Slumping sluggers Anthony Rizzo and Kyle Schwarber homered, while rookie Ian Happ connected again as the Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds 9-5 on Tuesday.
Happ hit his second homer in his third Major League Baseball game and Addison Russell also went deep as Chicago returned to .500 after a lackluster road trip.
The Cubs (19-19) had dropped seven of nine, including four of their past six at division leaders Colorado and St Louis.
Schwarber’s continued trouble in the leadoff spot and the shaky performance so far by the rotation created some angst for a fan base expecting more of the same after last year’s historic World Series championship, but no one seemed worried around the team.
Willson Contreras had two hits and two RBIs, while John Lackey (4-3) pitched into the sixth inning in the opener of a 10-game home stand.
Joey Votto, Zack Cozart and Tucker Barnhart homered for Cincinnati on a warm and windy night at Wrigley Field. However, Bronson Arroyo (3-3) was hit hard in five innings, allowing five runs and eight hits.
RANGERS 5, PHILLIES 1
In Arlington, Texas, Yu Darvish struck out nine over seven innings as Texas beat Philadelphia to stretch the majors’ longest active winning streak to seven games.
Nomar Mazara had a solo homer in the first, while Mike Napoli hit a two-run shot in the eighth. Napoli, who came in hitting .165, went three for three.
Darvish (4-2) allowed four hits and two walks. He preserved a two-run lead by striking out Brock Stassi with runners at first and second after he allowed his only run on an RBI single by Freddy Galvis in the seventh inning.
Phillies starter Jared Eickhoff (0-4) struck out eight and allowed seven hits in his first career start against the franchise that drafted him in 2011.
In other results, it was:
‧ Orioles 13, Tigers 11, 13 innings
‧ Astros 12, Marlins 2
‧ Nationals 8, Pirates 4
‧ Rockies 7, Twins 3
‧ Angels 7, White Sox 6
‧ Red Sox 6, Cardinals 3
‧ Yankees 7, Royals 1
‧ Giants 2, Dodgers 1
‧ Diamondbacks 5, Mets 4
‧ Rays 6, Indians 4
‧ Athletics 9, Mariners 6
‧ Braves 9, Blue Jays 5
‧ Brewers 6, Padres 2
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