LOS ANGELES — After striking out in his first two at-bats, Anthony Rizzo was seeking a slump buster. He found one in teammate Matt Szczur’s bat. ADVERTISING LOS ANGELES — After striking out in his first two at-bats, Anthony Rizzo
LOS ANGELES — After striking out in his first two at-bats, Anthony Rizzo was seeking a slump buster. He found one in teammate Matt Szczur’s bat.
Using the borrowed lumber, Rizzo homered and ended a postseason skid with three RBIs. The rest of the Chicago Cubs’ hitters broke out equally as big in routing the Los Angeles Dodgers 10-2 on Wednesday to even the NL Championship Series at 2-all.
“I know Szczur’s bat has a lot of hits in it,” Rizzo said. “I’ve done it a few times this year, just switching up the bat, switching up the mindset.”
Addison Russell’s two-run homer highlighted a four-run fourth that stopped Chicago’s 21-inning scoreless streak and ensured the NLCS will return to Wrigley Field for Game 6 on Saturday.
“It’s definitely a sigh of relief to have a big night,” Russell said.
Kenta Maeda is set to pitch for the Dodgers in Game 5 on Thursday against Jon Lester. Manager Dave Roberts said he will not start Clayton Kershaw on short rest after the Los Angeles ace threw a bullpen session Wednesday.
“It’s not an elimination game,” Roberts said.
Following consecutive shutout losses, the Cubs rapped out 13 hits on an 80-degree night with the warm Santa Ana winds fluttering the flags in center field.
Rizzo used Szczur’s bat on Tuesday night and got a broken-bat single. Szczur, left off the NLCS roster, didn’t mind. He wrapped another one for Game 4, figuring Rizzo might want to use the bat that is the same weight and size but a different model than his.
“I just saw him walking up with my bat, and I started laughing,” Szczur said. “And then he hits a homer with it.”
Rizzo and Russell had three hits each. Chicago’s 3-4-5 hitters — a combined 2 for 32 in the first three games — busted out. Every Cubs starter got at least one hit except Kris Bryant, who walked twice and was hit by a pitch.
“It’s contagious, just like the lack of it is contagious,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. “When you start hitting, it’s contagious, defense, this whole game really follows itself.”
Los Angeles was limited to six hits and made four errors in a game that dragged on for 3 hours, 58 minutes.
“It happens, but we haven’t had a game like that in a long time,” Roberts said . “You’ve got to brush off and get ready for tomorrow.”
Mike Montgomery won in relief of John Lackey, removed after consecutive walks opening the fifth. Four days shy of his 38th birthday, Lackey allowed two runs, three hits and three walks.
“I thought we put ourselves in a position to get to Lackey, but he escaped,” Roberts said.
At 20 years, 68 days the youngest postseason starting pitcher in major league history, loser Julio Urias gave up four runs and four hits in 3 2/3 innings. He was the third consecutive left-hander to start for Los Angeles.
YOU’RE OUT ON REPLAY
Dodgers 1B Adrian Gonzalez was tagged out at home to end the second. A sliding Gonzalez stretched his left hand toward the tip of the plate as catcher Contreras applied the tag with his left hand near Gonzalez’s upper left arm.
“We’ve got plenty of still frames that prove I was safe,” Gonzalez said. “Usually they say the play stands, but they said there wasn’t enough evidence, which means they know I was safe.”
The Dodgers challenged Angel Hernandez’s decision, and the video review let the call stand. That drew online scorn from Washington star Bryce Harper.
“He was safe! Replay system still broke..Same thing all year long! #DontMessItUp,” Harper tweeted.
