Chicago @ Washington preview
Nationals Park
Last Meeting ( Aug 24, 2010 ) Chi. Cubs 5, Washington 4
The Chicago Cubs take on the Washington Nationals looking close out a three-game sweep in a Wednesday matinee at Nationals Park.
The Cubs got home runs from Alfonso Soriano and Tyler Colvin while Carlos Zambrano turned back the clock by allowing just one earned run over 7 1/3 innings and striking out eight in Tuesday’s 5-4 win.
The Nationals loaded the bases in the eighth and again in the ninth inning. They managed to crawl back into the game with three runs in the last frame but couldn’t complete the comeback, stranding eight runners.
Soriano continues to make life difficult for his former club. The Chicago outfielder is 13-for-37 against the Nats with three homers and 11 RBIs over his last nine games at Washington.
Colvin, meanwhile, isn’t showing many freshman jitters. The rookie has 19 home runs this season and has six RBIs over his last four games.
The Cubs (53-74) send their most dependable starter of the season, Ryan Dempster, to the mound today. The veteran right-hander is 11-8 on the year with 160 strikeouts compared to 68 walks this year. He has allowed five runs over his past four starts, winning three of those matchups.
Dempster took a no-decision against the Atlanta Braves his last time on the mound, yielding two earned runs over eight innings while striking out seven in a 5-3 loss. He is 6-1 with a 3.15 ERA in 13 career starts against the Nationals.
Jason Marquis, who gets the ball for Washington (53-73), hasn’t won in six starts this season. He underwent elbow surgery on May 14 and has had a tough time finding his groove since coming off the shelf, allowing at least five runs in four of his six starts.
The former Chicago Cub has his best outing of the year came last week against the Philadelphia Phillies. He dropped a 1-0 decision, but held Philadelphia to just the single run over five innings.
Ryan Zimmerman is riding a hot streak at the dish against Chicago. He is 7-for-18 with four RBIs over his last six games against the Cubs and is 5-for-10 lifetime against Dempster.
Marlon Byrd could return to the Chicago lineup today after taking a pitch to the wrist in the first game of the series. He sat out Game 2 and is considered day-to-day. Byrd is hitting .306 with 11 dingers and 55 RBIs this season.