MLB/ Suzuki homers,rb salzburg vs inter drives in 4 to help Cubs beat Rockies 9-8 after blowing 6-run lead

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

April 4, 2024 at 12:25 JST

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Chicago Cubs' Seiya Suzuki, right, slaps hands with third base coach Willie Harris as runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Colorado Rockies during the fifth inning of a baseball game , April 3, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo)

CHICAGO--Seiya Suzuki homered in his second straight game and drove in four runs and the Chicago Cubs regrouped to beat the Colorado Rockies 9-8 after blowing a six-run lead Wednesday night.

The Cubs looked as if they were on their way to another easy win with an 8-2 lead in the sixth after outscoring the Rockies by a combined 17-2 in the first two games. Colorado made a big push, scoring a run in the seventh and five in the eighth to tie it.

Pinch-hitter Miles Mastrobuoni reached on a wild pitch by Nick Mears (0-1) as he struck out leading off the bottom half. He took third on a single by Ian Happ and beat the throw home on Suzuki’s fielder’s choice grounder to third baseman Ryan McMahon to put Chicago back on top, 9-8.

Suzuki had three hits. Miguel Amaya drove in three runs, and the Cubs won their fourth in a row. The Rockies are 1-6, though they sure made things interesting in the eighth.

Jake Cave drove a two-run double to left against Héctor Neris (2-0). Two more scored when second baseman Nico Hoerner threw wildly to first fielding Charlie Blackmon’s single, and Ezequiel Tovar tied it with a double to deep center, just beyond a lunging Mike Tauchman.

Adbert Alzolay pitched around a leadoff single by Kris Bryant in the ninth for his first save.

Suzuki drove in two with a single to cap a four-run second against Rockies starter Cal Quantrill and greeted Jalen Beeks with a drive to left-center leading off the fifth on a cold and soggy night.

Amaya hit a sacrifice fly in the second and drove in two more with a bases-loaded single against Tyler Kinley in the sixth. Center fielder Brenton Doyle’s errant throw on the play allowed another run to score, making it 8-2.

Chicago’s Luke Little, making his first career start, threw 14 pitches in a perfect first inning after recording the final three outs in Tuesday’s 12-2 romp. Little became the first Cubs pitcher to finish a game and start the next one since Rick Reuschel at San Francisco and at the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 2 and May 4, 1976. He’s the first to do it for Chicago against the same team since Warren Hacker on May 1-2, 1955 at Philadelphia, according to team historian Ed Hartig.

Quantrill threw 90 pitches in four innings, allowing four runs and four hits. The right-hander walked four and struck out three in his second start for Colorado following an offseason trade from Cleveland.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cubs: RHP Jameson Taillon (back strain) is set to start a rehab assignment Sunday with Double-A Tennessee, manager Craig Counsell said. He also said INF Patrick Wisdom (back strain) was fine after participating in Taillon’s live batting practice session in Arizona on Tuesday.

UP NEXT

Rockies: The Rockies send LHP Austin Gomber (0-0, 7.71 ERA) to the mound Friday for their home opener against Tampa Bay. The Rays go with RHP Zack Littell (1-0, 0.00), who went six scoreless innings in a 5-1 win over Toronto on Saturday.

Cubs: The Cubs have not announced who will start Friday, when they open a three-game series against Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers. RHP Bobby Miller (1-0, 0.00) gets the ball for Los Angeles.