Cubs' Pitching Staff Commanded by the Carlos'

In the past month, the Cubs have begun to figure things out thanks to the phenomenal pitching of starter Carlos Zambrano and reliever Carlos Marmol

Both have nasty stuff. Both are intimidating on the mound. Both are named Carlos.

Since June 1, Carlos Zambrano has truly begun a "new season," while Carlos Marmol has been lights out since he was brought up from Triple-A on May 18.

The fiery, intense, and hard-throwing Carlos Zambrano is beginning to live up to his prediction that he would win the NL Cy-Young this year. In his last four starts since June 1 and the Michael Barrett scuffle, Zambrano is 3-1 with 1.14 ERA. His most recent start came yesterday against the White Sox in which he went eight strong innings, struck out 12, gave up one earned run, and walked only one. Yesterday's game was Big Z at his best. Zambrano's stuff was electric with his breaking balls falling off the plate and fastball hitting as high as 95 mph. Big Z will look to continue his dominance Wednesday against the Colorado Rockies in which he will get to bat again. If his brilliance on the bump isn't enough, Zambrano is batting .273 with two homers, four RBI's, and nine runs scored.

When Zambrano ever needs some help he needs to look no further than his good friend Carlos Marmol. Marmol has been simply magnificent since his recall on May 18 from Des Moines. Marmol has comprised a mind-blowing 0.96 ERA in 18.2 innings with 24 strikeouts and has only given up 10 hits. His slider has been nasty and he locates his fastball beautifully. Last season, Marmol went 5-7 with a 6.08 ERA, but it is clear he learned a lot about himself and his abilities since then.

With the Carlos' dominating, the Cubs finally are getting back on track at 34-39 with a chance to sweep the South Siders tomorrow at U.S. Cellular Field. Marmol did a solid job today, while Zambrano had a superb performance yesterday. Expect to see Marmol if Cubs starter Sean Marshall struggles at all tomorrow.

Together, they are commanding and leading the Cubs' pitching staff to consistency. If Zambrano continues his dominance expect him to be in the running for the NL Cy-Young award. However, let's hope his other prediction of a Cubs World Series victory comes true as well. Regardless, the Carlos' will be there the whole way leading the pitching staff back to excellence.

Chicago Cubs Cancer and Catcher Sent Packing

The Cubs and Michael Barrett parted ways Wednesday when he was officially traded to the San Diego Padres for back-up catcher Rob Bowen and minor league outfielder Kyler Burke

The saga that was Michael Barrett is over. Not even halfway through the 2007 campaign, the Cubs' front office had seen enough headlines featuring Barrett over the last three and a half years.

Just this year, Barrett has been the focal point of fights, silly arguments, and bone-head plays. All these contributed to not only his departure, but a disease that needed to be cured in the Cubs' clubhouse. On June 1, Barrett and Cubs starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano went toe-to-toe after a lot of mounting frustration and more brainless plays by Barrett. The fight has been well-documented with many blaming Barrett for the repercussions even in light of Zambrano's intense emotions. Only eleven days later on June 12, Barrett and Cubs lefty Rich Hill got into a mild discussion about pitch selection. Then, in the 13th inning of the team's loss, Barrett misplayed a throw to home by Jacque Jones that would have nailed Jose Vidro of the Mariners by a couple steps.

These headlines in the past three weeks are simply the end to a long list of ridiculous issues with Barrett. In May 2006, the catcher socked White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski after getting cleanly run over protecting home. Barrett suffered a 10-game suspension for his actions and depleted a Cubs roster that couldn't afford his absence. Back in 2005, Barrett instigated a feud between Houston Astros starting pitcher Roy Oswalt that fueled the Astros to overcome the Cubs in the wildcard race late in the season. Even with all these distracting headlines, it is the play of Barrett so far this season that has Cubs nation in disarray.

At 30, Barrett is batting .256 with nine homers and 29 RBIs in a more limited role this year. However, it has never been his offense that people questioned, but his defense and overall lack of respect from pitchers. So far this year, Barrett has committed five errors, been charged with eight passed balls, and thrown out seven of 39 potential base-runners. On top of that, he has had some of the silliest baserunning blunders on record. Throw in the fact that numerous pitchers have requested he not catch for them including Hall of Fame bound Greg Maddux, Mark Prior, Kerry Wood, and most recently Carlos Zambrano. Finally, add to the mix that back-up catcher Koyie Hill has gone 5-2 with a 1.75 ERA in games he's started since being brought up.

With all of these put into the equation and Barrett set to be a free agent at season's end, the only logical move was to get rid of Barrett and his nonsense. It is rare that you see a player fall from the graces so quickly, but with everything over the last year the writing was on the wall.

Now, the Cubs will look to Koyie Hill and Rob Bowen to get the job done. Bowen joins the Cubs with a .268 average, two homers, 11 RBIs, and a .371 OBP. However, for all you Cubs fans who are worried about a lack of offensive production from the catching position, you need look no further than Des Moines, IA. The Cubs catcher of the future Geovany Soto is batting .325 with 15 doubles, eight homers, 41 RBIs, and a .400 OBP in 53 games. There is also an offensive-minded catcher named Jake Fox who resides in Double-A ball right now for the Cubs. Fox is hitting .298 with 14 home runs, 48 RBIs, and 19 doubles.

Whoever ends up making the biggest impression will win out, but for now Hill and Bowen are in charge. Barrett lost his welcome with the demanding fans and organization. He's just the first of a list of players that need to be shipped out. That list includes overpaid outfielder Jacque Jones, back-up shortstop Cesar Isturiz, and the lousy lefty reliever Scott Erye. By July 31, all three should be residing elsewhere and causing headaches for other clubs.

The good thing about trades is that you can monitor and see who the winner and loser is in the upcoming weeks. Barrett joins a pitching staff that leads the NL in ERA, but he struggled all year with the Cubs behind the plate. Regardless of what the future brings, both are better off going their separate ways.