Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a go-ahead solo home run in top of the ninth to power the Chicago Cubs to a 3-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels in the opening game of a three-game interleague series on Friday night in Anaheim, Calif.
With one out, in the frame, Crow-Armstrong hit a 1-1 cutter by Angels closer Kenley Jansen (5-4) 396 feet into the bleachers in right, his 28th home run of the season and first since July 23 against the Royals.
Kyle Tucker also homered and Dansby Swanson doubled, walked and scored a run for Chicago, which was playing the opening game of a nine-game western road trip.
Brad Keller (4-1) picked up the win with a hitless inning of relief, and Daniel Palencia struck out two during a 1-2-3 ninth for his 19th save.
Yoan Moncada hit two home runs for Los Angeles, his first multi-homer game with the Angels. Tyler Anderson extended his team record with his 21st consecutive start without a victory, allowing two runs on three hits in five innings. He walked two and struck out five.
Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Tucker hit his 19th home run, a 405-foot drive into the right field bleachers. It was Tucker’s first homer since July 19 against Boston, snapping a 25-game drought.
The Cubs extended the lead to 2-0 in the third when Swanson and Matt Shaw led off with back-to-back walks and Nico Hoerner singled to load the bases with no outs. After Tucker struck out, Seiya Suzuki drove in Swanson with a sacrifice fly to left.
Los Angeles then tied it, 2-2, on back-to-back home runs by Moncada. The first, in the fifth inning off starter Javier Assad, was a line drive off the scoreboard above the right field fence. The second, off reliever Andrew Kittredge in the seventh inning, was his 11th of the season and traveled 399 feet into the right field bleachers.
Assad, called up from Triple-A Iowa earlier on Friday, allowed one run on two hits in six innings for the Cubs. Assad, who missed the first four months of the season with a left oblique strain, walked one and struck out four in his 50th career start. He left after throwing 72 pitches, 45 for strikes.
–Field Level Media
