No more monkey business for Zambrano

Carlos Zambrano wasn't going to let a lack of potassium cramp his style, nor his sense of humor.

"A lot of water and Gatorade and bananas," the Cubs' ace said of his diet to stop late-inning pain in his right arm. "Sometimes I go home and I feel full, too many bananas."

Like more than one a day?

"More than one," he replied. "I feel like a monkey now."

Next thing you know, he'll be swinging from the vines, because in two starts this year Zambrano has been nearly untouchable, including Sunday's 3-2 victory over the Astros.

Last April, after predicting he would win a Cy Young Award, he was 2-2 with a 5.77 ERA. This April, with no predictions, he is 1-0 with a 1.32 ERA, including seven strong innings Sunday.

"I think [like] this is June," said Zambrano, who usually is at his best in mid-summer. "It's very important to have a fast start, like our manager says. When the summer comes, we want to be in much better shape."

The manager, Lou Piniella, is starting to see his "fast start" hopes come around, with the Cubs ending their first week at home by winning two games in a row and three of the last four.

Sunday worked just like Piniella had it drawn up in spring training: Seven innings, two runs and no walks from Zambrano, perfect innings from Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood (save No. 3 in three tries) and Derrek Lee blasting the ball all over the park.

Lee followed his 4-for-4 Saturday with a 2-for-3 Sunday that included his third home run, a tiebreaking solo shot in the bottom of the seventh. He is hitting .400.

"You just want to hit all the time really, but, yeah it's good to get off to a good start," he said.

Neither Aramis Ramirez nor Alfonso Soriano is off to a good start, but both enjoyed a bit of a breakthrough Sunday. Ramirez went 2-for-3 after a 2-for-13 start and Soriano homered to lead off the fifth and has his average up to .077.

But just as importantly for the Cubs was Soriano's first-inning double-play throw from left field that nailed Astros leadoff man Michael Bourn at home plate. It took Zambrano off the hook after Bourn and Hunter Pence started the game with a single and double, respectively.

"Sometimes when you have trouble hitting, you have to help with your defense," Soriano said.

Zambrano is starting April where he left off in September. Before the Astros scored in the third, he had thrown 212/3 scoreless innings and had not allowed a run in three straight starts dating to Sept. 23 against the Pirates. He also threw seven shutout innings Sept. 28 in Cincinnati and 62/3 shutout innings on Opening Day against the Brewers.

"I am throwing the ball where I want and using my pitches," he said. "The key is to just pound the zone and throw strikes. Like my pitching coach [Larry Rothschild] told me in spring training, get the first pitch for a strike and that will be the key all year."

That and, of course, eating plenty of bananas.

dvandyck@tribune.com

Related topic galleries: Chicago Cubs, Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez, Kerry Wood, Major League Baseball, Lou Piniella, Milwaukee Brewers

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