Garrett Cooper went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs en route to a 12-2 win for the host Chicago Cubs over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night at Wrigley Field.
Chicago starting pitcher Javier Assad (1-0) threw six shutout innings, allowing just four hits and a walk while striking out five batters. Nick Madrigal drove in three runs for the Cubs, who have won three straight games.
Seiya Suzuki began the offensive onslaught in the bottom of the first inning with his first home run of the season, a two-run shot that drove in Nico Hoerner, who walked to lead off the game.
Cooper tripled in the second inning and came home on Madrigal’s single to extend the Cubs lead to 3-0.
After Assad worked a clean third inning, Christopher Morel led the bottom half of the inning with a home run to left. Dansby Swanson and Ian Happ followed with back-to-back singles. Two batters later, Madrigal drove in both runners with a double to center, breaking the game open and giving Chicago a 6-0 advantage.
Assad got through another scoreless inning in the top of the fourth before singles from Cody Bellinger and Swanson chased Colorado starting pitcher Kyle Freeland (0-2). The left-hander went 3 1/3 innings, allowing nine hits and seven runs with three walks and two strikeouts.
Happ then greeted reliever Victor Vodnik with a run-scoring single to put the Cubs up 7-0.
Vodnik pitched 1 2/3 innings, allowing just the one hit while striking out three Cubs band walking one.
Neither team scored again until the bottom of the sixth inning when Anthony Molina relieved Vodnik and gave up a three-run homer to Cooper — his first with the club following his signing with the team in February.
Jose Cuas then relieved Assad before the seventh inning. Cuas allowed the only Colorado runs of the day on the first home run of the season for Rockies first baseman Michael Toglia.
Bellinger got the two runs back in the bottom of the seventh inning, as his home run to right field off Molina scored Suzuki, putting a stamp on the 12-run night for the Cubs offense.
The Rockies have lost three straight games and five of six to begin the year.
–Field Level Media
