Chicago Cubs

Cubs Beat Dodgers 3-2 in Home Opener

Rizzo's walk-off single led the Cubs to their third straight win

In a game that started nearly two hours late because of rain, Anthony Rizzo made sure Chicago Cubs fans went home happy as he smacked a walk-off RBI single in the ninth inning to give the team a 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

Jon Lester threw six innings and struck out seven batters for the Cubs, and Rizzo and Kris Bryant each notched RBI as the Cubs won their home opener for the second consecutive season. 

Jon Jay, pinch-hitting for Albert Almora Jr in the ninth inning, led off the frame with a single, and he ultimately advanced to third on a fielder's choice and a stolen base. With two outs, Rizzo smacked a two-strike single, driving Jay home and giving the Cubs the victory. 

After temperatures touched the 70's early in the day, a front dropped the mercury all the way down into the 40's for first pitch, and both pitchers took advantage of the conditions. Both Jon Lester and Alex Wood threw shutout innings in the first, working through their respective opponents with ease. 

In the second inning, Lester continued his dominance, but he got some help from Willson Contreras. On a full count pitch, Lester struck out Yasiel Puig, and Contreras gunned out Franklin Gutierrez at second base to end the potential scoring threat. 

The game remained scoreless until the third inning, when Wood's pitch count started to work against him. With Kyle Schwarber on first base, Kris Bryant hammered a double into the left field corner, driving in the run and giving the Cubs a 1-0 lead. 

The Cubs ultimately chased Wood from the game in the fourth inning, but not before they added another run. Lester helped his own cause by grounding into a fielder's choice, and although Javier Baez was ultimately called out after a video review, Addison Russell still scored to extend Chicago's advantage to 2-0. 

The Dodgers got a run back in the top of the sixth inning as Lester ran into his first bit of adversity. With runners on first and second and one out, Corey Seager laced a double down the right field line, scoring Joc Pederson to trim the Cubs' lead to 2-1. 

The Cubs were able to get out of the inning when Scott Van Slyke rolled a slow grounder up the middle, and Willson Contreras fired to first for the out to keep his team in front. 

Defense continued to shine in the later stages of the game, and even though Carl Edwards Jr allowed three straight batters to reach in the top of the seventh, the Cubs' bullpen managed to wiggle their way out of trouble. Justin Grimm performed the magic trick as he induced a pop-out from Pederson and a double play groundout by Andrew Toles to leave the Cubs ahead. 

Remarkably, the Dodgers pulled a very similar trick to the Cubs as they escaped a seventh inning jam. After Albert Almora and Schwarber reached base, the Cubs went down in order, with Ben Zobrist grounding out to end the frame without a run coming across the plate. 

The Cubs had to try to work their way out of trouble again in the eighth inning, but an error on Addison Russell prevented them from doing that. On a soft grounder, Russell received a throw from Anthony Rizzo on the second base bag, and his throw to first base was errant as he attempted to turn a double play, allowing Logan Forsythe to score the tying run. 

The game remained tied through the top of the ninth inning thanks to Cubs closer Wade Davis, and Rizzo thanked him with a game-winning single off of Kenley Jansen to hand the Cubs their third straight victory and a 5-2 record to begin the season. 

After a day off Tuesday, the two teams will resume their series on Wednesday night, when the Cubs will receive their championship rings in a pregame ceremony at Wrigley Field. 

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