Pirates Face Harden
Chicago, IL – The Chicago Cubs haven’t had much success against winning teams since the All-Star break, but they sure have taken advantage of weaker opponents.
They’ll try for a three-game sweep of the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday when they send Rich Harden to the mound at Wrigley Field.
Chicago (60-55) is trying to catch NL Central-leading St. Louis, and has played poorly against better opponents, going 3-10 against teams with winning records since last month’s break.
Oddsmakers from online sports book Sportsbook.com have made the Cubs -260 moneyline favorites for Sunday’s game against the Pirates. Current MLB Public Betting Information shows that 83% of more than 224 bets for this game have been placed on the Cubs -260.
The Cubs have stayed in contention, though, by going 14-2 against losing teams in that stretch. They are 6-2 against the last-place Pirates (46-70) after taking the first two games of this series.
"Any win helps, we need wins and we need to play well and we need to keep parlaying it," Cubs infielder Jeff Baker said after Saturday’s 3-1 win.
Harden (7-7, 4.30 ERA) will try to put aside his woes at home. He is 3-5 with a 6.31 ERA in 11 outings at Wrigley Field this year.
The right-hander was effective there Tuesday against Philadelphia, allowing two runs over seven innings in a 4-3, 12-inning loss.
Harden’s lone career start against the Pirates was June 29 at PNC Park. He gave up one run over seven innings to get the decision in a 3-1 victory.
Chicago got Milton Bradley back in the lineup Saturday after the right fielder missed Friday’s 17-2 victory with a sore right hip. Bradley singled in the first inning and scored the game’s first run on Baker’s single.
Baker was in the lineup for third baseman Aramis Ramirez, who did not start for the seventh consecutive game but singled as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning Saturday. Ramirez was out with a sore shoulder for the first five games, and a head cold kept him out of the lineup for the last two.
Chicago shortstop Ryan Theriot has hit safely in all eight games against Pittsburgh, batting .468 with seven runs scored.
Pittsburgh has lost 12 of 13 as it heads towards its 17th straight losing season. The Pirates are well off their pace from last year when they were 53-63 after 106 games, but insist they will not quit.
"You have to. You can’t mope. It’s the game of baseball and it’s a weird game and it’s going to humble you. So, you just have to stay within yourself and don’t try to do too much and just keep going out there and keep playing hard," rookie center fielder Andrew McCutchen said.
Chicago has won 14 of its last 17 home games against Pittsburgh.
The Pirates will turn to Ross Ohlendorf (10-8, 4.30), who is 3-1 with a 3.07 ERA over his last five outings. He yielded three runs over six-plus innings Tuesday to earn the decision in a 7-3 win at Colorado.
The right-hander was spectacular in winning his lone career start against Chicago on June 30, allowing four hits over seven innings in a 3-0 victory.
Posted: 8/16/09 6:00AM ET
