Colorado @ Chicago preview
Wrigley Field
Last Meeting ( Apr 1, 2010 ) Colorado 0, Chi. Cubs 2
With the highest payroll in the National League and a roster full of former All-Stars, the Chicago Cubs should not be drawing the scorn of their manager this early in the season.
The Cubs will be looking to play themselves out of their manager Lou Piniella's doghouse when they open a two-game set against the Colorado Rockies on Monday.
Piniella opened up to the media after Chicago fell to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday, suggesting that it was time for his team to live up to its talent and score runs consistently. The veteran manager said that while his team's effort wasn't the problem, consistency from the offense and the bullpen have been in short supply.
The biggest mystery on the Cubs this season has been the absent bats of Aramis Ramirez and Derek Lee, who entered Sunday's game batting .170 and .230, respectively.
Piniella's rant worked on his team briefly, as Chicago squeezed out a 4-3 win over the Pirates in Sunday's finale to avoid a sweep. Lee went 2-for-4 and drove in the go-ahead run in the seventh, but Ramirez went hitless again.
The Cubs' bullpen showed up as well, with Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmol combining to strike out three in two hitless innings.
But even with the win, Chicago has still dropped nine of its last 12 to fall six games below .500.
The Rockies, on the other hand, are cruising into the series winners of three straight and four of five. Former staff ace Jeff Francis was activated off the disabled list and made his first start of the season on Sunday, holding the Nationals to one run on seven hits in seven innings.
Francis kept Colorado in it until Brad Hawpe managed to squeeze home a run with a sacrifice fly in the eighth to forge a 2-1 victory.
The strong pitching and low run support has been a staple of the Rockies attack recently, as the club has managed a total of 16 runs in their last four wins. Todd Helton - a career .327 hitter with 325 homers - has yet to hit a home run this season and is batting just .255 after a 1-for-2 showing on Sunday.
Helton and company will be taking their cuts against right-hander Randy Wells on Monday. The 27-year-old sophomore has lost his last two starts while allowing a total of 10 runs - nine earned - in 10 innings.
Wells made one start against Colorado during his 2009 rookie campaign and got tagged for seven runs - five earned - and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings to absorb the loss.
The Rockies will counter with veteran sinkerballer Aaron Cook. The former All-Star is coming off a quality start against the Philadelphia Phillies last week in which he allowed three runs and eight hits in six innings but did not record a decision.
Cook has been unusually unsteady with his control so far this season, issuing 20 walks in 40 1/3 innings. He allowed a total of 47 free passes in 158 innings last season and 48 in 211 1/3 frames during his 2008 All-Star campaign.
The right-hander has fared well in his career against the Cubs, owning a 3-1 record with a 3.62 ERA in six games - five starts. Ramirez is 0-for-10 in his career against Cook while Lee has handled him well at 5-for-13.