In the first inning, the White Sox were able to put four runs on the board, mostly thanks to Carlos Quentin’s three run homer that brought in Alex Rios and Paul Konerko.

Zambrano was noticably livid heading into the dugout, the episode ending in being taken into the clubhouse by Lou Piniella and Alan Trammel and being taken out of the game.

ESPN is now reporting that Zambrano has been suspended, but they don’t have information on how many games the suspension is.

The altercation overshadowed another outstanding performance by Jake Peavy on the White Sox, who went seven scoreless innings, bringing his consecutive scoreless inning total up to 21.

As for the Cubs, the bullpen did a great job of stopping the bleeding, only allowing two runs throughout the next eight innings. Tom Gorzelanny was fantastic allowing just one run over the next three and a third innings.

The Cubs bats were silenced as they only had six baserunners throughout the game. Meanwhile, the White Sox were able to score six runs on seven hits and two walks.

The White Sox now lead the crosstown rivalry 3-1 on the season, and the Cubs are going to have to win these next two games to pull off another tie on the season.

It is going to be tough, however, as the White Sox have won 10 strait games since losing the series finale to the Cubs in their last meeting, going 14-1 over the last 15.

Meanwhile, the Cubs are nine games below .500 and are 2-4 over their last six.

I’m Joe W.

And it’s even less likely for the Cubs, of course. The division is out of reach and the wild card requires climbing over too many teams. Plus, the Cubs aren’t playing like they want it anyway.

So the White Sox supposedly send a memo to the other clubs that Jermaine Dye, Jim Thome and Scott Linebrink are available.

And why not? It makes good business and baseball sense to try and build for next season with prospects you can obtain. I mean, if you’re going to lose with or without these players, why hold onto them?

Meanwhile, the Cubs can’t work out a trade for the horrible Aaron Heilman or Rich Harden, who isn’t likely to return anyway. And the reason? Not that the offers weren’t good enough. No. According to Hendry, it’s because the Cubs still have a chance.

Delusional man say what?

Look, it’s over, Jim. Face the music; you’ll notice it’s a dirge that’s playing.

Rich Harden is simply too fragile, and the Cubs are too strapped for cash for them to match any three-year offer that some team is likely to wave under the nose of the impending free agent following the season.

Anyway, even if they wanted to re-sign Harden, they could still do it if they traded him. So why in the world wouldn’t you get something for him?

Now, the Sox may not end up moving any of their players prior to tonight’s deadline for adding players to the playoff roster. But at least they’re trying. It shows they are being realistic. The Cubs? Knee deep in denial.

I’m not condoning a white flag deal here; no, both teams (and especially the Cubs) are too far out of the race to hang onto players they are going lose or not want after the season.

But that’s one of the many differences between the Cubs and Sox. The Sox have a plan while the Cubs seem to fly by the seat of their pants.

It pains me to write this, but I seem to recall one of the local teams winning a World Series a few years back.

That’s another difference, come to think of it.

-Bob Warja

His batting average over the past five games has been a measly .095, and he hasn’t gotten a hit in his last 15 at bats.

However, today, he went 2-5 with one gigantic RBI.

The Cubs started the day locked in an outstanding pitching duel between ace Carlos Zambrano going up against White Sox stud Gavin Floyd.

Neither team scored a run until the sixth inning, as a clinic was put on by both pitchers. However, the White Sox were able to work on a home run by Alexie Ramirez, who homered in each game of this series, and were up 5-1 by the eighth inning.

The Cubs were down to two outs in the eighth when Derek Lee sparked the comeback with a 3-run homer to pull the game to 5-4, a manageable score.

Then, Geovany Soto, who has been batting .188 over the past five games, belted another home run to tie the game with two outs in the eighth inning.

All four runs that were scored in the eighth were unearned runs, thanks to an error, and all were scored against White Sox pitcher Scott Linebrink.

“I didn’t make pitches. You’ve got to make pitches against guys like that — Derrek Lee, Geovany Soto — those guys can hurt you,” Linebrink said. “And the last thing I want to do is go out there and put them in a situation where they can get back into the game.”

The Cubs used their momentum and came into the ninth still tied, and after a Reed Johnson single and Andres Blanco sacrifice, the aforementioned Soriano knocked a two out bloop single to give the Cubs the game with a score of 6-5.

“Truthfully, he’s too talented to have a valley as big as he’s been in. You can have some peaks and valleys, but he’s been in a gorge,” Lou Piniella said. “Look, for us to be a good offensive team, we need Soriano to hit. Let’s be perfectly clear about that.”

