Houston Astros @ Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs and the Houston Astros will lock horns on Tuesday, May 31, 2011 at 8:05 PM ET (CSN) at Wrigley Field for the bottom of the National League Central. The Astros have a record of 20-34 while the Cubs have 23-29. The betting odds for this match have Chicago Cubs 50/87 and Houston Astros 159/100.
The Chicago Cubs once again found no new answers as they looked in new places again on Monday and they continue to reach for answers as their season slides away. With a first inning home run, Carlos Pena got the Cubs offense started, Starlin Castro had two hits and scored twice and Blake DeWitt had three hits but 10 hits and seven runs were not enough offense against last place Houston.
On Tuesday, Chicago will send Carlos Zambrano to the mound for the start and they will look to bounce back. Zambrano has allowed 66 hits and 35 earned runs and has struck out 46 in 68.2 innings on the mound.
Houston is hoping its No. 24 in MLB.com’s rankings and its top prospect will impress in his first start Tuesday. In the 2008 First-Year Player Draft, Lyles, 20, was the 38th overall pick. He posted a 1.98 ERA in five appearances. the 6-foot-4 right-hander is finally in the Majors.
On Monday, Hunter Pence went 3-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. In eight of those contests, he has multiple hits. Pence is hitting .435 (20-for-46) with two home runs and nine RBIs during the streak. Pence is batting .330 this month and has a career .341 hitter in May. By two runs or fewer, 8 of Houston’s last 10 games have been decided. In two-run games this season, the Astros are 1-8.
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