Is it time for the Cubs and White Sox to make their moves in their Central Divisions? The Cubs have won five of their last eight games and sit 3 1/2 behind the first-place Cardinals, who come to Wrigley Field for a four-game showdown beginning Friday. Despite a 10-8 loss to the Indians on Thursday, the Sox have won nine of their last 12 and are just 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Tigers. They visit the rival Twins for a three-game set in the dreaded Metrodome starting Friday night.
Cubs vs. Cardinals: 3 things to watch
1. Lou vs. La Russa: The two old friends are both on edge. Tony La Russa dropped his lawsuit against Twitter Inc., so Cubs fans should refrain from mentioning it in mixed company. Lou Piniella doesn’t want to discuss his sagging offense. Piniella has the overall edge since coming to the Cubs, with a 23-17 record vs. La Russa’s Cardinals.
2. Soriano vs. Carpenter: Alfonso Soriano is upset after sitting Wednesday without a heads-up from Piniella, while Chris Carpenter’s arm problems apparently are past. Soriano is a .387 career hitter vs. the Cardinals ace, with two home runs in 31 at-bats.
3. Bradley vs. world: Cubs hitting coach Von Joshua broke down Bradley’s left-handed swing and made some recommendations. But is Bradley listening? Piniella may drop him to the No. 6 spot against right-handers until he proves he’s out of his left-handed funk.
Sox at Twins: 3 things to watch
1. Matt Thornton and Aaron Poreda vs. Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and
Jason Kubel: The Sox need their left-handed relievers to shut down the meat of the Twins’ lineup.
2. Sox pitchers and catcher A.J. Pierzynski vs. Twins’ running game: The Sox have more stolen bases, but the Twins seem to thrive on their speed at home, whether it’s on stolen bases, hit-and-run plays or advancing from first to third on singles.
3. Sox pitchers vs. Metrodome: The Sox can’t let the noisy, artificial elements get the best of them as they did last year. The Sox have done a horrible job in the past few years of letting the Twins rally from deficits, most notably a 6-1 margin Sept. 25 in their last visit.
THE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday: 1:20 p.m., WGN-Ch. 9.
RH Chris Carpenter (6-3, 2.32 ERA) vs. RH Rich Harden (5-5, 5.35).
Saturday: 3:10 p.m., WFLD-Ch. 32.
RH Brad Thompson (2-5, 4.92) vs. LH Ted Lilly (8-6, 3.32).
Sunday: 12:05 p.m., WGN-Ch. 9.
RH Adam Wainwright (8-5, 3.32) RH Randy Wells (4-3, 2.48).
7:05 p.m., ESPN.
RH Kyle Lohse (4-4, 3.99) vs. RH Carlos Zambrano (4-4, 3.47).
Friday: 7:10 p.m., CSN.
LH John Danks (7-6, 3.76) vs. RH Nick Blackburn (7-4, 2.94).
Saturday: 6:15 p.m., WGN-Ch. 9.
RH Gavin Floyd (6-6, 4.33) vs. TBA.
Sunday: 1:10 p.m., CSN.
LH Mark Buehrle (9-2, 3.14) vs. RH Scott Baker (6-7, 5.31).
