MILWAUKEE -- After Tuesday night's 7-1 loss to the Cubs at Miller Park, the Brewers find themselves in a hole.

It's not only because they slipped to three games back in the National League Central division standings or because they dropped the first two games of the four-game set, but because they did all this with their "co-aces" on the mound to open the series.

CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets were supposed to give the Brewers the mental advantage and the ability to come out of the gates strong against the first-place Cubs, but neither could get the job done. Neither had his best stuff and they were bested by the Cubs' Ted Lilly and Carlos Zambrano.

Brewers manager Ned Yost now finds his team three games out of the division lead, guaranteeing that the Cubs will leave Milwaukee in first place no matter what happens before they skip town. On top of all this, Yost knows that it won't get any easier the rest of the way.

"We're still up against two great pitchers in [Ryan] Dempster and Rich Harden, and they got past our best two with wins," Yost said. "The good thing that we have in our favor is that it is still August. We've got a lot of time to make up ground and we still have two games left in the series."

Sheets echoed his manager's sentiment when he spoke after Tuesday's loss, during which the Cubs tagged him for six runs on 11 hits and chased him from the game before the end of the sixth inning.

"The heat didn't get to me, they got to me," Sheets said. "They put the ball in play and put it where we weren't, but it's still July, nobody won the [division] tonight. We don't want to give any more away, but there is still a lot of season left."

Much has been made of Milwaukee's two aces over the past two days, and Cubs skipper Lou Piniella wanted to remind everyone that his guys weren't too shabby either.

"Put it this way, our two guys, Lilly and Zambrano, aren't exactly chopped liver," Piniella said.

Sweet Lou is right. Aside from a rough sixth inning, Lilly was great on Monday and Zambrano was lights out all night on Tuesday, shutting out the Brewers for eight innings. He allowed just five hits and struck out nine on the night.

Yost believes his team still has what it takes to salvage a split in the four-game series, but that it will be a difficult job as Manny Parra takes the hill against All-Star pitcher Ryan Dempster.

"You have to be able to put these games behind you, move on and be ready to compete again tomorrow," Yost said. "Manny needs to come out and pitch a good game and we need to swing the bats.

"That's a tough task against a guy like Ryan Dempster and it's a tough task for Manny against a good offensive team like the Chicago Cubs, but we're a pretty good team too."

And with two wins already in the books, Chicago isn't going to take anything for granted the next two days.

"You can never be satisfied," said Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez. "We have to come back tomorrow and try to win again. You can't be satisfied that you beat CC and Ben Sheets."

It will undoubtedly be a rough road ahead with Parra and fifth-starter Dave Bush set to face Dempster and Harden to close out the series, but Sheets and the rest of the Brewers don't plan on letting the Cubs leave Milwaukee with a sweep.

"We're deep on the mound," Sheets said. "We feel like we've got the ability to pitch one through five. It's not a two-man pitching staff; it's a 12-man pitching staff and our offense can pick us up if we do pitch badly.

"We still have a very good team, regardless of what's happened the last two games."

Pitching matchup
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.

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 on April 30, both games at Wrigley Field, where he's 10-1. He's 1-3 with a 3.42 ERA on the road.

Tidbits
Milwaukee second baseman Ray Durham left Tuesday's game against the Cubs with a right shin bruise after fouling a pitch off of his leg during his second at-bat of the game. Yost said that Durham's calf muscle got continually tighter as the night wore on and that he is listed as day-to-day. ... Brewers scout Chris Bourjos followed the Giants from San Francisco to Los Angeles this week, prompting some to wonder whether Milwaukee still had interest in left-hander and Wisconsin native Jack Taschner. Don't make too much of Bourjos' presence, said Brewers pro scouting director Dick Groch, who said it was just part of the team's "regular coverage". ... Jemile Weeks -- brother of Brewers second baseman Rickie Weeks -- was injured during Tuesday night's Minor League exhibition game at Wrigley Field. Weeks, who plays for Class-A Kane County in the Oakland organization, was injured on the first play of the game when he tripped over first base. He eventually walked off the field under his own power and further details of his injury were not made available.

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Up next
• Thursday: Brewers (Dave Bush, 5-8, 4.51) vs. Cubs (Rich Harden, 5-2, 2.10), 1:05 p.m. CT
• Friday: Brewers (Jeff Suppan, 5-7, 5.04) at Braves (Charlie Morton, 2-4, 7.26), 6:30 p.m. CT
• Saturday: Brewers (CC Sabathia, 10-8, 3.33) at Braves (TBD), 2:55 p.m. CT