Montero, Soler Homer In 8th To Lift Cubs Over Braves, 9-7

CHICAGO (AP) —Miguel Montero and Jorge Soler broke a tie with back-to-back solo homers to start the eighth inning, and the Chicago Cubs overcame homers from both sides of the plate by Nick Swisher in a 9-7 comeback win over the Atlanta Braves — their third straight— on Saturday.

Montero and Soler both lofted balls into the left field basket off former Cub Edwin Jackson (2-2), sending Atlanta to its sixth straight loss.

Swisher homered from both sides of the plate in the same game for a record-tying 14th time to drive in four runs.

Batting left-handed, Swisher lofted a wind-blown, two-run shot to left field off Cubs starter Dan Haren in the second. Hitting right-handed against Travis Wood, he lined a two-run blast to left to cap a five-run rally that put Atlanta ahead 7-3 in the fifth.

He tied the Yankees' Mark Teixeira, who homered right- and left-handed most recently in a game on July 31 against the White Sox. Swisher was acquired from Cleveland on Aug. 7.

Cubs rookie Addison Russell hit a solo shot in the sixth to tie the game at 7. The homer withstood a video review after a fan reached over the wall trying to catch the ball.

Anthony Rizzo also went deep for Chicago and had two RBIs. Dexter Fowler had three hits, including a triple, and Kris Bryant knocked in two runs with a double.

The Cubs bounced back after Atlanta's five-run fifth with three runs in the bottom of the inning — capped by an RBI double by Montero — to cut it to 7-6.

Atlanta's A.J. Pierzynski had three hits and drove in two runs. Braves rookie starter Williams Perez lasted only 4 2-3 innings, allowing six runs on four hits, and hasn't won in the majors since June 20.

Pedro Strop (2-6), the Cubs' fourth reliever, got the win. Hector Rondon pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 23rd save in 27 chances.

Haren pitched just 4 1-3 innings in his fourth start with the Cubs since being acquired at the non-waiver trade deadline from Miami. Haren, who leads the National League with 28 homers allowed, gave up four runs on four hits.

UP NEXT

Braves RHP Matt Wesler (5-3, 4.65 ERA) takes the mound against Cubs RHP Jason Hammel (6-5, 3.38 ERA) in the finale of the four-game series Sunday afternoon. Wisler is one of four Braves to make his debut as a starter this season and has never faced the Cubs. Hammel was hit hard in his last outing, a loss Tuesday to Detroit, giving up five runs on nine hits in three innings.

(© 2015 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.)

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.