When they play the Cubs, the Pittsburgh Pirates hardly resemble a last-place team.The numbers are almost staggering. When Brad Lincoln pitched seven strong innings Wednesday for his first major league win, lifting the Pirates over the Cubs 2-0 it was Pittsburgh’s ninth win in 12 tries against the free falling Northsiders. Those nine wins represent one-third of the Pirates’ victory total (27) this season. And closer Octavio Dotel, who pitched a scoreless ninth, has seven of his 16 saves against the Cubs.Unfortunately for the Pirates — and maybe fortunately for the Cubs — the teams meet only three more times this season.Pittsburgh broke a scoreless tie in the eighth with two unearned runs when Andy LaRoche reached on Aramis Ramirez’s error with one out, Andrew McCutchen singled and Garrett Jones drove a ball off the ivy in left-center for a run-scoring double against reliever Andrew Cashner (0-3).After an intentional walk to Ryan Doumit loaded the bases, reliever Sean Marshall struck out Pedro Alvarez, but walked Lastings Milledge to make it 2-0.Lincoln (1-2) allowed just four hits in seven innings, the longest outing of his career in just his fifth major league start. He walked one and struck out six. Joel Hanrahan pitched the eighth before Dotel finished up the five-hit shutout.It marked the sixth time in the past 11 games the punchless Cubs have scored one run or fewer. They had a leadoff man on base five times Wednesday, but couldn’t come through with a clutch hit. And in the three-game series against the Pirates, they managed just four runs.

“This game here was a nice little synopsis of what our season has been like,” Piniella added. No kidding! With the wind blowing in at 16 mph, Alfonso Soriano’s long drive to left stayed in and was caught by Jose Tabata in the fifth. Soriano had homered twice Tuesday night.One out later, Starlin Castro lined a double over first base to put runners at second and third before Lincoln struck out pinch-hitter Tyler Colvin.Former Pirate Tom Gorzelanny, making his first start since May 26 and back in the rotation with Carlos Zambrano on the restricted list following his outburst at U.S. Cellular Field on Friday, pitched five shutout innings for the Cubs, allowing four hits before being lifted for Colvin.

NOTES—LaRoche made his fourth career start at second base. Infielders Neil Walker (concussion) and Bobby Crosby (concussion-like symptoms) are both out….The Pirates finished their nine-game road trip to Texas, Oakland and Chicago at 2-7 — both wins at Wrigley Field.

KANSAS CITY—Billy Butler and Jose Guillen homered and Zack Greinke survived a five-run eighth inning Wednesday night, leading the Kansas City Royals past the White Sox 7-6.Guillen also made a great catch of Mark Kotsay’s leadoff drive in the ninth against Joakim Soria, banging into the right-field wall and falling to the ground but keeping the ball in his glove.Greinke (4-8) won for the third time in four starts. He sailed into the eighth with a 7-1 lead, but a pinch-hit, bases-loaded triple by Brent Lillibridge keyed a comeback attempt.Soria relieved Greinke to begin the ninth and closed for his 20th save in 22 opportunities.Butler’s 422-foot solo shot in the first stopped Jake Peavy’s scoreless string at 21 2/3 consecutive innings, the longest active streak in the majors.Butler added an RBI single and Guillen hit a three-run shot in a four-run seventh as the Royals took two out of three from the White Sox, who had had won six straight series during a 16-3 surge, has lost three of four since an 11-game winning streak.Omar Vizquel’s one-out triple in the fourth nudged the 21-year veteran past Luis Aparicio for second on all-time among shortstops with 2,675 hits. Alex Rios followed with an RBI single that tied it 1.Peavy (7-6) was charged with three runs on seven hits in six innings, with two walks and five strikeouts. The loss ended a three-game winning personal winning streak for the veteran right-hander.Greinke ran into trouble in the eighth when four straight singles made it 7-2. The triple by Lillibridge and an RBI grounder by Alex Rios trimmed the lead to a run. Greinke gave 10 hits, with no walks and three strikeouts.Butler, raising his lifetime stats against Peavy to 4 for 9 with three home runs, drove a 3-2 pitch over the fence. Alberto Callaspo and Yuniesky Betancourt had RBIs in the sixth inning off Peavy.In the seventh, Butler’s RBI single was followed by Guillen’s 409-foot shot, two days after his career-best 21-game hitting streak had been stopped.

