on the breaking ball. I don't know what's going on." Agony & Ivy notes that Ramirez's woeful start puts him in the company of Gary Scott and Kevin Orie, two former Cub third basemen who were, as we say in the business, "bad."

Chicago Sun-Times: Ramirez goes from slugger to struggler
Agony & Ivy: The company Aramis Ramirez keeps

Fight Club: Dave Kaplan Vents His Spleen at Trib Writer Phil Rogers
WGN/Trib/CSN man-about-town Dave Kaplan is more of the affable, I'm-everyone's-pal sort rather than the combative, let's-mix-it-up type. So it was surprising to see him go after the Trib's Phil Rogers on his blog, Kap's Corner. Rogers had defended Alfonso Soriano. Kaplan did not like. Kaplan says Soriano simply plays the game "the wrong way" and calls out Rogers specifically: "You are showing an incredible lack of understanding of how the game is supposed to be played." We'll see if Rogers fights back.

Kap's Corner: The latest on the Cubs, Zambrano, etc....

The Kids Can Play: Prospects Could Bring Hope to Cubs Season. Maybe.
When your team's payroll is near $150 million and said team's record is under .500, well, it's not easy to be overly optimistic about the aforementioned team. So to turn our frowns upside-down, let's take a look at the Cubs' minor-league teams, which are sure to bring us much joy. Alas, former first-rounder Jeff Samardzija continues to scuffle, but other players look solid. Pitcher Casey Coleman is rocking a wicked 0.95 WHIP for Iowa, and Starlin Castro continues to look mega-promising, hitting .356 with 14 multi-hit games so far this season.

Daily Herald: Minor matters: Coleman in control for I-Cubs

Within Your Reach: An Excruciating Reminiscence of the Steve Bartman Play
You undoubtedly remember where you were when it happened: October 14, 2003. Game 6. The Cubs vs. the Marlins. It's the eighth inning, there's one out... hell, you know what happens next. And so you might not want to read this excerpt from Deadspin founding editor's Will Leitch's upcoming book, Are We Winning? It's like rewatching a slow-motion car crash involving a school bus. Full of orphans. And they're blind. And they're holding kittens. And the kittens are hungry. OK, maybe that's overstating it. We'll just say we were literally cringing as we read this. But remember: It's only a game.

Deadspin: Excerpt from Are We Winning? A prayer for Steve Bartman

Today's Report by Joel Reese

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