News
Big Z leads final matchup with Cardinals
Chicago (75-72) at St. Louis (87-62), 7:05 p.m. CT
By Carrie Muskat / MLB.com
09/19/09 9:10 PM ET
ST. LOUIS -- Sunday night, in a nationally televised game on ESPN, the Cubs and Cardinals will meet for the final time this season and then head their separate ways. The Cardinals are looking ahead to the postseason, already naming Chris Carpenter their Game 1 starter for the National League Division Series. The Cubs are counting down the regular season. St. Louis' magic number is now four following Saturday's 2-1 win over Chicago. The Cubs are 1-7 at Busch Stadium this year, and 5-10 overall in the series. The games have been tight. Ten of the Cubs' last 12 losses in St. Louis have been by two runs or fewer, and the series has featured seven losses by one run. Carlos Zambrano will make what is likely his third to last start of the season, and No. 236 of his career with the Cubs. He will be tied for 13th all-time in franchise history with Dick Ellsworth, who also made 236 starts for the Cubs. In three games this month, the right-hander is 1-0 with a 4.24 ERA, an improvement after a winless August. If Big Z has one thing on his side, it's new Busch Stadium. He's 4-0 with a 1.32 ERA at the Cardinals' new ballpark. But which Zambrano will show up? Will it be the pitcher who struck out 12 Cardinals over seven innings on May 2, 2004, at new Busch? He matched that career high with another 12 Ks on July 22, 2005, in nine innings in St. Louis. Big Z has 1,304 strikeouts, and with one more will tie Greg Maddux for fifth on the team's all-time list. But that was the lone highlight in his last start against Milwaukee. Zambrano cruised through the first four innings against the Brewers, and the Cubs opened a 4-0 lead. But Milwaukee scored five runs in the fifth, all with two outs, to erase that margin. He's had two stints on the disabled list, attacked the Gatorade machine and served a six-game suspension for his actions back on May 27 against umpire Mark Carlson, who will be at third base on Sunday. Lou Piniella says Zambrano has the potential to win 20 games in a season. But not this year. "It's been tough, but not frustrating," Zambrano said of his season. "I'm trying to help this team and trying to do the best to win every time I go to the mound. Just have fun. I go out there to have fun and try to help this team any way I can." Pitching matchupCHC: RHP Carlos Zambrano (8-6, 3.94 ERA)
It looked like Zambrano was in top form Tuesday when he took on the Brewers at Wrigley Field and sailed through four innings, striking out eight and giving up one hit. He then got two outs in the fifth before allowing a single to pitcher Yovani Gallardo that snowballed into a five-run inning and knocked Zambrano out of the game. That inning raised Zambrano's ERA to 6.93 in five starts since he came off the disabled list Aug. 25. He had one rough outing against the Cardinals this season, allowing seven runs in seven innings on April 17 but held St. Louis to three runs in six innings on July 12. STL: RHP Adam Wainwright (18-8, 2.59 ERA)
Wainwright gets the Sunday night ESPN game, and he'd have it no other way. Wainwright loves big moments, and the final Cubs-Cardinals game of the year certainly qualifies. He's back to form after a one-game hiccup at the start of the month, and he's still just two wins away from a milestone 20th. Wainwright has faced the Cubs four times already this year, going 3-0 with a 2.67 ERA and an average of over 7 1/3 innings per start. Tidbits
The National League Central rivals won't face off at Busch Stadium again for nearly 11 months. After the series finale, the two teams are not scheduled to play in St. Louis until Aug. 13-15, 2010. ... Milton Bradley was scratched from Saturday's game because of inflammation in his left knee. Bradley has not started since Thursday and had to leave that game in the sixth. Would he be available Sunday? "I don't know," Piniella said. "I'm not going to say 'day to day.'" ... Reed Johnson (fractured foot) has been able to run a little but isn't ready for a game yet. ... Some of the Cubs already have their Winter League assignments. Jake Fox will be playing for Licey in the Dominican Republic for the second year, joining the team in the second half. Jeff Stevens is considering pitching in Mexico with Jeff Samardzija. Triple-A Iowa manager Bobby Dickerson was slated to manage the squad. Justin Berg and Sam Fuld are considering playing for one month in Venezuela. Tickets
Buy tickets now to catch the game in person.
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• WGN 720 Up next
• Monday: Cubs (Tom Gorzelanny, 5-2, 5.29) at Brewers (Braden Looper, 13-6, 4.89), 7:05 p.m. CT
• Tuesday: Cubs (Randy Wells, 10-9, 3.06) at Brewers (Dave Bush, 5-7, 5.88), 7:05 p.m. CT
• Wednesday: Cubs (Ted Lilly, 12-8, 3.02) at Brewers (Chris Narveson, 1-0, 4.22), 7:05 p.m. CT
Carrie Muskat is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
