Milwaukee @ Chicago preview
Wrigley Field
Last Meeting ( Jun 10, 2010 ) Chi. Cubs 4, Milwaukee 5
The Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs seem to be in the same boat right now, but it looks like the Brewers believe they have a brighter future.
They will be looking to kick off that future when they open a three-game series against the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Monday.
It looked for a little while like Milwaukee would be one of the biggest movers at the trading deadline, since they were the proud owners of power bats. But instead of selling Prince Fielder and Corey Hart to the highest bidders, the Brewers hung on to their stockpile of talent, perhaps hoping that a late surge this season would give them some momentum for a big 2011 campaign.
Hart’s All-Star first half made him a target of plenty of teams last week - most notably the San Francisco Giants - but the Brewers could not pry away the young pitcher they were looking for from any of the teams that inquired.
A pitcher is certainly what Milwaukee will need if it hopes to compete next season, as the staff ranks 14th in the National League in ERA and opponents batting average while the offense has put up the fourth most runs in the league.
Chicago was more active, sending Ted Lilly and Ryan Theriot away to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but they could not get Derrek Lee to agree to a trade. In addition, the Cubs will always have a hard time trying to find teams willing to take on the money owed to under-achieving players like Aramis Ramirez, Carlos Zambrano and Alfonso Soriano.
Soriano did manage to club his 19th homer on Sunday and almost had a second one in the ninth before being robbed at the wall by Colorado Rockies center fielder Dexter Fowler. The stolen home run gave the Rockies an 8-7 win and a series sweep. The Cubs have dropped five in a row overall.
Looking to push that streak to six will be Milwaukee ace Yovani Gallardo. The undisputed best pitcher on the otherwise sad staff, Gallardo will be looking to bounce back after taking a beating from the Cincinnati Reds last week. The right-hander lasted just 2 2/3 innings in the contest, allowing six runs - five earned - and a season-high 10 hits.
He dominated in his last start against Chicago, however, tossing seven scoreless innings while striking out seven. In his career, Gallardo owns a 1-1 record with a 4.30 ERA in five starts against the Cubs.
Chicago will counter with right-hander Randy Wells, who is coming off a loss at Houston last week in which he allowed three runs in 5 2/3 innings.
Wells started twice against the Brewers in April, not factoring in the decision on April 14 and earning a win while yielding two runs in seven innings on April 25.