Gossip Corner: Cubs Rally

Fans can cheer on the Cubs and gear up for the playoffs at today’s free Postseason Rally at noon CT at Daley Plaza in downtown Chicago.

Chicago’s thrilling comeback victory before a wild crowd at Wrigley Field kept the Cubs in first by one game over Milwaukee, which beat Houston 6-0.

• Watch it live • Postseason Rally ‘08 • Gear • Game 1: Wed., 5:30 p.m.

Floyd hit a go-ahead two-run single in the ninth inning, when the Cubs rallied against Tim Lincecum for a 5-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night.

Mark DeRosa hit a go-ahead single against a five-man infield — tying his career best with his fifth hit of the game — as the Chicago Cubs rallied for three runs in the ninth inning to beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-6 Monday night and hang onto first place in the NL Central.

For the second year in a row, the Cubs have won the National League Central, and you can buy the gear from the celebration at Wrigley right now.

Ryan Theriot doubled to start the ninth, Jacque Jones followed with a base hit before Derrek Lee’s RBI single tied the game at 1.

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Cliff Floyd had been away from the Chicago Cubs for nine days dealing with the death of his father.

DeRosa hit a sharp grounder to the right of the mound, and second baseman Brandon Phillips couldn’t come up with the ball as the winning run scored.

Photo: Lou Piniella makes his 12th trip to the postseason, and seventh as a manager.

Aramis Ramirez then drove a ball to right-center that center fielder Norris Hopper couldn’t reach with a dive, and the ball went all the way to the wall for a two-run triple.

Pinch-hitter Daryle Ward was walked intentionally, and Cincinnati then used five infielders, bringing Hopper in from center field.

The Reds protested the game, saying Chicago manager Lou Piniella made an illegal double switch in the sixth inning because he did not go directly to the plate umpire.

Tickets to see the Cubs face the Dodgers at Wrigley Field in the NLDS are available on StubHub, the official fan-to-fan ticket marketplace of the Cubs.

Ken Griffey Jr.’s RBI single made it a two-run cushion.

Hopper’s RBI grounder put the Reds ahead in the third, but Floyd and DeRosa hit back-to-back two-out homers in the bottom half for a 3-1 lead.

Following an error by Lee, who dropped DeRosa’s throw from second to first on Hopper’s bunt single in the fifth, Cincinnati went ahead 4-3 on RBI singles by Keppinger and Phillips plus a broken-bat, run-scoring forceout by Adam Dunn.

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Barry Bonds, who has a record 760 home runs, returned to the lineup after two days off.

Cubs starter Jason Marquis had won his last two starts, but this time the right-hander went seven innings — the first time he’d gone longer than 6 2-3 innings since beating Arizona on July 20.

He struck out five and walked five, two intentional, allowed three hits and one run.

With runners at the corners and one out, Dunn beat the replay throw as the Cubs attempted a double play.

Ryan Dempster has gone from starter to elbow surgery to closer and back to starter, and his team-leading 17 wins earned him the NLDS Game 1 start.

As Lou Piniella leads the Cubs into the playoffs for a second straight year, he is not heaping 100 years of expectations on his team, but his goal is clear.

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He went 0-for-3 with a strikeout and his 37th intentional walk, his 122nd overall.

Photo: Carlos Zambrano, who struggled in his last two starts, is a top storyline.

The Cubs trailed 6-4 when Ryan Theriot worked out a leadoff walk off Reds closer David Weathers , and Derrek Lee followed with a single.

Kendall, the Cubs’ No. 8 hitter, reached base twice against Lincecum, with a single to start the sixth and a two-out walk in the eighth.