Lilly, Cubs Best Padres 8-5

Rays at the head of the class—Rockies, Marlins at the back

(NEWSER) - Report card time! Here’s how the rambunctious kids of MLB are doing so far, in Yahoo Sports’ Steven Henson’s estimation. A students—Rays, Red Sox, Cubs, Angels, White Sox Particular kudos go to the Rays, the poor kid who went to the head of the class. B students—Cardinals, Brewers, Twins, Phillies, Yankees, Athletics, Marlins, Orioles The Cardinals have a slight edge in the wildcard race. The Yankees, meanwhile, barely scrape together a B. More»

Cubs hurler goes eight-plus innings, knocks in go-ahead run

(NEWSER) - Ryan Dempster struck out a career-high 12 and hit a go-ahead single against Greg Maddux during a four-run fifth inning, leading the Chicago Cubs over the punchless Padres 4-0. Jim Edmonds singled in his debut with the Cubs, who won three of four from the team with the worst record in the major leagues (15-27). More»

(NEWSER) - Khalil Greene hit a three-run home run to help Shawn Estes earn his first victory since 2005 with the San Diego Padres' 4-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night. Estes pitched 5 1-3 innings and the Padres' bullpen secured the win with 3 2-3 innings of hitless relief. Trevor Hoffman pitched a scoreless ninth for his seventh save in nine chances. More»

Cubs beat Padres easily, 12-3

(NEWSER) - Carlos Zambrano won his fifth straight decision and Alfonso Soriano homered in a six-run fifth as the Chicago Cubs won their fourth straight, beating the San Diego Padres 12-3. Pitching with an extra day's rest, Zambrano allowed six hits and three runs in seven innings and also chipped in with his bat. More»

Lily strikes out 10 and drives in tying run

(NEWSER) - Ted Lilly kept his glove on his hand this time. Lilly gave up another homer to Chris Young, but instead of throwing a tantrum the left-hander led the Chicago Cubs over Arizona 3-1 today in the first meeting between the teams since the Diamondbacks' sweep in last year's playoffs. Young homered off Lilly in Game 2 last October during Arizona's 8-4 win, prompting Lilly to slam his glove down. More»