Cubs 6, Yankees 1

[May 21, 2014]  Cubs 6, Yankees 1: Luis Valbuena recorded three hits and scored twice while Mike Olt knocked in three runs as host Chicago handed Masahiro Tanaka his first major-league defeat.Jason Hammel (5-2) upstaged Tanaka, striking out six and limiting the Yankees to one run on four hits over 5 2/3 innings, and five relievers combined to hold New York to two hits the rest of the way. Tanaka (6-1), who had won 34 consecutive regular-season decisions dating to 2012 in Japan, struck out seven but was tagged for a season-high four runs - three earned - on eight hits over six frames.

Emilio Bonifacio and John Baker each added two hits and an RBI for the Cubs, who matched a season high with their third consecutive win. Chicago, which was shut out in both ends of a doubleheader at New York last month, won for only the second time in its last nine meetings with the Yankees.

The Cubs broke through against Tanaka in the third as Baker led off with a single, moved up on a sacrifice and scored on Bonifacio's single up the middle. They tacked on a run in the fourth, when Valbuena doubled and scored on Olt's single through a drawn-in infield, but they failed to add any insurance as Tanaka made nice plays on back-to-back bunts to cut down runners at the plate.

The Yankees finally dinged Hammel in the sixth as Brett Gardner led off with a double and scored on Mark Teixeira's single, but Justin Grimm entered with two outs and retired Alfonso Soriano with one pitch to strand a pair of runners. Olt and Baker added sacrifice flies in the sixth and the Cubs added two more runs in the seventh on Starlin Castro's RBI single and Olt's bases-loaded walk.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Hammel was hit on his pitching hand with a liner by Gardner leading off the game, but he was able to continue with no ill effects. … The Cubs presented retiring Yankees SS Derek Jeter with a No. 2 scoreboard tile in a pregame ceremony. … Jeter stole second following his single in the third, his first stolen base since Sept. 5, 2012.

[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.