Chi. Cubs 12, Pittsburgh 2
When: 7:05 PM ET, Friday, September 7, 2012
Where: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Temperature:
83°
Umpires:
Home -
Paul Emmel, 1B -
Scott Barry, 2B -
Jordan Baker, 3B -
Gary Darling
Attendance:
32699
By SportsDirect Inc.
Cubs 12, Pirates 2: Starlin Castro collected three hits - including the 500th of his career - and four RBIs while Travis Wood allowed one hit over six superb innings as visiting Chicago halted its six-game losing streak.
Alfonso Soriano added three hits and three RBIs for the Cubs, who also ended their eight-game road skid by taking advantage of seven Pittsburgh errors. Chicago is 1-4 on its 10-game road trip.
Wood (5-11) walked three and struck out five en route to his first victory since July 6. The left-hander, who had gone 0-8 over his previous 10 starts, kept Pittsburgh hitless until Pedro Alvarez delivered a two-out double in the fifth inning.
The Cubs gave Wood an early lead as Soriano plated Luis Valbuena with a single in the first. Prior to the hit, second baseman Brock Holt committed the first of Pittsburgh's errors and first of his two miscues.
Castro highlighted a three-run third with a two-run single. The 22-year-old's single in the fifth made him the 28th player in major-league history to reach the 500-hit plateau before the age of 23.
Pirates left fielder Starling Marte, who was activated from the disabled list prior to the game, made errors on consecutive plays with two outs in the third, rendering all three Chicago runs unearned.
Pittsburgh made two more gaffes during a three-run sixth that was capped by Valbuena's two-run double. Two more errors were committed in the seventh before the Cubs scored five more times. Soriano hit a two-run single and Castro followed with a two-run double for a 12-0 advantage.
A.J. Burnett (15-6) was the victim of the Pirates' poor defense as he lost for the third time in four decisions. The veteran right-hander, who fell to 6-1 lifetime against Chicago, yielded seven runs - three earned - and eight hits over five innings.
Burnett entered having tossed 14 1/3 scoreless frames in two previous starts against the Cubs this season.
Michael McKenry hit an RBI double for the Pirates, who remained 1 1/2 games behind St. Louis for the second wild-card spot in the National League.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Cubs CF Brett Jackson left in the sixth inning with a bruised right knee. ... Pittsburgh hasn't won a home series opener since Aug. 6 against Arizona. ... Pirates manager Clint Hurdle was ejected by third base umpire Gary Darling in the sixth inning after arguing a safe call. It was only the fourth time Hurdle has been tossed this year. ... Cubs RHP Jeff Samardzija will be shut down for the season following his start on Saturday, which will be his team-leading 28th of the year. Samardzija has worked 165 2/3 innings thus far in 2012 after pitching a combined 169 2/3 frames over his first four major-league seasons. ... Chicago claimed RHP Jason Berken off waivers from Baltimore. Berken made one appearance with the Orioles this year, allowing seven runs - two earned - in one inning of relief. He is 10-17 with a 5.40 ERA in 106 career games - 24 starts - with Baltimore.
Top Game Performances
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Hits |
HR |
TB |
Avg |
LOB |
K |
RBI |
BB |
SB |
Errors |
| Chi. Cubs
|
12 |
0 |
14 |
.273 |
29 |
7 |
11 |
4 |
1 |
0 |
| Pittsburgh
|
4 |
0 |
6 |
.138 |
11 |
9 |
2 |
5 |
0 |
7 |
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