HRs by Schwarber, Rizzo fuel host Cubs
CHICAGO — With the wind blowing out on a warm Saturday at Wrigley Field, the San Diego Padres and the Chicago Cubs appeared to be headed for a wild finish.
Then Chicago’s bullpen took over.
Steve Cishek, Brandon Kintzler and Pedro Strop combined for 31⁄3 perfect innings in relief of Kyle Hendricks, and the Cubs held off the Padres for a 5-4 win.
“It didn’t look like a onerun ballgame the way they were pitching,” Hendricks said. “Coming in attacking the strike zone and making huge pitches when they had to, that was awesome to see.”
Cishek replaced Hendricks after Austin Hedges’ sacrifice fly trimmed Chicago’s lead to 5-4 with two out in the sixth. With a runner on third, Cishek retired Freddy Galvis on a grounder to second.
Cishek then worked the seventh and Brandon Kintzler got three outs before Strop earned his seventh save.
“It was a tough day to pitch here,” Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo said. “We scored early and we hung on.”
Rizzo and Kyle Schwarber homered during Chicago’s five-run second inning. Jason Heyward added three hits and drove in a run for the NL Central leaders.
Hendricks (8-9) allowed five hits, struck out seven and walked none in his second straight win.
San Diego became the first team in the NL with 70 losses. Hedges homered for the second straight day, and Manuel Margot doubled in a run.
Padres right-hander Walker Lockett (0-2) allowed five runs and nine hits in five innings.
Lockett started in place of Joey Lucchesi, who was scratched on Friday because of an illness.
Lucchesi was able to do his pregame work on Saturday and was sent back to the team hotel as a precaution. The left-hander is expected to start on Sunday.
Schwarber led off the big second with his 20th homer. Addison Russell added a two-out RBI single and Rizzo followed with a drive to center for his 17th of the season, making it 4-0 Cubs. Heyward capped the fiverun burst with an RBI single.
“I just let the game speed up on me a little bit on me and got a little fast out there,” said Lockett, who was making his second start and third major-league appearance.