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 The Cubs rookie second baseman collected his first career Wrigley
Field home run Wednesday -- a solo shot out of the park in the third
inning -- and Chicago went on to claim a 4-2 win over the Milwaukee
Brewers.
"It feels great," Baez said. "I hit the ball pretty good, and as
soon as I hit it there, everybody went crazy and I knew it was gone
because I hit it pretty good."
Baez's homer came on a slider from Brewers starter Kyle Lohse and
gave the Cubs 3-0 lead. First baseman Anthony Rizzo then stepped in
and slammed his team-leading 27th homer to give Chicago all the runs
it needed.
A second baseman with four home runs since arriving from Triple-A
Iowa on Aug. 5, Baez also helped make a winner of Cubs starter
Tsuyoshi Wada (2-1).
Lohse (11-7) endured a rough night. The Brewers right-hander pitched
three innings, gave up four runs and departed after injuring his
right ankle during a third-inning at-bat.
"I didn't feel right from the start," Lohse said. "And then tweaked
(the ankle) trying to check a swing, and from there I (couldn't)
push off the way I want to. ... I probably could have kept going,
but you it's one of those things you have to be smart and not hurt
something else."
The victory was the second in a row for the Cubs (52-67) over the
National League Central-leading Brewers (66-55). Milwaukee won the
series opener Monday, and the teams conclude the series Thursday.
Wada departed in the seventh after back-to-back solo home runs by
second baseman Rickie Weeks and catcher Martin Maldonado cut the
Cubs' lead to 4-2. The left-hander worked 6 2/3 innings and allowed
two runs on five hits. He struck out five and walked one.
"I watched a lot of videos and had a plan coming into the game,"
Wada said through a translator. "(Kyle) Kendricks pitched a very
good game yesterday, which probably threw the hitters off, (so) I
just followed (catcher John) Baker's lead. He called a very good
game."
Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said, "I think it surprised us, his
fastball surprised us. I know the first inning all of our guys were
behind the ball, so somewhere he's got a little more life than what
you think."
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Right-handed reliever Hector Rondon worked a perfect ninth for his 16th
save, his second in two nights.
Right fielder Chris Coghlan led the Cubs' nine-hit attack, going 3-for-4
with two doubles, the 100th and 101st of his career.
Shortstop Starlin Castro also finished 3-for-4 and extended his hitting
streak to 12 games, while Baez went 2-for-4.
Maldonado went 2-for-3 for Milwaukee.
The Cubs scored twice in the first after Coghlan doubled and Baez's base
hit pushed him to third.
Rizzo then sent a first-pitch sacrifice fly to left, scoring Coghlan.
Castro followed with a single to center that drove in Baez for a 2-0
lead.
Baez made it 3-0 in the third, taking a 1-1 pitch and sending it out of
the park onto Waveland Avenue. Rizzo then launched a first-pitch shot to
right for his second in two days.
NOTES: RHP Mike Fiers (1-1) makes his second start and sixth appearance
for Milwaukee on Thursday. He was recalled from Triple-A Nashville late
last week and was placed in the rotation following RHP Matt Garza's
injury. ... In the series finale, Fiers goes up against Cubs RHP Edwin
Jackson (6-12). Jackson is 5-6 with a 3.38 ERA in 13 starts against
Milwaukee. ... Cubs SS Starlin Castro extended his hitting streak to 12
games, a team high this season. He is batting .429 (21-for-49) during
the streak. ... The Cubs shut out the Brewers for the fourth time this
season Tuesday, the first time they blanked a team four times in year
since doing so against the Cincinnati Reds in 2007.
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