NOTES—KC outfielder David DeJesus, batting a team-best .331 but 0 for 11 against Peavy, got the night off. … Umpire Alfonso Marquez, who left Monday night’s game with shortness of breath and heat stress and was treated at a hospital, worked home plate. Marquez also sat out Tuesday night. … Reliever Erick Threets threw out Callaspo from a sitting position after fielding his hard grounder behind his back. … Greinke became the 12th Royal to pitch 1,000 innings.

The Blackhawks have continued to unload players from their Stanley Cup Championship team as they sent forward to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a five-player deal.Versteeg had 44 points in 79 regular-season games last season and added 14 points in the playoffs.The got forwards Viktor Stalberg, Chris DiDomenico and Philippe Paradis. The Leafs also get the rights to left-winger Bill Sweatt. The Hawks have also dealt Dustin Byfuglien,Brent Sopel,Ben Eager and Colin Fraser.

KANSAS CITY—Gavin Floyd pitched into the seventh inning to earn his first win in five weeks as the White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals 4-3 on Tuesday night.Floyd, who was 0-3 with a 2.79 ERA in six starts since beating Florida on May 22, held the Royals to three runs, one unearned, and seven hits in 6 2/3 innings. In his previous two 2010 starts against the Royals, Floyd was 0-2, allowing 11 runs and 23 hits in 12 1/3 innings.Floyd (3-7) entered the game 0-4 in five career starts at Kauffman Stadium and 1-7 with a 5.53 ERA in 10 career starts against the Royals. He beat them for the first time since June 3, 2008.Royals starter Brian Bannister (7-6) was lifted after four innings, allowing four runs and eight hits on 90 pitches. Bannister lost for the second time in eight starts at Kauffman Stadium.The White Sox hit four consecutive singles in the third inning for three runs. A.J. Pierzynski and Gordon Beckham had run-producing singles, while Davan Viciedo scored on a grounder by Juan Pierre.The White Sox made it 4-0 in the fourth when Beckham doubled and scored on Alexei Ramirez?s two-out single.The Royals trimmed the lead to 4-3 in the fifth on Wilson Betemit?s double that scored Alberto Callaspo, who led off the inning with a single. Scott Podsednik?s single scored Betemit and Yuniesky Betancourt.The Royals loaded the bases on two singles and a walk in the eighth, but J.J. Putz, the third White Sox pitcher, retired Mike Aviles on a fielder?s choice grounder to end the inning. Putz worked the ninth to log his second save in three opportunities. White Sox closer Bobby Jenks is on the bereavement list.White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was ejected in the fourth inning by home plate umpire Tim Timmons, the fourth time he has been thrown out this season.

NOTES—Viciedo, a rookie, started at 3B, his third start since the White Sox promoted him June 18 from Triple-A Charlotte. … OF Andruw Jones, who is hitting .075 (3 for 40) over his past 18 games and has not homered since June 3, was not in the White Sox lineup. … The Royals’ bullpen worked four scoreless innings and has allowed one earned run in 21 2/3 innings over the past eight games. … Royals C Jason Kendall threw out two of three would-be base stealers. Kendall had thrown out only 18 of 80 runners entering the game.

