Thoughts going into this weekend’s three-game set with the Philadelphia Phillies:

• Two convincing wins over the Reds (at least once convincing, I guess) don’t make up for the humiliations against St. Louis. They do, however, put the Cubs back on track for the wild card race. I won’t make any predictions about how the three games in Philly work out, but it is safe to say they’re pretty important, especially when you consider the season series against the Phils ends about 10 days from now back at Wrigley. There’s no doubt the Phillies will factor in the wild card race. A repeat of last year’s effort (a measly 1-5 against Philly) is pretty much unacceptable.

• Sammy SOS is upset about getting booed at home? Well, Sam, this is the kind of thing that happens when: A, you play in front of 40,000 people who want to see a World Series win before they die; and B, you go 4 for 26 after the All-Star break including repeated strikeouts with runners on base while your team manages to score just 3.6 runs per game. The Cubs have definitely shaken their "lovable loser" tag, but might not have expected the differences in playing as the favorite as opposed to the underdog.

• Carlos Zambrano was suspended for five games because he intentionally threw at Jim Edmonds. Meanwhile, Matt Morris threw at Corey Patterson, admitted he did it on purpose, and has yet to hear from the league. Furthermore, when Sosa got caught cheating, he ended up with a seven-day vacation. At least one of these punishments did not fit the crime. Fortunately, Zambrano probably will have his suspension reduced and, if the schedule lines up, probably will not have to miss a start.

• LaTroy Hawkins’ three-game suspension is deserved. That guy went absolutely psycho on umpire Tim Tschida. I do think, however, he should get at least one game knocked off because his tirade provided us the comic stylings of Wendell Kim trying to hold Hawkins back. Meanwhile, in case no one’s noticed, the new Cubs’ closer (if Hawk happens to be out at the right time) could be Ryan Dempster, according to the Chicago Tribune. Paul Sullivan reported Dempster could be with the big club as early as next weekend. I say the kid deserves a shot in the bullpen. It’s just the kind of thing that could ignite the team for the stretch run.

Read this and other random spillage from my brain at Salmagundi Online.