San Diego @ Chicago preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 18, 2010 ) San Diego 5, Chi. Cubs 1

Mat Latos makes his first career visit to Wrigley Field on Thursday – and if he continues pitching the way he has all season, it could be a great one.

Latos looks for his 13th victory of the season as the National League West-leading San Diego Padres eye a sweep of the host Chicago Cubs. The Padres enter the game with a 5 1/2 game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the NL West, while the Cubs are playing for next year – again – as they sit 18 1/2 games back in the NL Central.

Latos (12-5) has excelled in his second season. The 6-foot-6 right-hander has allowed more than three runs only twice all season, and has limited opponents to two runs or fewer in every start since June 4.

The only place Latos has struggled of late is in the win column. The 22-year-old has just one victory in his last four starts despite allowing only four runs through 23 innings during that stretch.

He'll have a chance to feast on a Cubs team that has lost six of its last eight games, and dealt first baseman Derrek Lee to the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday for a trio of minor leaguers.

Lee's departure makes an anemic Cubs offense even more barren. Chicago produced just six runs through the first three games of the series, and while Lee wasn't exactly tearing it up this season, he still managed 16 homers and 56 RBIs in 109 games.

Chicago sends enigmatic right-hander Carlos Zambrano (4-6, 5.27) to the mound against a San Diego offense that has scored 15 runs through the first three games of the series.

This was supposed to be a bounce-back year for Zambrano, who won just nine games last season. The 29-year-old has struggled for most of the season while suffering from the same blowups and meltdowns that have plagued him throughout his career, resulting in a stint on the restricted list and banishment to the bullpen.

Zambrano has pitched better in two starts since rejoining the rotation last week. He settled for a no-decision against San Francisco after allowing only two runs through 5 2/3 innings, then limited St. Louis to two runs over five innings in a 3-2 win over the rival Cardinals.

Zambrano has enjoyed a measure of success against the Padres in his career, going 6-2 with a 2.71 ERA over 63 innings.