Cliff Floyd's Father in Critical Condition, and Aramis Ramirez Headed to DL

While many things have been going the Cubs way lately in the win column, the same can't be said off the field. First, Aramis Ramirez injured his knee running out a ground ball, and now Cliff Floyd is having family issues, and had to leave just before Friday's game to go home and tend to his ailing father. As Cliff prepared for Friday night's game, he was reminded that baseball is indeed just that -- a game -- getting a major dose of perspective about an hour and a half before first pitch. Cliff Floyd, originally penciled in to start in right field and bat fourth Friday night, was a last-minute scratch and left the team to fly home to Chicago to be with his father.

The Cubs put Floyd on the bereavement list, meaning that the earliest he can return to action is Monday night's makeup game with Houston at Wrigley Field. Shortstop Mike Fontenot, who turns 27 on Saturday, will be called up from Triple-A Iowa to replace Floyd and spend his birthday with the Cubs in Atlanta. Fontenot, who is currently fourth in the Pacific Coast League in hitting with a .343 average in 53 games, has played in nine Major League games, including two against the Mets in mid-May, when he went 1-for-2 with a double and a run scored. Ironically, Cubs manager Lou Piniella talked before the game about the possibility of bringing up another infielder, specifically Fontenot, to shore up the depleted infield with the injury to third baseman Aramis Ramirez. "If we looked at another infielder here, the kid would be Fontenot," said Piniella. "We brought him up once for a couple of days. He's played really well down there since he's gone back. I would think that would be the kid that we would bring up."