After a dismal opening to their series against the Astros, the Chicago Cubs will look to bounce back behind starter Carlos Zambrano.
Zambrano, who is 5-2 on the season with a 4.59 ERA and 1.31 WHIP, will look to repeat the start he had against the Mets, in which he pitched six innings while giving up just two runs on six hits. He also struck out five. In his last start against Houston, in April, Zambrano threw 5.2 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out five, but still got the win. In that game, Matt Downs was 2-for-3 against Zambrano with a home run. Over his career against Big Z, Carlos Lee has a .377 average with six doubles and five home runs.
Pitching for Houston will be rookie Jordan Lyles, making his major league debut. In ten starts this year in Triple-A, Lyles was 3-3 with a 3.20 ERA.
The weather in Chicago is forecast to be warm with a chance of strong storms and a game time temperature in the low-80s. First pitch is at 7:05 Central, and the game will be televised on CSN.