Pittsburgh @ Chicago preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 3, 2011 ) Pittsburgh 7, Chi. Cubs 5

THE STORY: Fresh off a dramatic finish, the Pittsburgh Pirates look to complete a three-game road sweep of the Chicago Cubs on Sunday afternoon. The Pirates, who posted a 3-1 victory in Friday's opener, rallied for a 7-5 win on Saturday afternoon, getting a ninth-inning grand slam from former Cub Derrek Lee. Chicago closer Carlos Marmol blew his ninth save, tying him for the major league lead.

TV: 2:20 p.m. ET, ROOT Sports (Pittsburgh), WGN (Chicago)

PITCHING MATCHUPS: Pirates RH Charlie Morton (9-8, 3.74 ERA) vs. Cubs RH Randy Wells (6-4, 5.06 ERA).

Morton faded in his final two August starts, allowing nine runs in just 9 2/3 innings during back-to-back road losses, but he had been fantastic earlier in the month, starting with seven shutout innings against the Cubs on Aug. 3 (5 H, 2 BB, 7 K). Life against Chicago hasn't always been quite so smooth for Morton, who is 2-2 with a 5.68 ERA in five lifetime starts. Cubs LF Alfonso Soriano is 1-for-9 with five strikeouts against Morton.

Wells appears to have turned the corner after a rough start to the season, giving up one run on just four hits over 15 2/3 innings in back-to-back wins. He is coming off of his first career shutout, a two-hit gem at San Francisco on Aug. 29 (7 K, 1 BB). Wells is 4-0 over his last six starts, a run that began with an Aug. 2 victory at Pittsburgh (6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER). Pirates CF Andrew McCutchen is 8-for-16 against Wells.

ABOUT THE PIRATES (64-75): Acquired in a deadline deal, Lee had been out for nearly four weeks with a wrist injury before delivering the big blow in just his sixth game as a Pirate, hitting his third homer in four games against his old team. He is 8-for-23 (.348) with eight RBIs in six games with Pittsburgh, providing a boost to an offense that ranks near the bottom of the major leagues in runs scored (533), home runs (92) and most other categories.

ABOUT THE CUBS (59-80): Chicago's bullpen was expected to rank among the best in baseball this season, but the unit has fallen well short of expectations. The Cubs have blown 19 save opportunities, with nearly half of those falling at the feet of the erratic Marmol (2-5, 4.26 ERA). Chicago has also allowed 61 unearned runs, thanks in large part to a defense that leads the major leagues with 116 errors. LF Alfonso Soriano has struggled in recent months but drove in four runs on Saturday.

FINAL PITCH: McCutchen, who left Friday's game in the first inning after being hit with a pitch on the left hand, returned to the lineup Saturday and went 1-for-3 with a pair of walks and a run scored.