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The White Sox lead the majors in ERA, and John Danks (2.90) has the best among the starters.

WEEKEND PREVIEW

By Mark Simon, ESPN Research

The Windy City Series figures to garner a lot of attention this weekend since this will be the first time in history the Cubs and White Sox enter a meeting both in first place. Also, it features two of the best pitching staffs in baseball.

"SUNDAY NIGHT BASEBALL"

• White Sox at Cubs, 8:05 p.m. ET, ESPN

Cubs fans are holding their breath awaiting the status of Carlos Zambrano's shoulder exam. He has anchored a staff which owns the fourth-best ERA in baseball at 3.62. The White Sox, meanwhile, are the standard, holding a baseball-best 3.34 ERA. This Cubs-White Sox matchup seems to be a even one, which fits in the history of this series -- the all-time record is 30-30.

Friday

•White Sox (John Danks) at Cubs (Ted Lilly), 2:20 p.m. ET
Ted Lilly, who started the season with a 1-4 record, is 6-1 with a 3.81 ERA in his past nine starts. Getting away from U.S. Cellular Field has been beneficial to John Danks, who has a 1.72 ERA (and only two home runs allowed) in six road starts this season.

• Cardinals (Kyle Lohse) at Red Sox (Tim Wakefield), 7:05 p.m. ET
Perhaps if Kyle Lohse (winner of five straight starts) had been with the Cardinals in 2004 St. Louis wouldn't have gotten swept in the World Series. Or maybe not: He's 0-3 with a 6.26 ERA in his career against the Red Sox. The knuckler has been dancing well for Tim Wakefield, who has a 2.17 ERA in his previous four starts.

• Reds (Edinson Volquez) at Yankees (Mike Mussina), 7:05 p.m. ET
The Reds make their first trip to Yankee Stadium since the 1976 World Series. Their last game in the Bronx was Oct. 21, 1976, when Johnny Bench hit two home runs in a Game 4 win. It could also be the last games against the Yankees for Ken Griffey Jr. He's a .313 hitter with 33 home runs in his career against the Yankees. This also could be the starting pitching matchup for the All-Star Game, with Edinson Volquez facing Mike Mussina.

• Complete list of pitching probables for Friday's games

Saturday

• Angels (Joe Saunders) at Phillies (Brett Myers), 7:05 p.m. ET
Angels manager Mike Scioscia, a native of the Philadelphia suburbs, makes his way home for this series in a matchup of first-place teams. He throws one of his aces, Joe Saunders (5-1, 1.77 ERA on road), against Brett Myers, who has one win over his past 11 starts.

• Mets (Pedro Martinez) at Rockies (Ubaldo Jimenez), 8:05 p.m. ET
The Mets look to get some momentum in Coors Field, where they lost two of three games earlier this season. Look for a big series from David Wright, a .406 career hitter in Coors Field. Pedro Martinez hasn't pitched in Coors Field since 1997 when he tossed a 13-strikeout shutout. Opposing him is Ubaldo Jimenez, whose 13 straight winless starts is tied for the most in Rockies history.

• White Sox (Jose Contreras) at Cubs (Jason Marquis), 1:05 p.m. ET
Jose Contreras ranks eighth in the American League in ERA (3.24). A year ago, he posted a 5.57 ERA in 32 appearances. Jason Marquis has won his past four decisions after suffering a string in which he lost three straight.

• Complete list of pitching probables for Saturday's games

Sunday

• Mariners (Carlos Silva) at Braves (Tim Hudson), 1:35 p.m. ET
Neither starting pitcher in this matchup can buy a win. The Braves have lost five straight Tim Hudson starts, while Mariners hurler Carlos Silva can do little right. He's lost eight straight decisions.

• Diamondbacks (Brandon Webb ) at Twins (Livan Hernandez), 2:10 p.m. ET
Brandon Webb is struggling, at least by his standards, with a 2-3 mark in his past five decisions. Livan Hernandez has been horrible by everybody's standards. Opponents are hitting .349 against him this season. In June, Hernandez has allowed 20 runs and 38 hits in 20 innings.

• White Sox (Javier Vazquez) at Cubs (Ryan Dempster), 8:05 p.m. ET, ESPN
Wrigley Field has been friendly to Ryan Dempster, who is 8-0 at home this season after switching from a reliever to a starter. He was only 2-8 there as a reliever over the previous two seasons. Javier Vazquez is second in the AL in strikeouts.

• Complete list of pitching probables for Sunday's games

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