National League Preview from The Sports Network
Monday, October 1st
(All times Eastern)
Houston Astros (53-106) at Chicago Cubs (60-99), 8:05 p.m.
Probable Starting Pitchers: Houston - Lucas Harrell (10-11, 3.88)
Chicago - Jason Berken (0-2, 5.14)
(Sports Network) - Right-hander Lucas Harrell can end his best major-league
season with a win on Monday when the Houston Astros head to Wrigley Field to
begin a three-game season-closing series with the Chicago Cubs.
A fourth-round pick of the crosstown Chicago White Sox in 2004, Harrell had
exactly one major-league win in 17 appearances with the White Sox and Astros
before this season, when he became a full-time starter.
He reached double-digit wins in 2012 with a 10-1 defeat of the Cubs on Aug. 14
in Chicago, scattering six hits and allowing a run in eight innings in his
first start against them.
Harrell is 0-2 in six appearances since, losing two decisions to St. Louis and
getting no-decisions against the New York Mets, Philadelphia and twice against
Cincinnati.
Houston is 5-5 in Harrell's last 10 starts.
For the Cubs, right-hander Jason Berken makes his fourth appearance in a
Chicago uniform and faces the Astros for the first time in his 110th big-
league outing.
The 28-year-old Wisconsin native began the season with the Baltimore Orioles
and made one relief appearance for them on May 7, then was picked up on
waivers by the Cubs on Sept. 7.
He's started twice and relieved once for his new team, combining to allow 12
runs in 19 hits in 14 innings against Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Colorado.
Opponents are hitting .328 against him in 14 National League innings, 13
points above his career mark for 244 major-league innings.
On Sunday in Milwaukee, Jordan Lyles notched his first major league shutout
and home run as the Astros eliminated the Milwaukee Brewers from playoff
contention with a 7-0 win in the finale of a three-game series.
Lyles (5-12), aided by double plays in the first, second and fourth innings,
faced the minimum through five. In all, the 21-year-old righty gave up four
hits with a walk and three strikeouts.
"He was in total control the whole game," Astros interim manager Tony
DeFrancesco said. "He had a little more fire in his eyes."
Fernando Martinez, Jed Lowrie and Matt Dominguez also hit solo homers while
Carlos Corporan added a two-run single for the major league-worst Astros, who
took two of three in this set.
In Arizona, Anthony Rizzo went 3-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and scored two
runs as the Cubs downed the Diamondbacks, 7-2.
Bryan LaHair had two RBI and David DeJesus stroked a solo homer for the Cubs,
who but the brakes on a seven-game skid.
Chris Rusin (2-3) allowed two runs - one earned - on three hits and struck out
four over five innings.
"If we're going to win one, it might as well be the last one on the West
Coast," Cubs manager Dale Sveum said. "It wasn't the prettiest thing ever."
The Cubs won seven of the first 12 games between the teams in 2012, including
two of three in a series between Sept. 10-12 in Houston.
10/01 10:39:30 ET

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