Drew Smyly allowed just one hit and one unearned run while Yan Gomes and Nico Hoerner each clubbed two-run home runs as the Chicago Cubs handed the visiting San Francisco Giants their fifth straight defeat with Friday’s 4-2 victory.
The Cubs (58-80) did just enough against Carlos Rodon (12-8), who fanned 11 over 5 1/3 innings to become the first Giant with 10 games of at least 10 strikeouts in one season. Rodon yielded Gomes’ two-run blast in the second and just two other hits.
Smyly (6-8) was slightly better, giving up only David Villar’s double in the second inning. The left-hander also walked two and struck out eight, before exiting with a 4-0 lead after Austin Dean reached on an error with nobody out in the eighth.
Smyly’s unearned run came when Manny Rodriguez allowed a two-run, ground-rule double to San Francisco’s Evan Longoria in the eighth. However, Brandon Hughes struck out Thairo Estrada to strand runners on second and third. Hughes worked over Dean’s two-out single in the ninth to earn his fourth save and help Chicago win for just the sixth time in 19 games.
The Giants (65-73), meanwhile, have totaled 11 runs during their five-game slide that’s happened entirely on the road. San Francisco has dropped 16 of its last 22 overall — 28 of the last 38 on the road — and is 17-30 since the All-Star Break.
Rodon fanned two of the first three batters his faced before Hoerner led off the second with a single and stole second. Gomes followed with a drive into the left-field bleachers for the early Chicago lead.
Yunior Marte replaced Rodon with one out in the sixth and issued a walk to Franmil Reyes. Hoerner then lined the ball over the left-center-field ivy to extend the Cubs’ lead.
The teams combined to strike out 24 times on Friday. Hoerner was the only player on either team with two hits.
Chicago second baseman Nick Madrigal exited early in the contest with a groin issue.
–Field Level Media
