TIME: 12:35 P.M. EST
VENUE: PNC Park

Johnny Cueto didn't look like himself in his last start.

Facing the Pittsburgh Pirates may be just what he needs to get back on track.

Cueto has an 18-inning shutout streak going against the Pirates, but the Cincinnati Reds right-hander will have to cool down a Pittsburgh offense coming off its best day at the plate in two weeks when the teams decide their three-game set Wednesday afternoon at PNC Park.

One of the biggest reasons the Reds (60-48) lead St. Louis by one-half game atop the NL Central, Cueto (10-2, 3.32 ERA) was 4-0 with a 0.88 ERA over his past six starts before taking the mound Friday.

He hardly had his best stuff against visiting Atlanta. Cueto made it through 5 1-3 innings, allowing four runs and a career high-tying 10 hits in Cincinnati's 6-4, 10-inning loss.

Cueto should have a good chance to win a fifth straight decision Wednesday. Of his 30 major league wins, eight have come versus Pittsburgh. He's 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA in three starts against the Pirates (37-69) this season, including a one-hitter in a 9-0 win at PNC Park on May 11.

He left after six innings with a blister on his right index finger in an 8-2 victory May 27, but extended his shutout streak against the Pirates to 18 innings.

Pittsburgh has had plenty of lifeless offensive outings against the Reds this season, as Monday's 4-0 loss was the fourth time it had been shut out. The Pirates bounced back Tuesday, getting three hits and four RBIs from Neil Walker while building a six-run lead before holding on to win 7-6.

"The guys really came out and swung the bats and scored," manager John Russell said. "We tried to let them back in it a little, but we finished it off. It was a solid win for us."

The Pirates hadn't scored more than six runs since a 15-3 victory over Milwaukee July 21. It had been 22 meetings spanning nearly a year since they last scored six against Cincinnati, a 12-2 win Aug. 22.

Tuesday's victory may have come at a price. Center fielder Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh's leader in runs and stolen bases, left in the second inning with a bruised neck after being hit by a Mike Leake pitch.

X-rays were negative, but McCutchen - hitting .150 (6 for 40) against Cincinnati - could miss the series finale.

Jeff Karstens (2-6, 4.42) gets the ball for Pittsburgh seeking a fourth straight quality start, but he doesn't have any wins to show for his last three. He's 0-2 with a 2.50 ERA as the Pirates have given him just three runs of support.

Karstens scattered seven hits over six innings of a 1-0, 10-inning loss Friday at St. Louis. He is 0-3 with a 6.45 ERA in six games - three starts - against Cincinnati.

While McCutchen might sit out, the Reds expect their offensive leader to return. All-Star Joey Votto, the NL home run leader, should be back after missing two games with a sore right wrist.

"Joey's feeling better, feeling a lot better," manager Dusty Baker said.

Votto is 4 for 5 with two walks against Karstens.




TIME: 2:20 P.M. EST
VENUE: Wrigley Field

The Milwaukee Brewers have solved their recent woes by adding to those of the Chicago Cubs.

The Brewers will try to send the Cubs to a season-high eighth consecutive defeat and record their first sweep at Wrigley Field in eight years in Wednesday's three-game series finale.

Milwaukee (50-58) had dropped five in a row before Monday night's 18-1 romp at Chicago (46-61). The Brewers followed up that 26-hit outburst with a more subdued 4-3 victory Tuesday.

Casey McGehee, who played nine games for the Cubs in 2008, drove in Tuesday's key run on a sacrifice fly in the seventh, giving him six RBIs in the series against his former club. Prince Fielder also drove in a run after he had s season-high five RBIs in Monday's win, while Ryan Braun is 8 for 11 over the two games in Chicago after hitting .140 in his previous 13.

"We've had a real good approach in this series," McGehee said.

Chicago has been outscored 67-20 during its longest skid since an eight-game drought May 17-25, 2009. The Cubs went 1 for 11 with runners in scoring position in Tuesday's loss and have batted .152 in those situations over the past seven games.

"Again, we get people on and we just don't get them in," manager Lou Piniella said. "That's been a recurring theme ... You've got to work your way out of this. These other teams, they're not going to feel sorry for you. They see a team that's down and they're going to play to keep them down."

