RECALLING THE WHITE FLAG: Okay, so I don't give up on the Cubs. I take it back. But man-oh-man were they embarassing yesterday. I was so thrilled to see them put eight runs on Matt Morris early...and then I sat there in disbelief as they found various ways the rest of the game to play bad and look worse, resulting in a backbreaking loss.

Still, there was that little glimmer in the ninth where I sensed they just might come back. And so I started feeling bad about my post, my early white flag. Thing is this team is still dead-center in the wildcard race, still a formidable club that can beat anyone on any given day.

So now I'm looking for Hendry to make a deal. We need a shortstop and some bullpen help, for sure. We could probably use another super-sub, given that Hollandsworth may be out for a while and Aramis is a gimp. C'mon, Hendry. Nose back to grindstone. Phone to shoulder. I promise not to give up if you don't.

Meanwhile, it's time to see some character from this team. No more temper tantrums. No more excuses. Let's see how big a dent we can put into St. Looey's 10-game lead. Let's see how quickly we can lock up the wildcard. And let's see a chance for vengeance against those Cardinals in the playoffs. Heck, screw vengeance. Let's redeem ourselves, earn back some of the respect that was handed away in the past 48 hours.