Bill Batterman is the Now that’s more like it.
After suffering through a rough road trip and a disappointing home series against the Reds, the Brewers got back on track this week as they swept the visiting Braves in a closely-fought series that featured a trio of pitcher’s duels. A few timely hits or strong defensive plays could have shifted the balance of the series in Atlanta’s favor, but the Brewers will take it.
Now 12-10 and within three-and-a-half of the division lead, Milwaukee will hope to improve on their 3-6 road record as they visit the North Side of Chicago for a three-game series at Wrigley Field. All three contests will be afternoon affairs as the Crew looks to finish their April schedule with a winning record.
The Cubs are without Derrek Lee, the team’s best hitter and a Gold Glove first-baseman who was batting .318/.448/.614 when he fractured two bones in his lower forearm and wrist in a collision with Rafael Furcal last week in Los Angeles. Expected to miss six weeks of action, Lee’s absence leaves the Cubs without an intimidating offensive force in the middle of their lineup.
Taking over at first is Todd Walker, a good-hitting second-baseman who hit .305 with an 829 OPS in 2005 but who has never hit more than 17 home runs in a season and who had played just nine games at the position in his big league career. The 32-year old is the only Chicago regular with an OPS over 900 in 2006 (he’s batting a robust .339/.412/.508) but rookies Matt Murton (.294/.377/.456) and Ronny Cedeno (.308/.348/.462) are both having solid Aprils. The team is also receiving excellent production from behind the plate, with Michael Barrett (.283/.313/.550) making up for his lack of plate discipline with some much-needed power.
The Cubs’ two big off-season acquisitions, on the other hand, outfielders Juan Pierre and Jacque Jones, have been abysmal. The speedy Pierre has been effective on the basepaths, swiping seven bags in eight tries, but he is batting just .256 with a .291 on-base average (thanks to just three walks against ten strikeouts) and a .329 slugging average. Jones, expected to provide an offensive upgrade over the departed Jeremy Burnitz, has struck-out thirteen times while drawing only three free passes en route to a .188/.245/.396 line that has the Wrigleyville faithful raining down boos.
Even Aramis Ramirez, typically a potent bat behind Lee, has limped out of the gate, batting just .206 (although he has swatted four home runs and has drawn eleven walks, good for a 746 OPS).
As a team, the Cubs are tenth in the National League in runs scored and second from the bottom in OPS. They have drawn just 57 walks, third-worst in the league, and have struggled to score runs since Lee’s injury. Over the past seven days, Chicago has batted just .194 as a team with a 620 OPS.
Pitching, on the other hand, has been the club’s strength. A patchwork rotation headed by Greg Maddux (4-0, 0.99) and Carlos Zambrano (0-1, 3.94) has somehow managed to compile a 4.16 ERA, fourth-best in the league. Rookie Sean Marshall has been a pleasant surprise while former-Brewer Glendon Rusch and right-hander Jerome Williams have struggled, the latter recently demoted to Triple-A Iowa. Perpetually-injured prospect Angel Guzman was recalled to take his spot in the rotation and the 24-year old surrendered three runs in five innings on Wednesday in a no decision against the Marlins.
The bullpen has been surprisingly solid as well. Free agent setup men Scott Eyre (0.84 ERA, 1.22 WHIP) and Bob Howry (1.74, 1.06) have done the job in front of closer Ryan Dempster (1.50, 0.75), who has converted all six of his save opportunities while limiting opposing batters to a 408 OPS.
The Brewers will have their work cut out for them if they want to improve on last year’s record of 4-6 at Wrigley. Whatever happens, the action is likely to be entertaining.
“You know when the Brewers and Cubs get together anything can happen,” Geoff Jenkins told Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. “These are usually really exciting games; you see a lot of runs scored and just weird plays. Anything goes, so it should be a lot of fun.”