Jorge Soler hit two homers and fellow rookie Javier Baez had a tiebreaking, two-run double in the eighth inning off All-Star reliever Pat Neshek as the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 on Friday night.
The Cardinals lost in the return of star catcher Yadier Molina. He had been out since July 9 because of a torn ligament in his right thumb, and went 0 for 3 and was hit by a pitch.
The crowd at Busch Stadium gave Molina a standing ovation when he walked in from the bullpen after pregame warmups, and another cheer before he batted in the first inning.
Neshek (6-1) led NL relievers with an 0.81 ERA entering the game. It was 2-all when he came in to begin the eighth, and he gave up hits to the first three batters.
Neil Ramirez (2-1) allowed two hits in a scoreless seventh.
