The Chicago Cubs know their losing streak won’t go on forever, but the long string of defeats definitely is getting uncomfortable.

The Cubs will attempt to end their seven-game skid when they host the Houston Astros in the finale of a three-game series on Sunday afternoon.

The losing streak is Chicago’s longest since a nine-game slide from July 7-16, 2022.

“You stick to things that have gotten you out of (losing streaks). You stick to things that have made you good, and you keep trying to reinforce that the challenge is to stay with that stuff when you’re not getting results,” manager Craig Counsell said. “We’ve struggled as a team for two weeks here.”

The Cubs were shut out for the second time in three games on Saturday, wasting a solid seven-inning effort by Colin Rea in a 3-0 defeat to the Astros. Counsell tried shuffling his batting order, but the Cubs still managed just three singles.

Houston starter Kai-Wei Teng confounded the Cubs with his breaking ball for six innings before three relievers blanked them the rest of the way.

“We’re trying to square balls up, and we’re just not having much success,” Counsell said after the game. “The breaking ball today was good from (Teng). He just threw a lot of breaking balls at kind of varying shapes, and we struggled with it. We couldn’t square it up, essentially ended up being a bunch of pop-ups and some swing-and-miss.”

Teng’s six shutout innings marked the third time in the past four games that Houston’s starter went at least five innings without allowing a run.

“Just like hitting, pitching can be contagious too,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “Everybody’s starting to do their part. The level of confidence is starting to rise. The guys are starting to believe in one another. ‘It’s my turn. I want to pass the baton to the next guy,’ and we’re starting to get quality start after quality start.”

The Astros, who have won three of their past four games, plan to start right-hander Peter Lambert in the series finale.

Lambert (2-4, 3.57 ERA) has lost his past two outings, but the Cubs combined for one run in those games. The right-hander most recently gave up five runs and three hits in six innings of an 8-0 loss to the Texas Rangers last Sunday.

Lambert has made three appearances against the Cubs in his career, including two starts, and is 2-0 with a 2.57 ERA.

“Our offense continued to produce some good at-bats (Saturday) again, but for us to get going and create consistency in how we win games, we need both sides of the ball, and it starts with our pitching,” Espada said.

Left-hander Shota Imanaga (4-4, 3.38 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Cubs on Sunday.

Imanaga is coming off his worst outing of the season, surrendering eight runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings of a 9-3 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday to end a streak of three quality starts.

“Shota just didn’t have a good night,” Counsell said. “He just didn’t have real good command, the command that he usually has. … It was, frankly, not being able to put the ball where he wanted to put it.”

Imanaga has never faced the Astros.

–Field Level Media

Regardless of what happens when the Cincinnati Reds host the St. Louis Cardinals in the rubber game of their three-game series on Sunday afternoon, it will be hard to top the heartwarming debut of rookie Bryan Torres.

The National League Central rivals played for the first time this season on Saturday and split a doubleheader. St. Louis won the first game 8-1, and Cincinnati prevailed 7-6 in 11 innings in the nightcap.

The Cardinals called up Torres, 28, from the minors on Friday to make his long-awaited major league debut following an injury to fellow outfielder Nathan Church (left-shoulder strain).

Torres, signed by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2015, spent five-plus seasons in the minor leagues in the United States — plus played in games in many locations in the Dominican Summer League, Puerto Rican Winter League and the independent leagues — waiting for his chance. He was signed as a minor league free agent by St. Louis in 2023 and was leading the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds with a .336 batting average when he was called up.

In the first game of the doubleheader, Torres walked in his first plate appearance, singled in the fourth inning and hit a two-run homer in the ninth. He went 2-for-4 and made a nice catch in left field. In the nightcap he was 1-for-4 with a walk.

“Eleven years to get to here,” Torres said. “I’m not a homer guy. Today, my debut, it just happened. I’ve been learning to manage the pressure. When the heart is going too fast, you have to slow things down. I felt a little pounding in my chest today.”

Of Torres’ day, St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol said: “That was awesome. That guy’s waited a long time to get his shot. You talk about being resilient and, even before the game started, you could tell he was locked in and just having a good time. That was fun.”

The other offensive star for St. Louis on Saturday was right fielder Jordan Walker, who was 4-for-9 with two homers, three runs and seven RBIs.

