The other day I mentioned what a different look and feel the Cubs lineup has with Reed Johnson and/or Felix Pie in it. Perhaps it's the rally-killing tendencies of Jim Edmonds. Or maybe it's the productivity at the bottom of the lineup. Or maybe it's that Lou seems to put the offense in motion more on those days. I don't know. Whatever the reason, it was proven again last night, as the Cubs pounded out 19 hits -- including a three-run HR by Johnson -- and beat the Pirates 12-3. And it was a fantastic Cubs win all around.

Personally, I'm having a hard time deciding whether the star of the night was Carlos Zambrano, or the bottom-half of the Cubs lineup. Well actually, maybe not. Carlos was masterful; going seven strong innings, and 4-5 at the plate. With two RBI, no less. In addition to his 7-1 record, 2.47 ERA, and 1.17 WHIP this season, he's now sporting an absolutely gaudy .343/.343/.486 batting line. And make no mistake, Zambrano still looked fresh enough in the seventh to go another inning or two, if the situation hadn't dictated taking him out.

But the bottom half of the Cubs lineup was incredible. With Kosuke Fukudome getting the night off, Geovany Soto was moved to fifth in the lineup, with Ronny Cedeno playing 2B, and Mark DeRosa getting a start in right, and hitting sixth. That proved to be a formidable combination for the Cubs, as 5-9 hitters went 11-18, with a walk, and that Johnson home run in the 5th.

And they got to Pirates starters Zach Duke both early and often. The Cubs opened the game with probably the oddest first inning you'll see this year. Alfonso Soriano leads off with a double to right that appeared to be in slow motion all the way around. Xavier Nady sails to what looked like a catchable ball, allowing it to hit off the wall. Soriano legs out the double, practically dragging his left leg to the base, barely beating the throw. After a short flyout to right by Theriot, in which Alfonso doesn't even tag up, trainer Mark O'Neal comes out, only to be shooed away initially. On the next ball hit to right, another incredibly catchable ball - which should have easily doubled off Soriano, who was streaking around 3rd base at the time -- Nady drops it, allowing the first run to score.

From then on the Cubs cruised, scoring at least one run in each of the next four innings. Those runs were partially due to good hitting, and partially due to a Pirates defense that couldn't get out of its own way. Whether it was the botched double-play attempts in the 2nd and 3rd, or the mishandled play on the Theriot bunt in the 4th, they just did not look ready to compete. Frankly, I'm looking forward to seeing this series end. The Cubs don't see the Pirates again until August, and I'm glad. You can get a false sense of where a team is when you play an opponent so frequently during a stretch, and tend to beat them so handily. I'm looking forward to the next homestand, if only to see what the Cubs do against a much more competitive Dodgers team. Until then I guess, keep beating those Pirates lefties.