Tavarez makes pitch for turnaround.(Chicago Tribune)

ATLANTA_The Cubs went into Saturday's game against the Braves and starter Greg Maddux hoping the rain would hold off and Julian Tavarez's licorice whip of a right arm would hold out for five innings.

Forecasters predicted afternoon showers. The outlook for Tavarez wasn't so great either.

He hadn't won a game in a month and didn't even make it out of the first inning of his last start 10 days ago, in which the Milwaukee Brewers bombarded him for five runs on seven hits.

Tavarez knew he had fallen from grace into a probable relief role and recognized that Saturday's outing was viewed as a temporary filling to plug the cavity in the starting rotation until Kerry Wood's scheduled return this week.

Tavarez has started 28 games this season, more than he had combined in the rest of a major-league career that began in 1993. He doesn't want to relinquish his new identity, and he wants badly to regain the form that made him a surprisingly reliable, if not overwhelming, mound presence through late June.

"I know they're thinking a lot about me, about making a decision," Tavarez said. "I just don't let it get to my head. I've been thinking, too, that I have to give them my best shot in the game so I can be in the starting rotation."

Tavarez is aware that his naturally occurring adrenaline sometimes works against him, especially when something important is on the line, so he took preventive measures Saturday. He warmed up twice as long as he usually does, working for more than 20 minutes on the side, to burn off any potentially flammable fumes.