For Cincinnati, Elly De La Cruz snapped a 1-for-17 streak when he crushed a three-run homer in the second game, and Nathaniel Lowe hit a pair of home runs for the day.

The pitching matchup for the series finale will pit Cincinnati right-hander Brady Singer (2-4, 6.26 ERA) against St. Louis southpaw Matthew Liberatore (2-2, 4.70).

Singer did not pitch well in his most recent outing, a 10-3 loss at Cleveland on May 17. He pitched four innings and allowed five runs on seven hits — including three home runs — and one walk, striking out six. He had worked just 3 2/3 innings in his previous start — a 10-4 loss to the Washington Nationals on May 12 — after being struck on the right ankle by a line drive in the second inning, but he didn’t use the injury as an excuse.

“I was able to get to strikes. That’s what I wanted to do,” Singer said. “But I wasn’t able to put them away. The ankle is fine. I didn’t feel it when I was pitching.”

Reds manager Terry Francona said it wasn’t an easy outing for Singer.

“He had to work for everything, and when he missed, he paid the price,” Francona said.

Singer has made five career starts against St. Louis, going 2-3 with a 3.04 ERA.

Liberatore was roughed up by the Pittsburgh Pirates in his most recent start on Tuesday, giving up four runs on seven hits and two walks in 4 2/3 innings. He tied a career high with nine strikeouts. The Cardinals won 9-6 in 10 innings, but Liberatore didn’t figure into the decision.

Liberatore has made 10 career appearances against the Reds, three of them starts, going 1-1 with a 3.32 ERA.

–Field Level Media

After Stephen Kolek gave the Kansas City Royals’ bullpen a day off, Seth Lugo will try to help claim a series win against the visiting Seattle Mariners on Sunday afternoon.

Kolek delivered a complete-game, four-hit shutout in the Royals’ 5-0 victory on Saturday. He walked one, struck out two and needed 108 pitches to notch Kansas City’s first complete-game shutout since Sept. 13, 2020.

As the Royals’ scheduled starter on Sunday, Lugo (1-4, 3.68 ERA), will have a tough act to follow.

In his last start, Lugo gave up two runs on five hits with two walks and five strikeouts over six innings in a 3-1 home defeat to the Boston Red Sox on Monday. He has four career appearances (three starts) against the Mariners, going 1-1 with a 5.00 ERA.

On Saturday, Royals manager Matt Quatraro praised the ground balls Kolek induced, something he wants as part of the pitching staff’s game plan.

“I kept an unofficial tally; I think (he threw) 10 or 11 ground balls,” Quatraro said of Kolek. “That’s one thing we want: Attack, keep them on their heels and induce soft contact.”

Bobby Witt Jr. helped spark the offense Saturday with two hits, two runs and a stolen base. His first hit was an infield single, and he later scored on a sacrifice fly to shallow left field.

“He’s got game-changing speed; that’s why this game is unfair,” Quatraro said. “He can maximize the contact he makes.”

For Witt, who is batting .298 with seven home runs, 23 RBIs and 16 stolen bases this season, the approach starts with being ready for his preferred pitches.

“I want to attack in my zones,” he said. “I want to be ready for the fastball at all times and go from there.”

Witt said the Royals want aggressiveness on the basepaths to be part of their identity.

“That’s who we are,” he said. “We want to keep attacking and try to get that extra 90 (feet).”

The Royals on Sunday will face right-hander Bryan Woo (4-2, 3.51 ERA), who most recently led the Mariners to a 6-1 win over the Chicago White Sox on Monday.

The 26-year-old limited Chicago to three hits and two walks while striking out eight over six shutout innings. He said he’s better when sticking to the basics.

Monday marked Woo’s third consecutive quality start, third win in a row and third straight outing with eight or more strikeouts.

“The simpler I am, the simpler my thought process is, the better I am,” Woo said.

Woo is 1-0 with a 5.56 ERA in two career starts against the Royals. On May 1, he gave up six runs on seven hits and struck out two in a 7-6 home loss to Kansas City in which he didn’t factor into the decision.

Mariners manager Dan Wilson said his club needs to flush Saturday’s loss quickly. Luke Raley collected three of Seattle’s four hits and leads the team with 10 homers and 27 RBIs this season.

“It was a tough afternoon,” Wilson said, “… but we need to come back tomorrow and be ready to go and win the series.”

–Field Level Media