Alfonso Soriano hit two solo home runs and Ted Lilly pitched seven strong innings to lead the Cubs to a 3-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.The Cubs won for the fourth time in 11 games and improved to 3-8 this season against the last-place Pirates.After ending its 17-game road losing streak on Monday night, the Pirates’ offense came on a solo homer by Ryan Doumit in the fifth inning. Overall, the Pirates have lost 19 of their last 22 games and are 25 games below .500 (26-51). Pittsburgh has only scored five runs in its last four games.With unseasonably cool weather and the wind blowing in, Lilly took advantage by getting a number of fly outs. He allowed one run and six hits, struck out five and walked one.Lilly pitched out of a jam in the seventh inning. With runners on second and third and one out, he got Ronny Cedeno to pop out on the first pitch and struck out pinch-hitter Ryan Church.The Cubs have scored 13 runs in the Lilly’s last eight starts.Cubs reliever Sean Marshall pitched a scoreless eighth and Carlos Marmol regained his form for a perfect ninth for his 14th save in 17 opportunities. Marmol allowed the go-ahead RBI single in Monday’s loss and was tagged for three runs in Sunday’s win over the White Sox.Pittsburgh starter Jeff Karstens (2-3) allowed three runs, two earned, and seven hits in six innings. He struck out two and walked one.Koyie Hill doubled with one out in the second and moved to third on Doumit’s passed ball. Starlin Castro then lifted a fly ball to left field and Hill just beat Jose Tabata’s throw standing up.With two outs in the fourth inning, Soriano homered to left on the first pitch.Doumit led off the fifth with his seventh homer of the season, on a 3-2 pitch off Lilly. Soriano gave Lilly an insurance run in the sixth inning with a two-out home run. It was his 13th of the season and second time he’s homered twice in a game this year.

NOTES—Pirates INFs Bobby Crosby and Neil Walker didn’t play because of concussion-like symptoms. Both are listed day-to-day. … The Cubs placed John Grabow on the 15-day DL with a sprained left knee and placed Carlos Zambrano on the restricted list. Relievers James Russell and Jeff Stevens were called up from Triple-A Iowa to fill the roster spots. … Soriano hit two home runs against Arizona on May 2.

Looking to end a long road losing streak, the Pittsburgh Pirates were in the perfect place Monday night: Wrigley Field.Paul Maholm pitched a season-high eight innings, Jose Tabata hit a go-ahead double in the ninth and Pittsburgh ended a 17-game skid away from home with a 2-1 win over the Cubs. The last time the Pirates won on the road was May 25 in a 2-1 victory at Cincinnati. It was their third win in 21 games overall.The Cubs, in the middle of their own turmoil, have been handled all season by the worst team in the National League. They dropped to 2-8 against Pittsburgh this season and are 10 games below .500.Maholm (5-6) allowed one run and seven hits. He did not walk a batter.Octavio Dotel hit Aramis Ramirez with a pitch leading off the ninth but rebounded for his 15th save in 18 chances.Before the game, Carlos Zambrano was placed on the restricted list and the Cubs expect to be without the hot-tempered pitcher until at least the All-Star break.Zambrano has been suspended by the team without pay for the past three games, after he threw a tirade in the dugout Friday that led to a verbal confrontation with teammate Derrek Lee.

“Beginning Wednesday, Carlos will undergo a treatment program with mutually agreed upon doctors from the Players’ Association and Major League Baseball,” general manager Jim Hendry said Monday. “Basically, he will have to follow the treatment for his issues and be evaluated properly, and if the program is acted on properly in accordance to what the doctors they signify he needs to work on and improve on, and follow their directives, Carlos will not be reinstated any time until after the All-Star break.”

Hendry said Zambrano and his agent have not asked for the right-hander to be traded or released. Zambrano is in the middle of a $91.5 million, five-year contract extension he signed in August 2007.

“I’m glad it’s over. I’m glad Carlos is going to get some professional help,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella said.

