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Rockies-Cubs Preview

Jul 29, 2015 - 5:26 AM As the Colorado Rockies move on from trading the face of their franchise, the Chicago Cubs might be wondering if a current rough stretch will prevent them from making any significant additions this week.

With potentially more moves to come, the Rockies look to win their first road series in two months Wednesday against the Cubs.

Less than 24 hours after the surprise trade of five-time All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, some Rockies players remained stunned but managed to even the set with Tuesday's 7-2 victory.

''We've done it all year. We've played some of our best games after some of our toughest nights,'' manager Walt Weiss said. ''We talked before the game (Tuesday) and I had a good feeling that our guys would play a nice bounce-back game. That's exactly what we did.''

With the Rockies (43-55) likely to miss the postseason for a sixth consecutive year, speculation continues to swirl that popular outfielder Carlos Gonzalez and even Jose Reyes, acquired from Toronto in the Tulowitzki trade, could be dealt before Friday's deadline.

''Our eyes and ears are open," general manager Jeff Bridich said. "We're open-minded. It's how we are operating. That doesn't mean that we have some huge elaborate plan to sell the farm and completely start from scratch.''

Regardless of the lineup, the Rockies look to win consecutive road contests and claim their first series outside Coors Field since sweeping a three-game set at Philadelphia from May 29-31.

All-Star DJ LeMahieu won't be going anywhere while batting .444 during his major league-leading 18-game hitting streak. With three hits for a second straight night, the ex-Cub is 13 for 20 with seven RBIs in five games against them in 2015.

He's never faced Jon Lester (5-8, 3.32 ERA), who has a 1.53 ERA despite going 1-2 and receiving six runs in five July starts. Half of those runs came Friday when he gave up two without a walk in seven innings of a 5-3, 10-inning loss to Philadelphia.

The left-hander, who started the World Series-clinching Game 4 against the Rockies in 2007 and last faced them in 2010, looks to help Chicago (52-47) rebound from its fourth loss in the last five contests.

Though the Cubs are 2 1/2 games out of the final wild-card spot, it's uncertain if they still intend to make any significant additions in the next few days.

"I think we're pretty darn good right now," Lester said. "Having an addition would be a shot in the arm. ... But I don't think we can worry about that right now."

Concern should mount for Anthony Rizzo, who is 4 for 34 with one RBI in the last nine games. Starlin Castro, meanwhile, is batting .132 (10 for 76) with 18 strikeouts in his last 21 contests.

Chicago went 1 for 13 with runners in scoring position Tuesday and is 1 for 23 in its last four defeats. It's .217 average in day games is the lowest in the majors.

"There's a lot left in the tank offensively for us in the next two months," manager Joe Maddon said. "If we can get everybody to play offense to the level we're capable of, there's a lot of offense."

The Cubs get their first look at Eddie Butler (3-6, 4.77), who was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque on July 19 and allowed three runs, six hits and walked three in six innings while not factoring in the decision of a 6-5 win over Cincinnati on Friday.