Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) - Cubs starter Travis Wood tossed seven
stellar innings and went 2-for-3 at the dish with a home run and four RBI to
lead Chicago to a 5-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks to kick off a four-
game series from Wrigley Field.
Wood (1-2), who allowed one run on six hits while striking out nine, is not
your average pitcher. He has now homered in all five of his major league
seasons and is the only active pitcher with more than one game with four-plus
RBI. He has seven career home runs.
Welington Castillo and Ryan Kalish each had two hits for Chicago, which has
won two of its last three games.
Bronson Arroyo (1-2) surrendered all five runs on eight hits for Arizona in 5
1/3 innings to absorb the loss. Mark Trumbo went yard in the defeat.
Starlin Castro singled with one away in the bottom of the second inning and
scored two batters later on Castillo's bloop single to right. Kalish followed
with a single to put two on for Wood, who crushed a no-doubter over the wall
in left for a 4-0 Chicago lead.
Wood made it 5-0 with an RBI double to the warning track in his next at-bat in
the fourth.
Wood struck out at least one batter in every inning besides the third and he
didn't allow an Arizona baserunner to reach third base until the seventh.
After Cody Ross struck out to start the seventh, Trumbo took Wood deep for his
seventh homer of the season. Miguel Montero followed with a double and moved
to third on Tony Campana's groundout, but pinch-hitter Cliff Pennington popped
up to Anthony Rizzo in foul territory to end the threat.
Hector Rondon and Pedro Strop each pitched scoreless innings of relief for the
Cubs.
Game Notes
The game was delayed for an hour and one minute due to rain ... Arizona went
0-for-5 with runners in scoring position, leaving seven men on base ... Paul
Goldschmidt went 3-for-4 for the D'Backs.