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Reds-Cubs Preview

Jul 1, 2010 - 12:26 AM By BRETT HUSTON STATS Writer

Cincinnati (43-35) at Chicago (34-43), 2:20 p.m. EDT

The Cincinnati Reds have been baseball's comeback kings this season, and they'll make their first visit to Wrigley Field fresh off another late victory.

The Chicago Cubs don't need a reminder of Cincinnati's late-inning success.

The first-place Reds have won both previous series against the Cubs thanks to their dominance from the seventh inning on, a trend that could come in handy Thursday afternoon when they open a grueling 11-game road trip with the first of four at Wrigley.

Cincinnati (44-35) has come from behind to win a major league-best 25 times, and did so in its final at-bat Wednesday afternoon for the 14th time. With his team trailing 3-2 in the eighth inning, Jay Bruce hit a two-run homer off Philadelphia's Roy Halladay to lift the Reds to a 4-3 victory.

"When you win a game like this, it's a surprise but not a shock anymore because we've been doing it from day one," said Bruce, who has hit .406 (13 for 34) as Cincinnati has won seven of nine. "I think this is one of our best wins."

The Reds start their longest trip since 2001 in Chicago, and the Cubs (34-44) are well-versed in Cincinnati's penchant to rally. The Reds have taken two of three in each of the teams' first two series, and 21 of the 27 runs they've scored in those victories came in the seventh inning or later.

Cincinnati has outscored Chicago 24-10 overall from the seventh on, while the Cubs hold an 18-13 edge prior to that.

Handing the ball to Carlos Silva (8-2, 3.01 ERA) should give Chicago a solid shot at six more strong innings. The right-hander, 1-0 with a 4.09 ERA in two starts against the Reds, has gone at least six innings and allowed three or fewer runs in five consecutive outings.

Lately, though, Silva's strong efforts haven't led to victories. The Cubs were 10-0 when Silva started from April 16-June 7, but they've dropped his last three - all interleague games.

He gave up two runs over six innings Saturday, leaving without a decision in a 3-2 loss to the White Sox.

Aside from Bruce, Silva will want to pitch carefully to Joey Votto, who has reached base safely in 38 consecutive games. Votto is certainly comfortable at Wrigley, where he's a lifetime .325 hitter with seven homers in 21 games.

The Cubs, on the other hand, haven't looked comfortable anywhere recently. They've lost their past four series, coming up empty offensively in Wednesday's 2-0 loss to rookie starter Brad Lincoln and Pittsburgh. Chicago has lost nine times to the NL's worst team.

"This game here was a nice little synopsis of what our season has been like," manager Lou Piniella said.

After being stymied by Lincoln, the Cubs try to get back on track against another rookie. Unlike Lincoln, though, Travis Wood will be making his major league debut.

The organization's minor league pitcher of the year in 2009, Wood will take the rotation spot of fellow rookie Sam LeCure. The left-handed Wood was 5-6 with a 3.12 ERA with Triple-A Louisville, but had a 0.63 ERA in his last four starts.

"I feel pretty good right now," Wood told the Reds' official website. "I feel like I'm throwing my pitches for strikes, having command of the zone and giving our team a chance to win."