Today's Matchup: Brewers (Estrada) at Cubs (Germano)

It's been a rough go for Justin Germano in his time with the Cubs. Over his last three starts he's 1-2 with a 7.02 ERA and just 11 Ks.

He was their starter last Monday when the Brewers won 8-5. The Brewers tagged him for eight runs (seven earned) on seven hits in just 4 2/3 innings last week Monday at Miller Park. Oddly, in the MLB.com Cubs' recap from that game, Germano says he pitched well, it was just unfortunate that the Brewers were hitting balls where the defense wasn't...

Going for the Brewers is Marco Estrada, who recorded his elusive first win last Tuesday against the Cubs. He pitched six scoreless innings, giving up two hits in the Brewers 5-2 win. On the season, Estrada is 1-5 with a 4.23 ERA in 22 appearances (16 starts.)

The goal for Estrada will be to start a win streak to close out the season. Five months is a long time to go with a goose egg in the win column, especially when you're a pitcher trying to make your case for the starting rotation next season.

The Brewers are in an odd stretch where they play 13 straight games against the Cubs and Pirates.

The Brewers tend to have more success at Miller Park than Wrigley Field, though they did sweep the Cubs during their only other visit to Wrigley this season, back on April 9-11. Prior to the meeting last week at Miller Park, the division rivals hadn't played since early June.

No surprises in tonight's lineup:

Norichika Aoki RF
Rickie Weeks 2B
Ryan Braun LF
Aramis Ramirez 3B
Corey Hart 1B
Jonathan Lucroy C
Carlos Gomez CF
Jean Segura SS
Marco Estrada RHP

In the bullpen:

Livan Hernandez pitched two innings (33 pitches) Saturday.
Jose Veras pitched one inning (21 pitches) yesterday.
Jim Henderson pitched 0.1 innings (3 pitches) Friday.
John Axford pitched 0.2 innings (35 pitches) Friday.
Kameron Loe pitched 1 inning (18 pitches) yesterday.
Francisco Rodriguez pitched one inning (10 pitches) Friday.
Manny Parra pitched two innings (25 pitches) yesterday.