The Chicago Cubs trailed by two in the bottom of the ninth inning, before an unlikely hero stepped up at Wrigley Field on Thursday afternoon. David Bote tied things up with a two-run home run, and then Anthony Rizzo followed that with a walk-off solo blast for a thrilling 7-6 Cubs win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Rizzo's long ball was his third-career walk-off home run, as it helped his team overcome a five-run deficit.
Bote was called up after the Cubs were forced to place Kris Bryant on the disabled list with inflammation in his left shoulder the night before. He took a 2-2 pitch out to left field to tie things up at 6-apiece, while Rizzo connected with his first home run since June 24th. That gave Brad Boxberger his fifth blown save in 29 chances, dropping him to 1-4 on the season. He began the Cubs' rally when he walked pinch-hitter Ben Zobrist to begin the ninth.
Arizona jumped out to a 6-1 lead behind Nick Ahmed's first-career grand slam, while Alex Avila also went deep for a two-run blast. Their lead would start to dwindle away in the fifth inning, when the Cubs scored twice behind RBIs from Rizzo and Albert Almora Jr.
Cubs reliever Eddie Butler stranded a runner with two outs in the top of the ninth inning and earned his first win out of their bullpen. Tyler Chatwood got the start at home and allowed four runs on five hits and six walks over 4.2 innings. He now leads the majors with 85 walks and has struggled in his past five starts with a 7.71 ERA.
Zach Godley got the start for Arizona and lasted 5.2 innings and had four runs and seven hits against him. The two teams split the four-game series, as the Diamondbacks head to San Diego to battle the Padres. The Cubs hit the road to battle the St. Louis Cardinals.
Bote was called up after the Cubs were forced to place Kris Bryant on the disabled list with inflammation in his left shoulder the night before. He took a 2-2 pitch out to left field to tie things up at 6-apiece, while Rizzo connected with his first home run since June 24th. That gave Brad Boxberger his fifth blown save in 29 chances, dropping him to 1-4 on the season. He began the Cubs' rally when he walked pinch-hitter Ben Zobrist to begin the ninth.
Arizona jumped out to a 6-1 lead behind Nick Ahmed's first-career grand slam, while Alex Avila also went deep for a two-run blast. Their lead would start to dwindle away in the fifth inning, when the Cubs scored twice behind RBIs from Rizzo and Albert Almora Jr.
Cubs reliever Eddie Butler stranded a runner with two outs in the top of the ninth inning and earned his first win out of their bullpen. Tyler Chatwood got the start at home and allowed four runs on five hits and six walks over 4.2 innings. He now leads the majors with 85 walks and has struggled in his past five starts with a 7.71 ERA.
Zach Godley got the start for Arizona and lasted 5.2 innings and had four runs and seven hits against him. The two teams split the four-game series, as the Diamondbacks head to San Diego to battle the Padres. The Cubs hit the road to battle the St. Louis Cardinals.
