CHICAGO -- Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said it best after his team's 11-game win streak ended in Saturday's 8-4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals:
"That's an example of what the team looks like without (Pedro) Strop and (Hector) Rondon," he stated.
Without two of the Cubs top relievers Maddon called upon young Carl Edwards Jr. then veteran Joe Smith to keep the game tied 2-2 in the eighth inning, but Edwards had little command and newcomer Smith gave up his third home run -- a grand slam to Randal Grichuk -- in just five appearances since being acquired, turning a close game into a blowout.