(Best E Casino) - Bragging rights in the Windy City will not be the only thing on the line when the
Chicago Cubs and White Sox begin a three-game series this afternoon at Wrigley Field.
The latest edition of this inter-city rivalry has taken on added significance with both Chicago teams currently residing in first place of their respective divisions. The Cubs lead the hated St. Louis Cardinals by 3 1/2 games in the National League Central, while the White Sox come in with a 4 1/2-game cushion over second-place Minnesota in the American League Central.
The Cubs will also be attempting to extend an 11-game home winning streak in today's opener. The club has not lost at Wrigley Field since a 7-6 setback to Pittsburgh on May 17 and has amassed a stellar 29-8 record as the host this season.
The White Sox, on the other hand, have lost six in a row on the road and are just 17-20 as the visitor on the year. The South Siders have also lost in six of their last seven encounters with the Cubs, including five of six tilts held in 2007.
The Sox will also have to deal with a red-hot pitcher this afternoon in the Cubs' Ted Lilly. The fiery left-hander is coming off Sunday's victory at Toronto in which he limited the Jays to one hit over six scoreless innings.
Prior to that outing, Lilly yielded three runs and just four hits while striking out eight in 6 2/3 innings to beat Atlanta on June 10. The 32-year- old is 6-1 over his last nine starts and surrendered three runs or less on six of those occasions.
Lilly sports a 5-2 career record in nine starts versus the White Sox, although he's served up 11 homers over 46 1/3 innings against today's foe and pitched to a 6.22 ERA. He notched a win over the Sox at Wrigley last season after allowing three runs through seven frames.
However, the White Sox will have momentum working in their favor by virtue of a three-game home sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates that concluded with Thursday's 13-8 triumph. Jermaine Dye paced the Sox' 15-hit attack with a pair of home runs, including a grand slam, and six RBI.
Orlando Cabrera added a three-run homer and finished with four RBI for the White Sox, while A.J. Pierzynski, Jim Thome and Alexei Ramirez each collected two hits and scored twice.
The White Sox racked up a whopping 37 runs during their three games with the Bucs and batted .404 as a team over the course of the sweep.
White Sox starter Gavin Floyd (8-3) surrendered seven runs over 5 2/3 innings, but only one was earned as he won his fourth straight decision.
Conversely, the Cubs will be returning home from three consecutive losses to the upstart Tampa Bay Rays earlier in the week. Lou Piniella's squad had a chance to salvage Thursday's finale, but the Cubs bullpen allowed seven runs in the seventh inning as Tampa rallied for an 8-3 win.
Carlos Marmol (1-2) relieved Cubs starter Sean Gallagher to start the bottom of the seventh and failed to retire a batter, walking two men and hitting a pair to force in a run. Scott Eyre then came on and promptly served up a grand slam to Carl Crawford that gave the Rays a 6-3 lead.
Gallagher limited Tampa to one unearned run and four hits over the first six frames and left with his team holding a 3-1 lead.
John Danks gets his first taste of this rivalry when the sophomore hurler takes the mound for the White Sox today. The young left-hander is putting together a very strong 2008 campaign, as Danks presently ranks fourth in the AL with a 2.90 earned run average despite having compiled only a 4-4 record through his 14 starts.
Danks has done his best work in enemy parks, where he's posted an excellent 1.72 ERA along with a 2-1 mark in six away starts. Opponents are hitting just .221 against him on the road this season.
The 23-year-old twirled six shutout innings at home against Colorado on Saturday, but didn't get any offensive support in a game the White Sox eventually lost by a 2-0 score. It was Danks' third straight no-decision since defeating Tampa Bay with six innings of one-run ball on May 29.
