(Best E Casino) - CC Sabathia will pitch for the third straight time on three days' rest this afternoon, when the playoff-hopeful Milwaukee Brewers wrap up a three-game series versus the Chicago Cubs at Miller Park.

Milwaukee is sending out its staff ace again, as it sits tied with the New York Mets atop the National League Wild Card standings. A win today coupled with a New York loss would give the Brewers their first postseason berth since losing to St. Louis in the 1982 World Series.

If both teams remained tied after today, then the Mets will host a one-game playoff at Shea Stadium on Monday.

The Brewers had a five-game winning streak stopped with Saturday's 7-3 loss to the NL Central-champion Cubs, while New York moved into a tie after defeating the Florida Marlins earlier in the day. Craig Counsell, Prince Fielder and J.J. Hardy each had an RBI for the Brewers while starter Ben Sheets lasted just 2 1/3 innings in the start. He was charged with four runs -- three earned -- on five hits with a pair of walks to take the loss.

Fielder is batting .409 with six home runs and 19 RBI during his 17-game hitting streak. Meanwhile, the overworked Sabathia ended a two-start losing streak his last time out on Wednesday versus the Pittsburgh Pirates and held them to a run and four hits in seven innings of work. He improved to 10-2 with a 1.78 earned run average in 16 starts with Milwaukee since coming over in a trade with Cleveland in a multi-player deal in July.

Sabathia will face the Cubs for the third time this season and is 0-1 in two starts so far. In his most recent encounter with Chicago, the lefty absorbed the loss in a 5-4 setback after giving up four runs and nine hits in seven frames. Sabathia is 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA in three lifetime meetings with the Cubs, who are hitting .347 against the former first-round draft pick.

Chicago is just tuning up for the postseason and will open the playoffs at home on Wednesday. It was scheduled to send Carlos Zambrano to the hill this afternoon but he will rest for his start in Game 2 of the NLDS on Thursday at Wrigley Field.

So, Angel Guzman will toe the rubber for the Cubs today and has pitched to a 7.04 ERA in five relief appearances since being called up from Triple-A Iowa on September 1. The righty is 0-0 with a 16.88 ERA in two relief outings against Milwaukee.

In Saturday's win over the Brewers, starter Ted Lilly pitched no-hit ball through the first six innings to earn the win. Daryle Ward and Kosuke Fukudome each hit two-run homers while Mike Fontenot added three RBI for the Cubs, who have already clinched the best record in the NL and snapped a two-game losing streak.

Chicago has won seven of the last nine contests with Milwaukee, including a four-game sweep at Miller Park from July 28-31. The Cubs are 9-6 against the Brewers this season.