Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Posted: 10:40 a.m.
Associated Press
The San Diego Padres failed to score a run in their series opener at Wrigley Field.
Maybe they forgot that Dustin Moseley wasn't starting until Wednesday afternoon.
The Padres seek to finally give Moseley some support and end their run of futility against Chicago Cubs pitching when the teams play a doubleheader after Tuesday night's game was postponed because of inclement weather.
Carlos Zambrano and a pair of relievers dominated San Diego (7-9) on Monday. The Padres managed five hits - all singles - while striking out 13 times over 10 scoreless innings.
The Cubs finally broke through in the bottom of the 10th, when Tyler Colvin's pinch-hit double off Chad Qualls scored Geovany Soto and gave Chicago a 1-0 victory in windy, 34-degree conditions.
"The whole game you go out there and you're kind of miserable and it's so cold," Soto said. "We wanted to get out of there so badly. We were like, 'Man, all we need is one.' But it was tough to get that one."
MLB
Tuesday night's game was postponed because the forecast called for heavy rain and wind chills in the 20s.
"You don't want to play in weather like this," Cubs manager Mike Quade said. "Wind and cold are fine. If we didn't have the rain, it would have just been another cool night."
San Diego has been shut out four times this season and also lost 1-0 to the Cubs (8-8) in the teams' final meeting of 2010. The Padres have failed to score in their last 22 innings versus Chicago.
San Diego's other three scoreless performances have all come with Moseley (0-3, 1.83 ERA) on the mound. The right-hander allowed the game's only run in 6 2-3 strong innings Thursday at Houston.
"It's frustrating, but you go out there and do your job and you leave the rest up to the team, and hopefully guys pull through," Moseley said. "Through the first three it hasn't happened, but it's a long year.
"I mean, these guys can start scoring 10 a game for me. We have a great bunch of guys and a lot of good players, and I look forward to those days when they get their swings and confidence and everything is back to where it can be and it will be."
Moseley will be opposed in the opener by another pitcher that hasn't received much support.
Chicago has been shut out the last two times Matt Garza (0-2, 6.27) has taken the mound, and he's allowed five runs in each of those outings.
"It hasn't been a great start for him and he knows that. But he's still working and I still believe he's going to be a (great) pitcher on this club and in this rotation," Quade said.
The right-hander made his only start against San Diego last season, allowing three runs and six hits over eight innings of a 5-3 win for Tampa Bay.
In the nightcap, Aaron Harang will look to win for the fourth time in as many starts for the Padres. Harang (3-0, 1.50) has allowed one earned run over six innings in each of his first three outings, beating Houston 4-2 on Friday night.
"He's pitching with aggressiveness and he's pitching with some confidence," manager Bud Black said. "It's great to see."
Harang is quite familiar with pitching at Wrigley Field after playing for Cincinnati from 2003-10. The right-hander is 5-3 with a 5.01 ERA in 12 starts there, and he's 10-8 with a 4.51 ERA in 24 appearances against the Cubs.
He will be opposed by James Russell (1-1, 7.20), who makes his second start for the Cubs due to injuries suffered by Randy Wells and Andrew Cashner.
The left-hander, who made 57 relief appearances as a rookie in 2010, surrendered five runs and seven hits in 1 2-3 innings in his first start, an 11-2 defeat at Houston on April 12.
"You can only hope it'll go better," Russell told the Cubs' official website. "I'm looking forward to it. I'm not real sure how we'll go about it, but probably go about it the same way as last time."
Russell faced the Padres twice last August, giving up two runs, two hits and a walk over 1 1-3 innings while striking out three.
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