Padres Preview: 05/11 Drew Pomeranz will try to lead the Padres to a series win over the Cubs

The Padres did the unthinkable and gave the Chicago Cubs their first loss in nine games. The first game of the doubleheader stayed in the hands of the Friars following Brett Wallace's go-ahead three-run shot. Now the teams will play the rubber game of the series and battle for the series win.

Drew Pomeranz, who has been the Padres' most consistently successful pitcher this season, will get the start in the night game of the doubleheader. He threw five scoreless innings, giving up only one hit while walking three, against the Mets in his most recent start. But the lefty continued to struggle with pitch efficiency, which has been his biggest issue all year. It took him 98 pitches to get through those five frames his last time out. Through six games this season, Pomeranz has averaged more than 17 pitches per inning. But in that stretch he's posted a 2.12 ERA,

In two career appearances against the Cubs, Pomeranz is 1-0, having allowed only two runs through ten innings. Both runs resulted from solo home runs, and they both occurred during his one start at Wrigley Field.

Chicago starter John Lackey will try to improve on a lifetime 1-2 record and 4.44 ERA (through four games) against San Diego. The first-year Cub seems to be thriving at Wrigley Field so far. In his first three home starts this season he is 2-0 with a 2.49 ERA. Both of his last two starts took place at Wrigley, where he kept opponents to five runs (four earned) through 15 total innings.

Lackey has benefited from some relatively high run support totals this year. Only once has he received fewer than five runs of support from his offense, and he's gotten as many as 14 runs.

Game time: 5:05 pm PT

Radio: The Mighty 1090, La Poderosa 860 (Sp.)

TV: FSSD, Fox Deportes San Diego (Sp.)