Cubs pounce on close play, Cards error in nightcap

CHICAGO -- Behind a wild three-run seventh inning, the Cubs rallied to beat the Cardinals, 5-3, in Game 2 of a doubleheader on Tuesday night. Chicago won Game 1, 7-4, for its first doubleheader sweep at Wrigley Field since Sept. 27, 2003, against Pittsburgh.

With the Cubs trailing by one in the seventh, Miguel Montero led off the inning with a walk against Cardinals reliever Seth Maness before fellow pinch-hitter Jonathan Herrera reached on a single. Addison Russell hit an RBI single just down the right-field line to score Montero, and Dexter Fowler's grounder, which could've been turned for an inning-ending double play, was thrown into the outfield by reliever Kevin Siegrist to plate Herrera with the go-ahead run. Anthony Rizzo added a sacrifice fly to center field for an insurance run.

"With us, it's really rewarding to watch our guys battle through the whole thing; it's entirely a team effort," said Cubs manager Joe Maddon. "All those little things pile up."

Video: STL@CHC: Russell singles to tie the game in the 7th

Maness suffered the loss after he allowed all three runs. He was ejected for arguing after Russell's single was ruled fair, which led to Siegrist's entrance.

"There was no doubt in my mind it was foul," Cardinals first baseman Mark Reynolds said. "It was foul. No question. Big spot in the game. Huge series. Division [series]. You can't make that call."

St. Louis grabbed the lead in the sixth inning after it scored two runs, but it was short-lived. The Cardinals finished with nine hits but stranded nine runners on base. Starter Tim Cooney didn't get a decision, spoiling his three-hit, one-run performance.

QUACK-TO-BACK WINS: CUBS TAKE TWIN BILL
Runners on base weren't the only thing the Cardinals left scattered. After a duck took the field in the bottom of the second inning, National League Final Vote candidate Carlos Martinez was spotted tossing some sunflower seeds for his feathered friend near the St. Louis dugout. Unfortunately, their friendship couldn't be solidified as the duck was soon chased from the field by home-plate umpire Angel Hernandez. More >

Video: STL@CHC: Cardinals feed a duck near the dugout

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Seventh-frame frenzy: Maness, who was convinced he saw Russell's ball bounce foul in the dirt near home plate and never cross back into fair territory, was quickly ejected for his reaction to first-base umpire Pat Hoberg's call.

Video: STL@CHC: Maness ejected following disputed call

"I thought it was foul; he didn't like that," Maness said of his first career ejection. "That was a big spot in the game right there. You just hate to see it happen like that."

After tying the game on Russell's hit, the Cubs capitalized when Siegrist threw away a potential inning-ending double play. Herrera scored as Siegrist's throw sailed into center, and Russell advanced to position himself to score on Rizzo's subsequent sacrifice fly. More >

Video: STL@CHC: Rizzo adds insurance run with sac fly

On the Mark: After stalling a fourth-inning rally by striking out with one down and the bases loaded, Reynolds found a hint of redemption his next time up. With a two-strike count and a runner at third in a tie game, Reynolds poked a single too far for Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro to have a play. Jason Heyward scurried home on the infield hit.

Video: STL@CHC: Reynolds scores Heyward with infield single

Beeler's back: Making his first start since July 2014, Cubs starter Dallas Beeler kept the Cardinals' offense at bay in five-plus innings. Beeler gave up a walk and a single to start the sixth inning before the bullpen allowed a pair to score. He finished the night with six strikeouts and two walks, allowing just four hits. He added a double to deep left field on his first at-bat of the game.

Beeler had two outings last year, allowing one run and four hits in six innings in his first game. This season, he started Spring Training with an injured shoulder and worked his way back through Triple-A for a chance on Tuesday.

Video: STL@CHC: Beeler allows two runs in season debut

"I see [tonight] as an opportunity," Beeler said. "As many as I get, I'm going to try and come up here and do my best. Tonight worked out well and I had my stuff going with my fastball. And I was really happy with it."

Cooney cruises: Cooney didn't face near the trouble that fellow young lefty Tyler Lyons did in Game 1 of Tuesday's doubleheader. He did preserve a scoreless game by working around Beeler's leadoff double in the third. Cooney closed the inning with a flyout by Rizzo. He allowed just three hits but now has three no-decisions in as many Major League starts.

Video: STL@CHC: Cooney allows one run in 5 1/3 innings

"Especially later in the game, I felt really comfortable," Cooney said. "I felt like I could throw strikes with all my pitches, and I felt like I was executing pretty well."

QUOTABLE
"The bounceback was tremendous. It's how high you bounce back after the fall that matters, and I was really proud of our guys." -- Maddon, on his team's doubleheader sweep after Monday night's 6-0 loss

"I get it. It's a tough play. It's just a shame that there's not something allowed in the [replay] system in case of human error, and if we have enough technology to show it, why not take a look? I know they don't want the game, the outcome, to be changed by something that is a miss. -- Cardinals manager Mike Matheny, on not being able to challenge Hoberg's seventh-inning call

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Rizzo set a Major League record, but probably didn't feel good doing so. He was hit by a pitch for the 18th time this season in the first inning, setting a modern-day single-season record. It took him 82 games to reach that mark.

FROM THE TRAINING ROOM

Between games of the doubleheader, Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday (right quad strain) spent time doing agility work and running drills in the outfield. General manager John Mozeliak said that there is still no precise timeline for Holliday's return, though the All-Star left fielder has said he hopes to come off the disabled list during the team's weekend series in Pittsburgh.

Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong sat out Game 2 after he showed signs of a concussion from a fall while making a catch in the fifth inning of Game 1. Wong could miss Wednesday's series finale and possibly more. More >

WHAT'S NEXT
Cardinals: The Cards will close out their first stop on a two-city road trip with a Wednesday evening game at Wrigley Field at 7:05 p.m. CT. Michael Wacha, fresh off being named to his first All-Star team, will start for the Cardinals, who have won 12 of his 16 starts this season.

Cubs: Starter Jason Hammel looks for redemption against St. Louis when he takes the mound for Wednesday's series finale. The right-hander surrendered four runs and took the loss the last he saw the Cardinals on June 28, but he comes off one of his best outings on the year.

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