MILWAUKEE -- Kosuke Fukudome still leads the National League in pitches per plate appearance, but the Cubs outfielder hadn't been having much success lately at the plate. Tuesday's two-hit, two-RBIs performance helped. Maybe being back up in the order is the key.

Fukudome batted fifth on Tuesday against the Brewers, and could be back there on Wednesday for Game 3 of this NL Central showdown. For the season, he's hitting .311 in the fifth spot, but was dropped over the weekend to seventh and eighth. Fukudome was hitting .213 in July, and his average has dipped every month.

"I felt just as fine [lower] as when I was higher [in the order]," Fukudome said through interpreter Ryuji Araki.

The Cubs are trying whatever they can to get the Japanese outfielder back on track.

"We've been resting him more," skipper Lou Piniella said. "We've probably rested him more than any other player in the second half. Hopefully, it gets him swinging the bat the way he was early in the year."

Everything is new for Fukudome, who signed a four-year deal with the Cubs in the offseason after playing nine seasons in Japan.

"It's a new experience for him," Piniella said. "It's an adjustment learning the league, different ballparks, the travel. It's not the easiest of all transitions. Unfortunately, that's what you have to get used to. We're making a concerted effort to rest him as much as possible and get a good finishing kick from him."

Maybe other teams' advance scouts have figured Fukudome out?

"I don't think so," Piniella said. "I don't think they're pitching him any different now than they were before. He's expanded his own strike zone, which in turn has made him chase bad pitches and he hasn't been as patient or selective as he was early in the year."

However, two scouts who have seen Fukudome quite a bit this season said pitchers seem to be throwing more offspeed pitches to him than they did earlier, and he's chasing the soft stuff.

Maybe he was trying too hard?

"Because of the injury to my calf, there were certain times when I wasn't 100 percent," Fukudome said, "but now my calf is just fine and I feel comfortable at the plate."

Piniella had suggested after the All-Star break that Fukudome take the bus every now and then to the ballpark rather than arrive early and do so much extra work.

"I don't think I was over-working by any means," Fukudome said. "I still come early enough to get done what I need to get done to get ready for games."

Another thing Piniella hinted at was cutting down on his postgame sessions with the Japanese media. Fukudome has altered his sessions a little bit -- instead of talking every day, he may skip a press conference if the Cubs lose. But he does invite some of the regular Japanese media to dinner now and then.

"I talk to them about how I play on the field," Fukudome said. "I haven't cut back. Sometimes it's great to speak Japanese to somebody outside of the team and it gives me comfort at times."

He was batting .220 in his last 26 games, and enters Wednesday's game 6-for-15 in his past four games. The calf injury bothered him in late June. Is he 100 percent now?

"101 percent," Fukudome said, smiling.

Pitching matchup
CHC: RHP Ryan Dempster (11-4, 2.99 ERA)
Dempster did not get a decision in his past start against the Marlins. He gave up one run on two hits over six innings, but he didn't get any offensive support. He also walked six, including loading the bases on three walks with two outs in the fifth before striking out Dan Uggla to escape. Dempster beat the Brewers on April 3, and again April 30, both games at Wrigley Field, where he's 10-1. He's 1-3 with a 3.42 ERA on the road.

MIL: LHP Manny Parra (9-3, 3.72 ERA)
Parra was seething after his first loss since May 3 ended an eight-decision winning streak. He danced in and out of trouble against the Astros through six innings before running out of luck in the seventh, when Houston loaded the bases without hitting a ball out of the infield. Parra was replaced by reliever David Riske and all three runs scored. "I feel like I'm throwing the ball really well -- six innings, seven innings -- and then a break here or there is the difference between what CC [Sabathia] and Ben [Sheets] are doing. They're coming out of games on a good note versus being taken out of the inning, which I can't stand," he said.

Tidbits
Piniella deferred all questions regarding Thursday's Trade Deadline to general manager Jim Hendry. "I've said I like this team," Piniella said. "But if you can improve it, why not?" ... Jim Edmonds told Piniella he was available, but the Cubs trainers wanted to wait one more day. Edmonds has been bothered by a sore left knee. ... Chad Gaudin picked up victories on Sunday and Monday for the Cubs. The last Cubs pitcher to record decisions in three consecutive games was Mike Proly in 1982, getting the win on Aug. 12 against the Mets, then losing the next day against the Mets, then getting another "W" in the series finale. ... An on-deck circle from Wrigley Field autographed by the Cubs players is one of the unique items to be auctioned for charity during the Kerry Wood Strike Zone Celebrity Bowling Tournament, to be held on Aug. 6 at 10pin bowling lounge in Chicago. All proceeds benefit the Organic School Project. ... Chad Fox, who has been on the disabled list since the start of the season because of soreness in his right elbow, threw off the mound on Monday for the first time since Spring Training. ... The Iowa Cubs will give fans the shirts off their backs on Saturday as part of the Muscular Dystrophy Association promotion. Fans can bid on jerseys that the players wear during the game, and the highest bidders will not only get the shirt, but also have the player sign it. ... The Cubs' Aug. 4 game vs. Houston will start at 6:08 p.m. CT to accommodate ESPN. Also, the Cubs' Aug. 10 game against St. Louis will begin at 7:09 p.m. CT to accommodate ESPN.

Tickets
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On the Internet
 MLB.TV
 Gameday Audio
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•  Official game notes

On television
• CSN Chicago, ESPN

On radio
• WGN 720

Up next
• Thursday: Cubs (Rich Harden, 5-2, 2.10) at Brewers (Dave Bush, 5-8, 4.51), 1:05 p.m. CT
• Friday: Cubs (Jason Marquis, 6-6, 4.69) vs. Pirates (Jeff Karstens, 0-0, -.--), 1:20 p.m. CT
• Saturday: Cubs (Ted Lilly, 10-6, 4.49) vs. Pirates (Paul Maholm, 7-6, 3.79), 12:05 p.m. CT