Hairston's grand slam helps Cubs win
CHICAGO -- Scott Hairston knows just how tricky Wrigley Field's winds can be from hours he spent as a high school-aged Cubs fan watching from the bleachers.
On Friday he played the breezes perfectly with a catch at the wall in the first inning and a wind-aided grand slam in the third as the Chicago Cubs beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-2 in the opener of a three-game series.
"We were able to score runs early, and I think that allowed (starting pitcher) Matt (Garza) to settle down a little bit and get into a groove," said Hairston, who went 1-for-3 with his third career grand slam and the Cubs' second in successive days. "It was a great team effort."
The win was Chicago's fifth straight, while Arizona dropped its second in a row.
The Cubs jumped on Diamondbacks starter Wade Miley for three home runs in the first three innings on a overcast and occasionally gusty afternoon.
Garza (1-0) pitched five shutout innings in his third appearance since coming off the disabled list earlier this month. It was his first victory since beating the Diamondbacks 3-1 on July 15, 2012.
"Garza came out today with a lot of conviction," Cubs manager Dale Sveum said. "He really did a great job."
Miley (3-5) settled down after giving up runs in the first and third innings. The loss was his fourth straight and fifth in five decisions in May.
Hairston was in the right field ivy as he hauled in Paul Goldschmidt's long drive for the third out in the first.
"I knew it was going to stay in the air for a while so I wanted to find the wall first, to know where it's at and then go from there," Hairston said. "I looked up and it was coming down and I was able to jump up and catch it."
Hairston's grand slam, the third of his career, came with one out on a 1-1 pitch as he launched a shot to left.
The home run, his fourth of the season, drove home David DeJesus, Starlin Castro and Anthony Rizzo for a 6-0 lead.
On Thursday, pitcher Travis Wood hit his first career grand slam to help the Cubs to an 8-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox.
Also in the third, Cody Ransom had a two-out solo home run to open a 7-0 Chicago lead.
The Cubs jumped to an early 2-0 lead in the first on Alfonso Soriano's home run to the left-field basket, scoring DeJesus, who reached base after he was hit by a pitch.
The home run was Soriano's sixth of the season and 378th of his career.
Arizona scored twice in the sixth on Garza.
Didi Gregorius' sacrifice brought home Miley, who had reached on an infield single. Martin Parra, who had doubled, moved to third and came home on Miguel Montero's double to left.
Miley worked seven full innings, allowing seven earned runs while walking two and striking out three.
"It just didn't go well for us today," Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said. "That's a tough go when you're down 7-0 ... but after that he retired 13 out of 14."
Miley said he'll carry those positives forward.
"Those last four innings, that was me, and I'll move on from there," he said. "I'll put the other stuff behind me."
Garza took the mound for the eighth but was replaced by James Russell before throwing a pitch. Garza gave up two earned runs on six hits in seven innings. He struck out four and didn't walk anyone.
While he appreciated the winning effort, Garza said it was more satisfying to pitch as many innings.
"I was more pumped about going deep; I wanted to keep going," he said. "But Skip (Sveum) had another plan and it worked out in our favor."
NOTES: Sammy Sosa provided the Cubs' last grand slams on consecutive days on July 27-28, 1998, while Jim Hickman and Burt Hooton hit the last ones at Wrigley Field on back-to-back days in September 1972. ... Cubs pitchers lead all NL staffs with six doubles, four homers and 19 RBIs. ... Russell pitched one inning on Friday and lowered his ERA to 0.87 with a shutout frame. It is the second lowest for any NL reliever with at least 25 outings. Colorado's Rex Brothers had a 0.38 ERA in 26 appearances. ... The Cubs have dropped 16 games in which they led at some point, second most in the National League. The Dodgers have lost 17. ... The NL West-leading Diamondbacks have 30 wins through May 31 for the 10th time in 16 seasons and hold first place at month's end for the eighth time in club history. ... The three-game series continues Saturday as Arizona sends right hander Ian Kennedy (2-3) against Chicago's righty Jeff Samardzija (3-6). Kennedy carries a 2-2 career mark against the Cubs. ... Soriano is hitting .545 all-time against Kennedy. ... The Diamondbacks reinstated Willie Bloomquist from the 15-day disabled list (strained right oblique) and placed Eric Chavez on the 15 day DL with the same ailment.
