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Cubs-Braves Preview

Jun 1, 2009 - 8:42 PM By BRETT HUSTON STATS Writer

Chicago (25-24) at Atlanta (25-25), 7:10 p.m. EDT

The Chicago Cubs were supposed to have Carlos Zambrano on the mound to open their three-game series against the Atlanta Braves, but an emotional outburst in his last start earned him a suspension.

The way Randy Wells is pitching, the Cubs shouldn't feel too badly about their backup plan.

Wells has pitched well despite a lack of run support in four starts, and he'll hope for more offense as he seeks his first major-league win when the Cubs begin their season series with the Braves on Tuesday night at Turner Field.

Zambrano was having one of his best starts of the season Wednesday against Pittsburgh, before he vehemently disagreed with a close call at home plate in the seventh inning. His on-field antics, which included giving the umpire an ejection sign and tossing the baseball toward center field, garnered a six-game suspension.

An off day Monday enabled the Cubs (25-24) to keep the rest of their rotation on regular rest, meaning Wells (0-2, 1.80 ERA) will get the nod in the series opener.

That should be good news for Chicago, which has gotten four effective starts from the rookie right-hander. The Cubs, though, have supported him with just six total runs.

Wells didn't get any support during his seven innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday, when he gave up two runs and eight hits while striking out seven in a 2-1 loss.

Teammate and probable Wednesday starter Ted Lilly has been impressed with Wells.

"I told him the other day, 'You're doing this because you're doing some serious pitching,'" Lilly told the Cubs' official Web site. "For me, there's no luck about it."

Wells faces a Braves lineup dogged by inconsistency. Atlanta (25-25) had totaled seven runs in four games prior to a 10-6 victory Friday at Arizona. After falling 3-2 on Saturday, the Braves salvaged a four-game series split by pounding out 15 hits - three apiece from Kelly Johnson, Yunel Escobar and Chipper Jones - in a 9-3 win Sunday.

"Those guys in front of me did a great job setting the table," Jones told the Braves' official Web site. "It seems like I had guys in scoring position all day. Kelly and Yunel had six doubles between them. They set the table and we tried to clear it."

Chicago also split a four-game series over the weekend, but manager Lou Piniella's club has had trouble scoring lately. The Cubs averaged 2.8 runs while dropping nine of their final 13 games in May, including an 8-2 home loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday night.

"Who cares if we're .500 at the end of May?" said first baseman Derrek Lee, who's hitting .248 and appears to be missing injured third baseman Aramis Ramirez behind him in the lineup. "That's not the goal. What if you're 10 games over at the end of May? It'd be nice, but that's not the goal."

Lee and the Cubs will try to get turned around against Atlanta's Kenshin Kawakami (3-6, 4.73), who couldn't build on his best start of the season. After tossing eight shutout innings in a win over Toronto on May 22, the Japanese rookie right-hander gave up nine hits and four runs - three earned - over 5 2-3 innings in a 6-3 loss at San Francisco last Wednesday.

Chicago outscored Atlanta 49-18 in sweeping six meetings last season, with catcher Geovany Soto (.476, nine RBIs) leading the way.