CHICAGO -- Greetings again from the North Side of Chicago, where the Brewers take on the Cubs in game two of three-game series.
The Brewers hopes' of overtaking the Cubs for the NL Central lead are growing slimmer by the day; last night's 5-4 victory reduced Chicago's magic number to 4. If they sweep the Brewers, the Cubs clinch their second-consecutive divisional championship.
Interim manager Dale Sveum will send the same lineup out against Cubs starter Jason Marquis as he did yesterday against Ryan Dempster. That means Mike Cameron is back in the leadoff spot, despite going 0 for 4 yesterday with a walk, two strikeouts and a rally-killing double play.
To refresh your memory:
Cameron, cf
Durham, 2b
Braun, lf
Fielder, 1b
Hardy, ss
Hart, rf
Counsell, 3b
Kendall, c
Sheets, p
Ben Sheets is on the mound tonight for the Brewers. He's struggled mightily in the second half, going just 2-5 with three no-decisions since starting for the National League in the All-Star game. Last time out, Sheets pitched six innings at Philadelphia, allowing fiveruns on nine hits with three walks and four strikeouts.
He's 10-8 lifetime with a 3.97 ERA against the Cubs in 25 starts. Sheets has six victories at Wrigley field.
The Brewers trail the Mets by a half-game in the Wild Card standings and are trying to snap a five-game losing streak. First pitch is set for a little after 7 p.m.