Cubs' Dempster pitches a fit in loss

Ryan Dempster was not a happy camper Wednesday.

He was the losing pitcher as the Chicago Cubs fell 3-2 to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the series finale at PNC Park and lasted six innings, giving up five hits and three runs. But what made him upset was manager Dale Sveum's decision to take him out of the game before the bottom of the seventh inning.

Dempster went on a dugout tirade after being replaced. He tossed a cooler lid, the cooler and then flung his sports drink against the dugout wall.

"No, I'm OK," Dempster said later. "I'm fine. I'm allowed to be upset. I respect him (Sveum) a lot. That's his decision. It doesn't mean I have to be happy about it. At the end of the day, he's just trying to do what's best for the ballclub. I have nothing but respect for that. Just the competitor in me wants to get out there and keep trying to pitch."

The Cubs led 2-1 before Dempster gave up single runs in the fifth and sixth as the Pirates went ahead for good. That, as much as being pulled, was the source of the irritation, according to Dempster.

"That's all it was," he said. "I've been taken out of plenty of games, so it's not a big deal."

Sveum chalked it up to Dempster's competitiveness.

"People are competitive, and sometimes they're going to get upset about things," the manager said.

Dempster also has been through a stressful week, some it his own making, after apparently vetoing a trade to the Atlanta Braves. Dempster has 10-and-5 rights (10 years in the majors, the last five with the same team) and has the power to disallow any trade involving him. Earlier in the day, Braves GM Frank Wren told an Atlanta radio station a deal for Dempster now is "highly unlikely" and that the Braves have "moved on."

Dempster said he understands.

"They can't worry about waiting around for me to make my decision," he said. "I understand that fully, and if that's still an option down the road, that's something I'm going to look at. I'm going to try to make the best decision for me and my family."

The Cubs have an off day Thursday before opening a weekend series at home Friday against the Cardinals. Dempster long has been a popular player at Wrigley Field, so it will be interesting to see how he is received this weekend and if he makes another start for the Cubs next week.