The walk-off tied the season series between the Cubs and Sox at 1-1 after the first game of the series was postponed.

The Cubs needed this win desperately after they dropped the first game of the series.

However, all of the Cubs’ problems weren’t fixed with this game, they were just 2-8 with runners in scoring position, an aspect of the game that they have been struggling with as of late.

The Cubs also needed this game to avoid falling further under .500, and with the win, they were able to get back to even at 31-31.

They also avoid falling further behind Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers, as they are 0.5 games behind the Reds and four game behind the Brewers for the division lead.

Kosuke Fukudome went 0-3 on the day, bringing his hit-less streak up to 21 at bats.

The win was given to Kevin Gregg, who is 1-1 on the season. The loss was charged to Matt Thornton, who is 4-2.

The Cubs travel to Cincinnati over the next three games for a crucial series that could move them up in the NL Central Division rankings.

-Joe Willett

Oh sure, I know there are the so-called “Chicago fans”, and while I’ve never really understood not having an allegiance to one team or the other, I do know a good baseball manager when I see one.

That manager would be one Oswaldo José Guillén Barrios.

I have tried awfully hard to never let the die-hard Cubs fan in me cloud my ability to be objective.

Sox fans who have been spoiled by the success of the 2005 team may ask, “what has Ozzie done for me lately?”

While I think it is somewhat natural to feel this way, as a Cubs fan, let me tell you that I would love to have Guillen managing my club.

But I know he would never manage the Cubs, because he would be puking all the time, though there could be a lucrative Pepto Bismal advertising deal there for him.

With a nod to The Romantics, here’s what I like about you, Ozzie:

* I like the fire and passion he brings to the ballpark every day.

I’m not talking about kicking dirt and throwing bases. I mean, when you hear him talk you can actually feel the real passion he has for winning.

I recognize that he is always saying they should fire him, and all that nonsense. But that’s just his way of letting you know that he feels accountable as the manager. He doesn’t’ really want to quit.

Hey Lou, Ozzie may not be a dragon either, but he does have the fire.

* He manages a very solid game between the white lines.

Ozzie can quite simply manage the hell out of a ballgame. For example, he out managed Lou in today’s series opener at Wrigley, and he consistently makes good decisions on the field.

Is he perfect? Of course not, and I’m sure there are moments when Sox fans just want to scream.

But his managerial strategy is effective.

* He doesn’t coddle his players. Even the so-called superstars.

Ozzie is not afraid to publicly take a player to task if he does something that he doesn’t like, or if he is under-performing.

At the same time, he seems to really connect with his players. Sure, we’ve heard a few cowards leave the Sox and then offer criticism toward Ozzie after they’re gone, but it doesn’t occur that often.

Ozzie is not afraid to bench a player, and give him a day off when he’s struggling. When he does, he won’t usually sugarcoat it by saying the player is hurt, or making up some lame excuse.

This brings me to my next point.

* He tells it like it is.

He calls a spade a spade, and doesn’t seem to care what the consequences may be. His frank talk is especially refreshing in this time of politically correctness.

True, he is not sensitive; in fact, he can be downright insensitive at times. And yes, his Spanglish can be difficult to comprehend at times.

But you get the feeling that Ozzie is being straight with everyone, and is letting you know what he truly believes. He may be wrong at times, like all of us. But he is speaking from the heart.

* He is fun.

Ozzie is like a kid sometimes, bringing energy to the club, and entertaining the fans.

You get the sense that he hasn’t really changed much from his playing days. He has a terrific sense of humor. In short, he is a lot of fun.

While the bottom line is that Sox fans just want to win, at least The Blizzard of Oz can breathe life into almost any situation, even following a loss and during a dismal season.

I like Ozzie, come to think of it.

-Bob Warja

The Cubs and White Sox are ready to start the second Cross-Town Series later today, and I couldn’t be more excited.

The Cubs won the first series 3-0, and if they can avoid a sweep, will have won the series yet again.

This year started with the Cubs and White Sox tied at 30-30 for the entire series that gives the winning Chicago team bragging rights.

In the first series, Aramis Ramirez was the shining star, hitting six hits, 4 home runs, and 8 RBI’s in just 13 at bats against the Sox.

The first game was a close one, won by the Cubs by a late inning comeback, whereas the second two games were won more handily by the Cubs.

The Sox need to make a big comeback to avoid being on the losing side of yet another Red Line Series.

The White Sox have only swept the Cubs once (1999) since the series started, but the Cubs have swept four series (1998, 2004, 2007, and 2008).

This is going to be yet another great series, where the Cubs and Sox go at each other’s throat.

Hopefully, all can enjoy some good baseball.