Chicago hasn't been swept at home by Milwaukee since May 9-12, 2002. Having Ryan Dempster (8-8, 3.92 ERA) on the mound could help the Cubs keep that the last time.

The right-hander is 13-3 with a 2.81 lifetime ERA against the Brewers, including four straight wins. He has more victories over Milwaukee than any other opponent.

Dempster is 2-0 with a 3.72 ERA in three starts versus the Brewers this season benefiting from 19 runs of support in those outings. However, he's 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in his last three starts overall, and was tagged for five runs and seven hits while walking five in a season-low four-plus innings of Friday's 17-2 loss at Colorado.

"You're going to have tough outings. You just have to go back out there," Dempster told the Cubs' official website. "What's the worst that can happen? You lose? I've done that before."

Milwaukee starter Manny Parra (3-8, 5.42) will also be looking to end his struggles in Wednesday's game, having gone 0-3 with an 8.31 ERA in his last four starts. He's 0-1 with an 8.64 ERA in two career starts versus the Cubs, but pitched two innings of hitless relief against them April 23.

A win Wednesday would give the Brewers four consecutive victories over Chicago for the first time since 2006.




TIME: 03:10 P.M. EST
VENUE: Coors Field

Now that Ubaldo Jimenez appears to have regained his All-Star form, he can focus on helping the Colorado Rockies cool off the surging San Francisco Giants.

The right-hander has a chance to match the Colorado single-season franchise record for victories Wednesday afternoon when he tries to prevent the visiting Giants from extending their winning streak to five games.

After allowing 12 runs and nine walks over 7 1-3 innings while going 0-1 in his previous two starts, Jimenez (16-2, 2.67 ERA) gave up one run and four hits in seven innings of a 9-3 win over Pittsburgh on Thursday.

"It (felt) really good," Jimenez said after his first win since starting the All-Star game for the NL.

Jimenez now looks to tie Kevin Ritz (1996), Pedro Astacio (1999), and current teammate Jeff Francis (2007) for most wins in a season by a Rockie. He attributed his patience and ability to stay calm for overcoming a couple of poor starts.

"It's really hard, but that's a part of the game and you have to be able to control your emotions, because they can eat you up," Jimenez told the Rockies' official website. "But I'm a good learner."

Jimenez is 4-4 with a 3.39 ERA in 12 starts against the Giants, but has been inconsistent in two this year. After tossing a four-hitter and striking out nine in a 4-0 win at San Francisco on May 31, he gave up seven runs in six innings of an 11-8 home loss to the Giants on July 3.

San Francisco (62-45) should feel confident no matter who is on the mound after opening this series with a 10-0 win Tuesday. The Giants have won four in a row and 21 of 26 to move within a game of first-place San Diego in the NL West.

"Come in here and you're hoping to put some runs on the board," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said.

Andres Torres and rookie Buster Posey each had three hits with two RBIs as San Francisco matched a season high with 19 hits, also the most allowed by Colorado (55-51) this season.

Posey, batting .356 since being recalled from the minors May 29, is 11 for 28 against the Rockies in 2010. Torres is hitting .370 with three home runs and 10 RBIs in his last 12 games.

If Posey hits the ball well again, that may help fellow San Francisco rookie Madison Bumgarner (4-3, 2.70) bounce back from his first loss in almost a month.

Since allowing four runs in seven innings of a 7-3 loss in his first appearance against the Rockies at Coors on July 1, the 21-year-old left-hander went 4-0 with a 1.35 ERA in his next four starts before giving up three runs in six innings of a 5-0 defeat to Florida on Thursday.

"It's pretty nice to have your fifth starter go out there and give you a chance to win every game," Bochy told the Giants' official website. "I can't say it's a surprise, but it's nice to have a kid come up and pitch the way he's been throwing and handle himself the way he has."

Todd Helton went 1 for 4 against Bumgarner last month, and had one of three hits Tuesday for the Rockies, who had their four-game winning streak snapped.

Helton, who returned after missing a month with back stiffness, is batting a career-low .247. He is 5 for 28 against the Giants this season.


CBSSPORTSLINE VIA STATS LLC