Philadelphia @ Chicago preview
Wrigley Field
Last Meeting ( Jul 17, 2010 ) Philadelphia 4, Chi. Cubs 1
Roy Halladay has visited Wrigley Field just once during his 12-year career.
He soaked in its charm but walked away without a victory.
That was over five years ago, and the All-Star hurler will do his best not to repeat that outing on Sunday when the Philadelphia Phillies (48-42) and Chicago Cubs (41-51) wrap up a four-game set at the Windy City landmark.
Halladay (10-7, 2.19 ERA) is actually 0-for-2 in his impressive career against the Cubs, who are one of four major league clubs that the 33-year-old hurler has not defeated.
He suffered the loss when the visiting Toronto Blue Jays were upended 2-0 by Chicago on June 8, 2005. The veteran right-hander would like to amend that record, but to do so, he'll need a bit of run support.
In his last outing on July 10, Halladay held the Cincinnati Reds scoreless for nine innings and struck out nine in the process. Remarkably, he was the second-most impressive hurler that night as rookie Travis Wood flirted with a perfect game.
Halladay settled for a no-decision after the Phillies pushed a run across in the 11th, but the lack of run support has been a repetitive theme of late. The hurler has pitched eight innings in five of his last seven outings, with only two wins to show for it.
On Saturday, Philadelphia's offense didn't get the memo until the ninth inning - when it erupted for four runs en route to a 4-1 victory over the Cubs.
Placido Polanco and Raul Ibanez had RBI singles, Ross Gload scored on a wild pitch and Jayson Werth added a bases-loaded walk as the Phillies snapped a modest two-game losing streak.
While the offense deserves a pat on the back, Cubs fans might like to give Carlos Marmol (2-2) a more aggressive gesture. The closer permitted four runs on one hit with five walks in two-thirds of an inning to take the loss.
Offensively, the Cubs were paced by All-Star Marlon Byrd, Derrek Lee and rookie Starlin Castro, who had two hits apiece.
The Cubs will look to claim three of four games in this series when they send Tom Gorzelanny (4-5, 3.16 ERA) to the hill.
The 28-year-old left-hander has improved with each outing since returning to the starting rotation. In his last start on July 10, Gorzelanny allowed two runs and six hits while striking seven in a 7-3 triumph over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Gorzelanny has faced the Phillies already this season, tossing 6 2/3 scoreless innings as the Cubs cruised to a 4-1 victory on May 19.