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Theriot helps Cubs top Rockies, claim 10,000th victory

Apr 24, 2008 - 5:07 AM By Brady Delander PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

DENVER (Ticker) - Franchise victory No. 10,000 did not come easily for the Chicago Cubs.

Ryan Theriot hit a two-out, run-scoring single to left field in the top of the 10th inning Wednesday night, giving the Cubs a historic 7-6 victory at Coors Field.

"We really trust our teammates and know that the guy behind you is going to get the job done," Theriot said. "We truly believe that and are starting to see good things happen."

Chicago, which won its sixth straight and ninth in its last 10 games, joins the New York/San Francisco Giants as the only clubs to reach the 10,000-victory milestone. The Cubs are the first to do it in one town, and their overall record has never slipped below .500 since picking up that first win on April 25, 1876.

"That's a lot of history there with the Cubs. ... Congratulations to this organization," said Lou Piniella, who picked up his 100th victory as Chicago's manager. "That was an exciting game. Extremely well played on both sides. Good hitting, good pitching, good clutch hitting ... and our kids battled."

Kerry Wood (2-0) picked up the victory despite allowing one run and two hits in one inning of work.

The Cubs opened up a 2-0 lead in the second inning thanks in part to a solo home run from Geovany Soto. Soto ended the game a triple shy of hitting for the cycle.

Aramis Ramirez followed up a triple by Derrek Lee with an RBI-double to give the Cubs a 3-0 lead in the fifth inning.

But the Rockies took the momentum in the sixth. Clint Barmes led off the inning with home run, and Cubs starter Rich Hill walked the next batter, Todd Helton, before getting pulled. Garrett Atkins stayed hot with an RBI-single that scored Helton and the Cubs were forced to use four pitchers before getting out of the inning.

Before that happened, however, Troy Tulowitzki cleared the bases with a three-run homer to give the Rockies a 5-3 lead.

Hill did not factor in the decision in the game, but was still pleased to be part of the notable victory.

"It's cool to be a part of that," Hill said. "Not too many teams have 10,000 victories, so that was fun."

Chicago added a run in the eighth inning and reclaimed the lead in the ninth when Ramirez crushed a 1-2 pitch from Rockies closer Manny Corpas for a two-run homer.

"Aramis' homer was huge," Theriot said. "Then they came back, but I just had the feeling that somehow we could come back and do it again."

Colorado's Ryan Spilborghs evened the score and sent the game into extra innings with a triple to score Scott Podsednik.

For the fourth straight game, however, Colorado saw a lead after seven innings turn into a loss on the arms of its struggling bullpen. Carlos Marmol, on the other hand, held the lead for Chicago with a 1-2-3 final frame against the heart of the Rockies' order.

"We need to keep our focus on moving forward and putting the best competitive club we can on (the field)," Colorado manager Clint Hurdle said. "We might not have as much patience this year as we had in other years when we're developing people."