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Cardinals-Cubs Preview

Sep 24, 2010 - 3:43 AM By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO STATS Writer

St. Louis (77-74) at Chicago (69-82), 2:20 p.m. EDT

Adam Wainwright came a win short of getting 20 for the first time last year. He has two chances to prevent that from happening again, and a start at Wrigley Field could end the chase quickly.

Wainwright looks to extend his winning streak at the vaunted ballpark to five when the St. Louis Cardinals face the Chicago Cubs in the opener of a three-game set Friday afternoon.

Wainwright (19-11, 2.45 ERA) won a career-high 19 last season, but went 1-1 with a 2.89 ERA in his last four starts to come up just short of the milestone.

"There are certain things that have a lot of meaning," manager Tony La Russa told the team's official website. "Hitting .300 or 100 RBIs. For a pitcher, 20 wins, it's a special category."

The All-Star right-hander is in similar position this year after allowing one run and five hits with seven strikeouts in eight innings of a 4-1 win over San Diego on Sunday. He had lost five of his previous six starts while posting a 4.73 ERA - a stretch that may have cost him a chance at his first NL Cy Young Award as St. Louis (78-74) faded from playoff contention.

"As far as personal goals, 20 would be cool," Wainwright said. "But I have two starts and 21 would be better."

Wainwright might be in strong position to reach the milestone at Wrigley, where he's won his last four appearances with a 3.12 ERA. He was superb in his latest start there May 30, yielding one run with eight strikeouts in seven innings of a 9-1 victory.

Wainwright wasn't nearly as sharp against the Cubs (69-83) at home Sept. 14, giving up five runs and 12 hits in eight innings of a 7-2 defeat.

The Cardinals were swept in that three-game set, and are 4-8 in the season series with Chicago.

Albert Pujols is fresh off surpassing the 40-homer mark for the sixth time in his career. The first baseman connected for his 40th and 41st homers in Thursday's 9-2 win at Pittsburgh, as St. Louis avoided a three-game sweep to the team with the worst record in baseball.

Still, Pujols is more concerned with the Cardinals all but mathematically eliminated from postseason contention.

"It would be nice to hit 40 home runs and be in the pennant race but that's the way the season goes for us this year," the two-time reigning NL MVP said. "We put ourselves in a tough situation."

The Cubs have already secured their first losing season since 2006, and are coming off Thursday's 13-0 loss to San Francisco to drop two of three while scoring two runs in the series.

Tom Gorzelanny (7-8, 3.90) will take the mound for the first time since Sept. 1, when he was hit in the hand by a line drive in a 5-3 win over the Pirates. The left-hander exited the game after 2 2-3 scoreless innings, yielding two hits.

Gorzelanny is 1-3 with a 5.36 ERA in his last seven starts since beating St. Louis on July 24. He allowed three runs in six innings of that 6-5 home win, improving to 2-3 with a 3.92 ERA in seven starts against the division rival.