CHICAGO – – Joc Pederson scored three points, Anthony Rizzo and Willson Contreras went deep and the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-5 on Friday.
Wrigley Field authorized 100% capacity for the first time since 2019 on what the Cubs have called “Open Day 2.0 :. They fell 5-1 behind and then gave a crowd of 35,112 a comeback victory over rivals NL Central.
Pederson gave the Cubs a 7-5 lead in the seventh with a two-run brace on the center-right wall against Génesis Cabrera (1-2). He also scored a single in the lead of the first and a home run in his second straight game when he led one to a center field basket against Johan Oviedo in the fourth.
Rizzo tied at 5 in the sixth with his right shot against Daniel Ponce de Leon. He performed on the 14th throw of the at-bat, the longest by a Cub to end in a homerun since at least 1988, and fans were bursting with joy.
Contreras added a solo homerun in the eighth.
Kohl Stewart was chased in a three-point fifth. But the Cubs scored three points in the lower half, putting Oviedo out of the game, coming closer to 5-4.
Stewart allowed five runs and six hits over four innings. Four relievers combined to stop the Cardinals.
Tommy Nance (1-0) pitched two innings to win his first major league decision. Ryan Tepera worked on the eighth and Craig Kimbrel put out all three batters in the ninth for his 16th save on 18 occasions.
The Cardinals lost for the seventh time in eight games and went from first place before the game on May 31 to a 32-31 record.
Nolan Arenado had three points. Yadier Molina had three hits, but the nine-time receiver Gold Glove also allowed runs on a passed ball and a pitch error in the fifth.
Oviedo allowed four runs and five hits in 4 1/3 innings.
TRAINERS ‘ROOM
Cardinals: SS Paul DeJong (unmoved rib fracture) returned to the lineup after being sidelined since May 12 … back from the injured list, manager Mike Shildt said. … RHP Kodi Whitley (rear) is back in wrestling and could get rid of the mound in the next three to five days, Shildt said.
Cubs: SS Javier Báez (sore right thumb) returned to the lineup after missing the previous three games. … The Cubs placed C PJ Higgins (outstretched right forearm) on the 10-day injured list and selected C José Lobatón of Triple-A Iowa. They also nominated RHP Dakota Chalmers for assignment.
FOLLOWING
RHP Kyle Hendricks (7-4, 4.59 ERA) is looking to win his sixth straight start for Chicago, while RHP John Gant (4-3, 2.63) throws for St. Louis. Hendricks has a 2.91 ERA in his last five outings.
—-