Baseball gives a reprieve

After nearly a full day of talking about Ian Snell, we've finally got a baseball game to discuss. The Cubs come in to PNC tonight for an early-week three-gamer and here's a funny stat: if the Pirates sweep this series from the Cubs, they'll be ahead of them in the NL Central standings. There might be a better chance of that happening than you think; the Pirates are 21-14 at PNC this year while the Cubs are 14-24 away from Wrigley. Zach Duke gets the start tonight and I think with a win tonight, he starts to solidify his hold on the Pirates' All-Star slot this year. Rich Harden, who's having a bizarro year this year (he's healthy, but not any good) goes for the Cubs. Looking at the Cubs' lineup, with Milton Bradley and Geovany Soto struggling mightily, Ryan Freel in center, and Gregor Blanco at second base, well, I can't believe this was my pre-season World Series pick.