The Cubs made it a clean sweep tonight, winning all three games against the Dodgers at Wrigley Field. L.A. had a 1-0 lead going into the bottom of the 9th, but Saito was definitely off his game as his pitches veered outside and up high as he loaded up the bases through a combination of walks and hits. Soriano sealed the Dodgers’ fate in the 10th against Chan Ho Park by singling to left field, driving in Fonetnot for the winning run.

Perhaps the most telling statistic was one that Chris Berman mentioned on the ESPN feed tonight. For the series, the Dodgers were only 3-27 with runners in scoring position and were 0-5 on the night after leaving the bases loaded in the top of the 9th.

To be sure, injuries have decimated the hitting squad for the Dodgers, with Nomar on the DL and Jeff Kent suffering from back spasms – not to mention Rafael Furcal’s back problems. Garciaparra will undergo additional tests on Friday to assess his nagging calf strain, but there’s been no indication from the Dodger camp that anyone is optimistic about his return anytime soon.

So what are the Dodgers to do in the meantime (other than pray that the D-Backs continue their slide and keep the 3.5 game spread between them and the Dogers in place)? Torre has certainly been willing to take chances with the lineup as of late (remember when Loney ended up being the key pinch hitter in Game 1 of this series and struck out?) but nothing could muster more than one run in each game against the Cubbies.

Thoughts welcome…