On an unseasonably cool summer night with the wind blowing in at Wrigley, both teams struggled to get anything going until Ryan Doumit led off the ninth with a single off reliever Andrew Cashner (0-2).After a sacrifice bunt by former Cub Ronny Cedeno, Cashner walked pinch-hitter Ryan Church. Piniella brought in Carlos Marmol, who was greeted by Tabata with a double over the head of center fielder Tyler Colvin, who moved from right field after a double switch.Doumit, who didn’t slide at the plate, just beat the throw to score the go-ahead run.With Zambrano suspended, the Cubs were already down a pitcher before reliever John Grabow left the game in the seventh with a sprained left knee.Pirates right fielder Lastings Milledge and second baseman Bobby Crosby collided while chasing Soto’s bloop double in the second inning. Crosby was checked by a trainer, but stayed in the game temporarily before leaving in the bottom of the third with concussion-like symptoms. He is day to day.Starlin Castro followed with a routine grounder to third baseman Pedro Alvarez, who tried to throw out Ramirez at the plate. But the poor, one-hop throw got by Doumit, allowing Ramirez to score the only Cub run.With two outs in the third, Andrew McCutchen hit a liner toward Colvin in right. Colvin had a chance to make the catch but took a bad route as the ball got by him and rolled to the wall. Tabata scored on the triple to tie it at 1.Marlon Byrd made a diving catch in center on Garrett Jones’ drive, stranding McCutchen.The Cubs had a chance to take the lead in the seventh with first and third and one out, but Ryan Theriot ended the inning with a double play.Cubs starter Randy Wells allowed one run and three hits in six innings. He struck out six and walked four.

NOTES—In the first inning, second base umpire Jerry Meals called Theriot out at second base on a force play even though Cedeno wasn’t close to stepping on the bag. Cedeno unsuccessfully tried to turn a double play on Colvin’s ball. Despite the blown call by Meals, Piniella and Theriot never argued……With a brief ceremony before the game, the Cubs saluted radio analyst and former third baseman Ron Santo, two days after the 50th anniversary of his major league debut…..Brian Schlitter replaced Grabow and struck out two in his big league debut.

　

NOTES—First base umpire Alfonso Marquez left in the fifth inning with symptoms of heat distress and shortness of breath and was taken to St. Luke’s Hospital for evaluation. … Juan Pierre made his eighth start as the White Sox designated hitter, while Andruw Jones started in left. Jones went 0 for 3 and is 3 for 40 in his past 18 games. Kansas City’s bullpen has allowed one run in 17 2/3 innings in the past seven games.

Paul Konerko figured this was right about where the White Sox would be. He never envisioned what it would take to get there, though.Konerko hit his 19th home run to snap an eighth-inning tie and the White Sox won their 11th straight game, beating the struggling Cubs 3-2 on Saturday.The White Sox are on their longest win streak since a 12-game run in June 1961, and they can thank Konerko for keeping it going. He broke a 2-all tie with one out in the eighth when he connected off reliever Andrew Cashner (0-1), sending the White Sox to their 15th victory in 16 games.Konerko turned on a 1-2 pitch and the ball reached the left-center seats in a hurry. Fans broke into a “Paulie! Paulie!” chant as he circled the bases, drawing a curtain call from the slugger.The home run made a winner of J.J. Putz (4-2), who pitched a scoreless eighth after Freddy Garcia went seven innings.Matt Thornton worked the ninth for his third save with closer Bobby Jenks tending to an ailing family member, getting Alfonso Soriano to hit into a game-ending double play after Aramis Ramirez walked.The White Sox (39-34) moved five games above .500 for the first time since last July 23 and into a tie for second in the AL Central with Detroit, 1½ games behind Minnesota.But on June 8, when the White Sox were 24-33 and 9½ games out of first after losing to Detroit? The White Sox turnaround has given some hope to the struggling Cubs, but their misery continues.At least there were no tantrums like the one a screaming Carlos Zambrano delivered in Friday’s 6-0 loss, when he had to be separated from teammate Derrek Lee in the dugout and got sent home following a four-run first. The Cubs suspended Zambrano indefinitely, and manager Lou Piniella said Saturday he won’t have a spot in the rotation when he returns.The Cubs got another good start from Carlos Silva and a leadoff homer from the struggling Aramis Ramirez in the top of the seventh that tied it at 2, but lost for the sixth time in eight games.The White Sox got a run-scoring single from Alex Rios in the third, and quickly regained the lead after Lee singled home a run in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Alexei Ramirez in the bottom half.Aramis Ramirez, in his second game back after missing 15 with a sprained thumb, tied it when he drove a 2-1 pitch from Garcia just over the center-field wall leading off the seventh for his sixth homer, but the Cubs fell to 11-17 in one-run games.Garcia went seven innings, allowing two runs and eight hits, but did not figure in the decision after winning five straight starts. Silva basically matched Garcia, holding the White Sox to two runs and three hits over six innings in another strong start, although he did hit three batters with pitches. Still, the Cubs lost by one again.

