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Indians-Cubs Preview

Jun 21, 2009 - 12:06 AM By DAN PIERINGER STATS Writer

Cleveland (29-40) at Chicago (32-31), 2:20 p.m. EDT

Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella was admittedly stressed during his club's recent offensive slump. Though the way they're playing lately is no less nerve-wracking, it's certainly preferable.

After completing their third straight come-from-behind walkoff victory, the Cubs look to win four in a row for the first time in more than a month when they try to finish a three-game interleague sweep of the Cleveland Indians on Sunday at Wrigley Field.

Chicago (33-31) totaled 10 runs while dropping five of six games from June 10-17. After his team managed only five hits in a 4-1 loss to the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, Piniella admitted his frustration and threatened to shake up his batting order.

The Cubs have responded with huge rallies and wins. They overcame a four-run eighth-inning deficit in a 6-5 win over the White Sox on Thursday and erased an early seven-run deficit in an 8-7, 10-inning victory over the Indians (29-41) on Friday.

That success appeared to be running out Saturday when Luis Valbuena put the Indians up 5-4 in the top of the 13th inning with his second homer, but the Cubs answered with two runs to take a 6-5 victory.

Andres Blanco plated Kosuke Fukudome with a tying single, advanced to third on Aaron Miles' bloop to left field and scored on Kerry Wood's wild pitch.

Both wins over the Indians have come courtesy of blown saves by Wood, in his first season with Cleveland after spending his first 11 years in the majors with Chicago.

"You have mixed feelings about that," said Piniella, whose team hasn't had a longer winning streak since taking five straight May 10-16.

"Obviously you like to beat the Cleveland club. Woody did really nice things here in the two years I was here and for this organization in the past. But our job is to go out and whoever is out there try to win a baseball game and that's what we've done."

Wood came into the series having converted eight of his 10 save opportunities, but he's been reached for three runs while recording only four outs in two blown chances against his former club.

Because he's pitched in the last two games, Wood probably won't be available for Sunday's finale.

Randy Wells (0-3, 2.55 ERA) will try to complete the sweep for the Cubs. Though he posted a 1.86 ERA over his first six starts of this season, the right-hander is still looking for his first major league win.

He struggled in his latest bid, giving up a season-high four runs in a season-low 3 2-3 innings in a 7-4 loss to Minnesota on June 12.

Wells, who made four relief appearances with the Blue Jays and Cubs last season in his first action in the majors, has never faced Cleveland.

Jeremy Sowers (1-4, 5.14) gets the start for the Indians. The left-hander is 0-2 with a 3.43 ERA in four June starts, and the Indians have given him a total of six runs of support over 21 innings.

Sowers, who has never faced the Cubs, gave up three runs in five innings of a 7-5 loss to Milwaukee on Tuesday. That dropped him to 0-5 with a 6.80 ERA in eight career interleague starts.

Indians outfielder Mark DeRosa, who spent the last two seasons with the Cubs, was scratched Saturday because he was still sore from a collision with the brick wall in left field in the series opener.

DeRosa, batting .382 (13 for 34) with three homers, seven RBIs and nine runs scored over his last nine games, is day-to-day.