Soto, Cubs gang deliver to beat Marlins 5-1 before rain follows

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When a recent turnaround the Cubs have performed better than average in recent weeks. With last night's 5-1 win over Miami it makes 7 of their last 8 at home. Way to go Chicago! At Wrigley before the rain arrived the Cubs were tied at 1 thanks to a Starlin Castro homer in the 4th inning. That was his 8th of the season and 45th RBI. After that Geovany Soto ripped a hard ground hopper over 3rd base which scored a run to make it 2-1. After another runner reached and wild pitch came to the plate Jeff Baker busted out a sharp 2-run double down the line. He made the score 4-1 in the 7th. Then David DeJesus notched an additional insurance run via a sac fly. All in all good game for the Cubs who are trying to make a quality run with streakiness in their favor to close out July. Winning 2-of-3 to capture the series in New York gave the club a lift too.

The Cubs are at current 37-53. The big series which most fans await is set this weekend against the Cardinals in St. Louis. With good patience and timely hitting Chicago can take this series also against a not so potent rival which doesn't possess any great pitching right now. Dave Sveum and his coaching staff may want to select offensive options for hit-and- runs and sacrifice bunts to get the wheels rolling for team blue's advantage. With a more balanced starting rotation and a few new faces in the bullpen Chicago can muster up to a serious challenge against their nemesis.

With trade talks swirling around about Ryan Dempster leaving, the Cubs better get the best available top hitter if not another starter for their trouble. Knowing how one area offsets another with this club it may be best to leave him off the table for a while. After the St. Louis series the men in blue travel to Pittsburgh to combat the Pirates for 3 games. Best of luck on their efforts there, go Cubs!