Cubs top Marlins on Heyward's walk-off homer in 11th

[May 09, 2019]  Jason Heyward hit a walk-off solo home run in the 11th inning to lift the Chicago Cubs to a 3-2 win over the visiting Miami Marlins on Wednesday night.

Heyward drove an outside pitch to the opposite field, and the ball landed in the basket atop the ivy-covered wall. It was Heyward's sixth homer of the season, only two shy of his total from all of 2018.

The Cubs were buoyed by right-hander Kyle Hendricks, who held the Marlins to one unearned run in eight innings. Hendricks lowered his ERA to 0.62 in four starts this season at Wrigley Field, where he has allowed only four runs (two earned) in 29 innings.

Carl Edwards Jr. (1-1) earned the win in relief for Chicago, which won for the ninth time in 10 games.

Marlins reliever Jose Quijada (0-1) drew the loss after giving up the solo shot to Heyward. He was one of three relievers who followed starter Jose Urena, who gave up two runs (one earned) in seven innings.

The Marlins grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Curtis Granderson reached first on a throwing error by Hendricks and eventually scored on Starlin Castro's two-out single to left field.

The Cubs answered with a pair of runs in the fourth to go ahead 2-1.

Kris Bryant drew a leadoff walk, advanced to third on a single by Anthony Rizzo and scored on a single by Javier Baez to tie the score at 1. Two batters later, Rizzo scored on a passed ball.

Cubs center fielder Jason Heyward (22) celebrates his walk off home run with teammates during the eleventh inning against the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports

After Hendricks left, the Marlins pounced on Cubs relievers Kyle Ryan and Steve Cishek in the ninth to tie the score at 2. A wild pitch by Cishek allowed runners to advance to second and third with one out.

Moments later, Miguel Rojas drove in the tying run on a groundout to second base -- an easy bouncer that likely would have been a game-ending double play if not for the wild pitch.

Addison Russell went 0-for-3 with a strikeout and a walk in his first game with the Cubs since serving a 40-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's domestic violence policy. He batted eighth and played second base several hours after the team called him up from a brief stint with Triple-A Iowa.

A mixed reaction greeted Russell when he stepped to the plate for his first time since his ex-wife's abuse allegations. Many fans booed loudly while others in the home crowd offered polite applause.

--Field Level Media

[© 2019 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2019 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.