Fiery Lou burns Bradley

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The Bald Truth

At about 1 o'clock, Lou Piniella was insisting that he hasn't lost his passion for the game even as his Cubbies have been sinking into a morass of mediocrity.

"I've got as much fire as I ever had!"

A few hours later, after Milton Bradley struck out (again), got mad (again) and started busting up the dugout (again), Lou confronted the $30 million hothead in the tunnel on the way to the clubhouse and sent Bradley packing. It was only the sixth inning.

Fire, meet gasoline.

"He threw his helmet and smashed a water cooler, water flying all over; I just told him to take his uniform off and go home. Followed him up to the clubhouse and we exchanged some words. I don't like those things to happen. I'm just of tired of watching them. This has been a common occurrence and I've looked the other way a lot, but I'm done with it."

A few minutes after that, Geo Soto smoked a pitch some 400 feet for the game-winning 3-run homer. Nice to see Geo smoking the baseball as opposed to, well, you know.

The Cubs held on to win, but not before Carlos "Latino Wild Thing" Marmol - the people's choice for closer - tried very hard to lose the game (as he usually does) and Kevin Gregg - the people's choice for any role but closer - nailed down the victory (as he all too often doesn't).

In other words, just another boring Cubs-White Sox clash.

The Miltie Mess could kill Pennant Push '09 before it ever really starts. He's hitting .237 with little pop, he plays right field only slightly better than I play golf, he's getting booed by the home fans, he's moody and his manager has lost respect for him. 

Piniella said he simply got sick of watching so many Cubs going ballistic in the dugout; Bradley has done it repeatedly, but Carlos Zambrano and Ryan Dempster also have been among the guilty. Would Lou have sent Mike Fontenot home if the little infielder had taken a bat to the cooler? Doubtful. 

So Bradley feels like an outsider in his own clubhouse ... and maybe those feelings are at least a little justified. 

Before Friday's game Bradley told Paul Sullivan, the Tribune's outstanding reporter, that he doesn't feel close to any of his teammates.

After the Cubs' 5-4 victory, Bradley's mates publicly supported him - mostly. Alfonso Soriano, another slumping slugger and one of the team's leaders, said this:

"He's a great guy. The only problem with him is his attitude sometimes. A lot of people don't like that, but that's him. I hope when he comes back he can help the team win. If he's not 100 percent to help the team, we don't need him."

Ready? Everybody sing: "We are fam-i-lee! As long as we don't count Mil-tie!"

You know, as families go, these guys are far more Soprano than Brady.

Remember This

Infamous irritant A.J. Pierzynski so often has been involved in big plays - especially in these intracity games, it seems - that we've come to expect huge hits and bizarre happenings.

Well, he doesn't always come through. And his work isn't always memorable.

After Latino Wild Thing pitched the Cubs into serious trouble in the eighth, Pierzynski strode to the plate against Sean Marshall. One pitch later, the Cubs turned an easy double play and the White Sox were toast.

Ozzie Guillen's blunt assessment: "Bad at-bat."

A.J. must have been thinking: Damn! Where was Michael Barrett when I needed him?

The Balder Truth

A bunch of us Chicago-chapter Baseball Writers Association of America members got together before the game. The topic: Should we draft a proposal asking the Hall of Fame to give the BBWAA guidance for dealing with juicers?

The verdict: thumbs down. (I was among those who spoke up for this majority decision.) 

Hall honchos already give us guidance, including "integrity" and "character" on the list of what we should be considering. So we should just trust our judgment, as we have successfully for decades.

If the Steroid Era results in several years of no new players getting in, so be it. 

Lou-ism of the Day

"I smoked dope one time in my life and it didn't do a damn thing for me and I never smoked it again."

This a few days after he said he didn't know the difference between steroids and reefer.

THE BALDEST TRUTH

"What To Do With Miltie?" is a most unpleasant problem for Piniella.

A much nicer problem - but one that still might cause migraines: What To Do with Jake?

Aramis Ramirez will be coming off the DL soon and Lou can't wait to put him back at 3B. The problem? That's where Jake Fox has been playing - and he has been by far the hottest hitter on a team desperate for offense. 

Fox, who tore up Triple-A pitching for two months, had three more hits Friday, including a homer and a double. He's at .395 and the ball is jumping off his bat.

Said Piniella: "I like his bat, put it that way, I really do. We'll see where we use it, but how can you not put his name in the lineup every time you have a chance?"

How, indeed?

Problem is, Fox can't play SS, 2B or CF. He had been a catcher once upon a time but long ago was deemed inadequate there. (Besides, Soto finally has started to hit now that he's stopped taking hits).

That leaves 3B, 1B, LF and RF.

Third, of course, belongs to Ramirez. First is Derrek Lee territory, and he's been the only other consistently good hitter lately. 

Soriano is not much of a LF and he's been bad at the plate for nearly two months. But he has unique skills, he has been known to get hot at a moment's notice, he is popular with his teammates, Lou likes him and he is guaranteed $100 million over the next 5 1/2 years.

Hmmm ... methinks another Miltie meltdown is coming soon.