The Cubs, who are averaging 7.3 runs and batting .308 while winning six of seven, are getting offense from everywhere.

Third baseman Aramis Ramirez extended his hitting streak to seven Wednesday with a first-inning RBI single, and his solo homer an inning later marked the seventh straight game he’s had an extra-base hit.

Righthander Kevin Hart gets the ball for Chicago, which is trying to end a seven-game homestand with six victories.

Getting a quality start from Russ Ortiz today would be a welcome change for an overworked Houston bullpen that’s allowed 13 runs and walked 19 in 16 1-3 innings in the series.

Ortiz is 1-2 with a 9.88 ERA in three career starts at Wrigley Field, but has not pitched there since 2000.

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Philadelphia’s eight-game winning streak is its longest since a nine-game run April 30-May 9, 2006. That streak was also the last time the club won six in a row at Citizens Bank Park.

The Phillies will give the ball to Rodrigo Lopez, who is hoping a long layoff will help put a shoulder injury behind him.

The righthander had his last outing on July 8 cut short after five innings due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder.

The Phillies won four of seven meetings with Chicago last season and haven’t dropped a home series against the Cubs since losing two of three April 6-8, 2001.

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Chicago’s doubleheader split Sunday with the St. Louis Cardinals left the Cubs 3-1/2 games out of first place despite a first half full of injuries and underperformance.

The Cubs will be without starting catcher Geovany Soto for one month because of a strained left oblique.

In addition, righthanded pitcher Ryan Dempster is on the disabled list with a broken right big toe.

Rich Harden will start for the Cubs on Thursday.

The Nationals are 26-61, which is the worst record in the major leagues.

John Lannan, who will start Thursday for the Nationals, is 6-6 on the season with a 3.70 ERA. The lefthander is 2-0, with a 3.38 ERA in his career versus the Cubs.

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Continuing that success in Chicago could be tough, though. The Cardinals dropped two of three at Wrigley in April and are just 8-18 on Chicago’s North Side since 2006.

The Cubs were hoping the return of Aramis Ramirez would jump-start the team’s bats, but after three games with him in the lineup, it’s been more of the same.

Chicago, which ranks 15th in the NL in scoring after leading the league last season, has scored just one run in losing each of its last two.

Chicago’s offense looks to get things turned around versus Brad Thompson.

The Cubs counter with Rich Harden, who is trying to bounce back from one of the worst starts of his career.

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One night after straining his right groin in a 4-2 loss to the Cubs, Jones sat out Atlanta’s 2-1 victory Tuesday and could miss this contest.

Atlanta is 6-8 in games not started by Jones, who’s 5-for-12 with three RBI versus the Cubs this season.

The -105 favored Braves hope Kenshin Kawakami can bounce back from his last start.

The righthander allowed five runs and six hits while striking out six in 4 1-3 innings, but didn’t factor in a 9-8 win at Washington on July 3.

One day after being optioned to Triple-A Iowa, righthander Kevin Hart was recalled Tuesday to make his first career start in this contest for the Cubs.

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Milwaukee had a chance to sweep each of its last two series, but lost 7-0 to San Francisco on Sunday and 1-0 to the New York Mets on Wednesday afternoon.

Despite problems at the plate, Chicago is just 3 1/2 games behind Milwaukee in the tightly-bunched NL Central. Thanks to some strong pitching, the Cubs took two of three from Pittsburgh this week even though they managed only seven runs in the series.

The Cubs and Brewers split their first six meetings of the season, all at Miller Park. Milwaukee was 5-4 at Wrigley last year, an impressive mark considering Chicago went 55-26 at home.

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The White Sox won for the fourth time in five games, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-5 in 13 innings Thursday. They also took two of three from the Dodgers for their first series victory at home since winning two of three against Pittsburgh from May 22-24.

The crosstown rivals split a rain-shortened series at Wrigley Field earlier this month. The White Sox swept the Cubs at U.S. Cellular Field last season, outscoring them 21-9.

The Cubs have had success against Jose Contreras, who takes the mound for the White Sox. Contreras is 2-3 with a 6.08 ERA in six starts against the Cubs.

The White Sox will face Randy Wells, who is coming off his first major league victory after finally getting some run support.

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Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Cubs was the Tigers' sixth straight overall and seventh in a row at home. Detroit won a season-best seven consecutive games May 15-22.

The AL Central-leading Tigers go for a 6-0 homestand, but give the ball to Armando Galarraga, who hasn't won since April 26 at Kansas City. The righthander is 0-7 with a 7.48 ERA in his last 10 starts and has allowed opponents to hit .343 off him during that stretch.

Ted Lilly takes the mound for Chicago, which has won his last five starts.

Chicago has lost six straight to Detroit since a 10-6 victory on July 7, 2001.

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Chicago, which last won five in a row since May 10-16, has played well in Atlanta recently, going 8-4 in its last 12 games at Turner Field. The teams split two games June 2 and 3 before the finale of their series was postponed.

The Braves return home after a 3-6 road trip. Overall, they have lost eight of 11 after dropping two of three over the weekend at Boston.

The Braves will hope to be more productive against Ryan Dempster, who is winless in his last three starts. Dempster is 2-10 with a 5.31 ERA against the Braves.

Javier Vazquez has also struggled without much support from his team's offense. Vazquez is 3-4 with a 5.17 ERA against the Cubs.

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