Nine years ago, Jameson Taillon was a pitching prospect with Pittsburgh, part of a core that the Pirates hoped would turn around the long-suffering franchise.

Fast forward to Monday and Taillon will take the mound, looking to help another one of baseball's most famously tortured franchises get back to the playoffs -- and the right-hander will do so against the team that first turned to him nearly a decade ago.

Taillon, 33, will be on the mound for Chicago on Monday when the Cubs visit Pittsburgh for the first of a three-game series -- the opening series of the Cubs' final road trip of the season.

The Cubs (85-64) will take the field 5 1/2 games behind the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers, but also sitting in the first wild-card spot in the NL, 10 games ahead of the San

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