Field Level Media
Sep 10, 2021
Evan Longoria and Brandon Belt hit two-run homers in the seventh inning to lift the visiting San Francisco Giants to a 6-1 win against the Chicago Cubs in the opener of their three-game series on Friday afternoon.
Belt also doubled and scored and LaMonte Wade Jr. had two hits and an RBI for the Giants (91-50), who came into Friday with a 2 1/2-game advantage over the Los Angeles Dodgers for the NL West lead.
The Giants used eight relievers throughout the game and Camilo Doval (2-1) got the final out of the sixth to earn the win.
Frank Schwindel homered for the Cubs (65-77), who had won eight of nine coming in.
Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks allowed one run and four hits in six innings, striking out four and walking two.
The score was tied 1-1 when Trevor Megill (1-1) replaced Hendricks to start the seventh. Megill gave up a leadoff single to Brandon Crawford before Longoria lifted a two-run homer to deep left field for a 3-1 lead.
Megill gave up a single and a walk before Michael Rucker relieved him. Rucker got the first batter to hit into a double play, but then surrendered a two-run opposite-field homer to Belt for a 5-1 lead.
Kris Bryant returned to Wrigley Field for the first time since the Cubs traded the former National League Rookie of the Year and MVP to the Giants on July 30.
Bryant walked and scored on a sacrifice fly by Longoria in the eighth to make it 6-1.
Bryant got a standing ovation in his first at-bat and then struck out with runners on first and third to end the first inning.
The Giants didn't put a runner in scoring position again until Belt doubled to lead off the sixth. He moved to third with one out before Wade dumped a pop fly into shallow left with the infield drawn in, tying the score at 1-1.
Dominic Leone started for San Francisco and retired all six batters he faced with two strikeouts.
The Cubs did not record a hit until Schwindel homered off Jarlin Garcia to lead off the fourth and give Chicago a 1-0 lead.
--Field Level Media