NOTES—Guillen expects to have Jenks back on Sunday….The Cubs selected RHP Brian Schlitter from Triple-A Iowa and optioned right-hander Jeff Stevens to the minor league club before the game….The win gives the White Sox the BP Crosstown Cup for taking the season series from the Cubs, but don’t expect them to parade it around town the way the Blackhawks did with the Stanley Cup. “I already tried to give it away,” Konerko said. “It’s kind of cool.” …..If the ‘Hawks hadn’t won the Cup and the thing hadn’t happened with BP — there’s two things working against it.”

ROSEMONT—It wasn’t pretty, but the Rush fought hard and earned its ninth win of the season with a 55-42 win over the Orlando Predators Saturday night at Allstate Arena.The Rush (9-3) won the battle of the defenses, forcing four turnovers and holding Orlando (5-6) to the lowest total given up by the Rush on the year.With the game tied 7-7 early in the first quarter, Rush defensive lineman Joe Peters showed that the focus of the game would be the defenses when he collected his team-leading sixth sack of the year, forcing Predators QB Nick Hill to fumble in the process. The loose ball bounced out of the Predators’ end zone for a safety, giving the Rush a two-point lead and the ball.The Rush took advantage, taking the free kick and scoring when Michna connected with fullback Robert Boss on a 22-yard screen pass that put the Rush up two scores at 16-7.After the teams traded interceptions, Hill tossed an 11-yard TD strike to Robert Quiroga to get the Predators within 16-14.The Rush bounced right back, however, as Boss completed the hat trick, rumbling in from the 6-yard line for his third touchdown of the night, making the score 23-14.After consecutive Orlando touchdowns gave the Preds a 28-23 lead with 43 seconds left in the first half, the Rush got the ball back and marched 29 yards to get in position for a 31-yard field goal as time expired. The kick sent the teams into the half with the score 28-26.The Rush got the ball to start the second half and quickly regained the lead as Michna connected with Travis LaTendresse on an eight yard score that put the Rush on top 33-28.After a Predator score made it 35-33, Chris Gould connected on his second field goal try of the night putting the Rush back on top 36-35.A botched snap on the next Predators possession proved to be the game’s final turning point. The fumbled snap was recovered by Rush linebacker Clifton Smith at the Orlando 3-yard line. On the very next play Michna dove into the end zone to give the Rush a 43-35 lead going into the fourth quarter.The teams again traded touchdowns before a Chris Martin interception and another Gould field goal extended the Rush lead to 53-42.A second Orlando safety with25 seconds remaining put the cap on the win.

NOTES—Michna finished the game 22 of 35 for 231 yards, four TDs and one interception. His interception was his first since May 15 and broke a string of 131 consecutive attempts without a pick … Gould connected on all six PAT attempts, extending his streak of consecutive PATs to 34, breaking Dan Frantz team record of 32 … Gould also had a career three made field goal and finished with a season high 15 points … Boss finished with 60 receiving yards, nine rushing yards and three touchdowns…..The Rush play at Tampa Bay Friday night with a 6:20pm pre game show on www.arenarush.com