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Diamondbacks-Cubs Preview

May 1, 2010 - 10:40 PM By BRETT HUSTON STATS Writer

Arizona (11-12) at Chicago (11-13), 2:20 p.m. EDT

Tom Gorzelanny has the lowest ERA in the Chicago Cubs' rotation but has been victimized by a serious lack of run support in each of his four outings.

He might finally be in store for some help.

The Cubs have scored 23 runs in three games against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks, and they'll look to capture the series Sunday afternoon by adding to Edwin Jackson's woes.

Chicago (12-13) came into this series scoring 4.36 runs per game to rank tied for 19th in the majors, but it's started to swing the bats better against Arizona (11-13).

After Thursday's series-opening 13-5 loss, four Cubs went deep Friday in an 11-5 victory, and it was another home run that turned the tide Saturday afternoon. Alfonso Soriano's two-run shot tied it at 5-all in the seventh, and Chicago added two more runs in the eighth to escape with a 7-5 win.

Soriano hit .241 last year before undergoing season-ending knee surgery in mid-September. After a slow start, he's hitting .354 with three homers and 12 RBIs in his last 14 games.

"That's the most important thing," he said. "I don't think about the knee."

Soriano is 3 for 15, however, when Gorzelanny (0-3, 2.45 ERA) has been on the hill, and the rest of the Cubs haven't been much better. The left-hander has received a total of two runs of support in the 22 innings he's pitched.

Gorzelanny gave up two first-inning runs Tuesday against Washington before settling down with six scoreless frames, but Chicago was held to seven singles in a 3-1 loss.

"He gave us a chance to win the ball game," manager Lou Piniella told the Cubs' official website. "(We) just didn't do much offensively. We had a few chances, just didn't do much with it."

Gorzelanny is 1-1 with a 5.09 ERA in four starts against the Diamondbacks, and he'll want to forget his most recent outing. He allowed seven runs over three innings in a 12-3 loss at Wrigley Field on Oct. 2.

Outfielders Justin Upton and Chris Young are a combined 7 for 13 with two homers, a triple and three doubles against the southpaw.

Gorzelanny's last outing against the Diamondbacks may have been poor, but it wasn't close to being as bad as Jackson's latest start. Jackson (1-2, 6.67) had a 3.81 ERA through four starts before giving up 11 hits and 10 runs over 2 1-3 innings in a 12-1 loss at Colorado on Tuesday.

"It's baseball," the right-hander told the Diamondbacks' official website. "It's hard to go out there and be dominant every game. Of course nobody is trying to not be dominant, but it's just one of those things you have to take in stride. As far as I'm concerned, the game is over. There's nothing I can do about it to change it. Just get ready for the next one."

Jackson's lone start against the Cubs came in Detroit on June 23, when he allowed two runs and struck out seven over seven innings in the Tigers' 5-4 walkoff win.

Even if Jackson can turn a lead over to his bullpen, there's still plenty of cause for concern. Arizona's relief corps has a major league-worst 7.17 ERA, and it's allowed nine runs and three homers over five innings in this series.

"It's a collective group that needs to regain their competitive edge," manager A.J. Hinch said.