Houston @ Chicago preview
Wrigley Field
Last Meeting ( Apr 17, 2010 ) Houston 4, Chi. Cubs 3
Wins have been hard to come by for the Houston Astros so far this season, and Wandy Rodriguez hasn’t been much help.
Rodriguez will be looking to give his team its first winning streak of the season when the Astros meet the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.
After posting a 3.02 ERA in 2009 and posting 193 strikeouts in 205 2/3 innings en route to a 14-12 mark, the Astros were counting on Rodriguez to pair with Roy Oswalt at the top of the rotation. But while Oswalt has held up his end of the bargain, Rodriguez has yet to get on track in 2010.
The left-hander has allowed seven runs while striking out four over 10 1/3 innings so far and complained of shoulder soreness following a 4 1/3-inning stint at St. Louis on Monday. Rodriguez said he did not expect to have problems with the shoulder going forward.
He has had plenty of success against the Cubs in the past, allowing three earned runs in 20 innings over three starts against the division rivals in 2009.
The Houston offense – the least efficient unit in the majors so far this season – has done Rodriguez no favors, failing to score in either of the 31-year-old’s outings and managing just 25 runs through the first 11 games.
With Lance Berkman on the disabled list and sluggers Carlos Lee and Hunter Pence sporting batting averages just over the .100 mark, the Astros turned to J.R. Towles to spark the offense Saturday. The light-hitting catcher went 3-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs in the 4-3 win.
Oswalt left Saturday’s contest after seven scoreless innings but had to watch as Brandon Lyon allowed three runs in the eighth. Matt Lindstrom tossed a scoreless ninth for the save.
Chicago has seen a resurgence at the plate from slugger Alfonso Soriano lately. After getting booed by the home fans last week, Soriano has gone 4-for-7 with a pair of RBIs in the first two against Houston, though he did make another error in left field Saturday.
Ryan Dempster will get the start for the Cubs in the series finale. The veteran right-hander is coming off a win against the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday despite allowing five runs and walking four in 6 1/3 innings. He was stronger in his first start, striking out nine while surrendering one run in a no-decision.
Dempster did not factor in the decision in any of his three starts against Houston last season, allowing a total of nine runs – eight earned - in 18 innings.