Brewers at Cubs Game Preview

Tonight at 7:10 CST on Fox Sports Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Brewers (43-61) visit Wrigley Field to take on the Chicago Cubs (48-55). Milwaukee enters the four game series in Chicago after dropping two of three in Colorado over the weekend. The Brewers were defeated 6-5 yesterday. They led 5-4 heading into the bottom of the 8th, but gave up two in the frame and were unable to come back. Donovan Hand was the starting pitcher for the Crew. He pitched 6 innings and gave up 8 hits and 3 runs, all earned. John Axford took the loss to drop his record to 4-4. Norichika Aoki belted his 100 career home run (Japan and MLB), and Yuniesky homered as well. Kyle Lohse will be the starter for the Brewers tonight. He has a record of 7-7 with an ERA of 3.37. Lohse picked up the win Wednesday in his last start at home against the Padres. Shortstop Jean Segura leads the team in batting average at .315. He will be back in the lineup tonight after missing yesterday's game. He swung at a pitch that hit his right forearm on Saturday night, causing him tightness and to miss the series finale. Outfielder Carlos Gomez is the club leader in home runs with 17. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy has 56 RBI to lead the team. Chicago comes into this series on a four game winning streak. They swept the Giants in San Francisco over the weekend. Starting pitcher Kerry Wood hit his third home run of the year, and Wellington Castillo belted one as well to lead them to victory. Jeff Smardzija will take the mound for the Cubs tonight. The former star wide receiver at Notre Dame has a record of 6-9 with an ERA of 3.94. Outfielder Junior Lake leads the team in batting average at .349. First baseman Anthony Rizzo is the club leader in home runs with 14. He also leads the RBI column with 58. Outfielder Alfonso Soriano led the team with 17 home runs, but this past week he was traded to the New York Yankees. This should be an exciting game, but look for the offense of Gomez, Segura, and Lucroy as well as the pitching of Lohse to carry the Brewers to a win tonight.

Reds at Dodgers Game Preview

Today at 3:10 CST, the Cincinnati Reds (59-46) visit Dodger Stadium to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers (55-48). Cincinnati enters the final game of this four game set on a two game losing streak after winning the series opener. The Reds were defeated 4-1 yesterday. They were held to just two hits, one of them to pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu, who was the winning pitcher for the Dodgers. Bronson Arroyo took the loss for the Reds. He scattered 8 hits over 5 1/3 innings. Kenley Jansen picked up his 14th save of the season. Tony Cingrani will be on the hill for Cincinnati today. He has a record 4-1 with an ERA of 3.18. First baseman Joey Votto leads position players with a batting average of .317. Pitcher Manny Parra has an average of .500, but he has only had two at bats. Right fielder Jay Bruce leads the team with 26 home runs, and second baseman Brandon Phillips has a team high 81 RBI. Since the All-Star break, the Dodgers have a record of 8-1. The Dodgers' record of 25-6 the last 31 games is tied for the best start in the team's history. That feat was accomplished in 1962, 1976, and 1977. Source: Elias Sports Bureau. Chris Capuano will be on the hill for Los Angeles today. He has a record of 3-6 with an ERA of 5.03. The Dodgers are fifth in the Majors with a team ERA of 3.57. The starters are fourth in MLB with an ERA of 3.43. Shortstop Hanley Ramirez leads position in batting average at .383. Pitchers Ricky Nolasco and Zack Greinke have averages of .667 and .394, respectively, but Nolasco only has three at bats and Greinke only has 33 at bats. First baseman Adrian Gonzalez leads the club with 15 home runs as well as 65 RBI. This should be a great series finale between two powerhouse franchises and clubs, but look for the power in the Los Angeles lineup to wear down Cingrani. I expect the Dodgers to continue their hot streak and pick up the win today.

Brewers at Rockies Game Preview

Tonight at 7:40 CST on Fox Sports Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Brewers (42-59) visit Coors Field to take on the Colorado Rockies (49-54). Milwaukee enters this three game series after losing three out of four games at home against the San Diego Padres. The Brewers lost 10-8 yesterday. They scored five runs in the 7th inning to make it 10-8, but they were unable to finish the comeback attempt. Yovani Gallardo took the loss after allowing six runs over 3 2/3 innings. Wily Peralta will make the start for the Brewers tonight. He has a record of 7-9 with an ERA of 4.30. Milwaukee is trying to cope with the season-ending suspension of Ryan Braun. According to MLB.com, he came clean about "violating Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program." Shortstop Jean Segura leads the team in batting average at .313. Centerfielder Carlos Gomez leads the team with 16 home runs, Jonathan Lucroy is the team leader in RBI with 55. Colorado enters the final series of their 10 game homestand on a one game losing streak. The Rockies dropped a 5-3 decision to the Miami Marlins yesterday. The Rox scored three runs in the bottom of the 9th but they couldn't finish complete the rally to earn a four game split in the series. Tyler Chatwood will be on the hill for the Rox tonight. He enters this game with a record of 6-3 and an ERA of 2.48.  This is the first and only time the Rockies will host the Brewers this season. Milwaukee hosted Colorado for the first series of the season. Milwaukee won Opening Day on a walkoff sacrifice fly by Jonathan Lucroy, but Colorado won the final two games to earn a series win. Michael Cuddyer, a participant in the MLB Home Run Derby last week, leads the team with a .331 batting average. Carlos Gonzalez is the team leader with 26 home runs, and he also leads the team with 67 RBI. This should be a great game, but look for the pitching of Chatwood and the home field of Colorado to get the job done tonight.