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Marquis takes on former team as Cubs face Cardinals

Apr 27, 2007 - 2:40 PM Chicago Cubs (8-13) at St Louis (10-11) 8:10 pm EDT

ST. LOUIS (Ticker) - It looks like Jason Marquis likes his new side in the heartland's bitter rivalry.

A former member of the St. Louis Cardinals, Marquis will look for his second straight victory over his former team when he takes the hill for Chicago Cubs in a National League Central clash on Friday.

Marquis (2-1, 1.88 ERA), who signed a three-year $21 million deal with the Cubs in the offseason, was on last season's World Series-winning club but did not take the hill in the playoffs.

However, the righthander showed his former team what it was missing last Saturday, tossing seven outstanding innings in a 6-0 victory. He allowed seven hits, striking out five without a walk.

A winner of 42 games with the Cardinals, Marquis is showing some of the best form of his career this season, yielding three or fewer earned runs in each of his four starts.

Marquis again will be opposed by Anthony Reyes (0-3, 5.63), who will be looking for his first win of the season. The righthander allowed four runs and seven hits in six innings - his longest outing of the campaign - on Saturday.

The Cardinals have won four of their last six games, including a 7-5 victory over Cincinnati on Thursday. Aaron Miles, Scott Spiezio and Albert Pujols had two hits each for St. Louis, which has won two straight at Busch Stadium after losing seven of its first eight home contests.

The Cubs snapped a three-game losing streak on Wednesday with a 9-3 win vs. Milwaukee.