Hendricks, Baez help Cubs beat Mets 4-1
NEW YORK - Kyle Hendricks and two relievers held New York to four or fewer hits for the fifth straight game, Anthony Rizzo and Javier Baez homered, and the Cubs rallied for a 4-1 victory over the Mets on Monday.
Hendricks (5-1) gave up just three hits in seven innings, allowing only Lucas Duda's home run in the fourth. The rookie right-hander won his fourth straight start - yielding four earned runs over 29 1-3 innings.
Neil Ramirez struck out two in a perfect eighth and Hector Rondon allowed a leadoff double but finished the four-hitter for his 18th save.
The Cubs came back once Carlos Torres, making a spot start for Bartolo Colon, was done after five innings.
Luis Valbuena, who had three hits, had a tying single in the sixth. Rizzo connected off Buddy Carlyle (2-0) in the eighth for his 28th homer.
Baez then hit a two-run shot in the ninth off closer Jenrry Mejia into the second deck in left field for his fifth homer in his 60th career at-bat.
The Mets had only 16 hits but split the four-game series with the Cubs. The five-game run matches the club's longest streak. They also went five games with no more than four hits in 2004 and 1963.
The only time since 1914 the Cubs gave up four or fewer hits in four straight games was in 1983.
The 41-year-old Colon had to return to the Dominican Republic, where his mother was sick, forcing the durable Torres to make his first start since Sept. 27. He yielded three hits.
Torres became the first pitcher to start on no days' rest since the Angels' Billy Buckner did it June 25, 26 of last year. Torres threw nine pitches in facing two batters in the Mets' 2-1 loss Sunday.
He struck out six - including the side in the first - and walked two on 84 pitches.
Trainer's Room
Cubs: OF Chris Coghlan was out of the starting lineup. "We've been pushing him pretty hard," manager Rick Renteria said. Coghlan has been playing with a sore left big toe. As a pinch hitter, he grounded out with the bases loaded in the seventh.
Mets: RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka could be activated from the DL to replace Colon. Matsuzaka (elbow inflammation) made a rehab start Saturday, allowing one run and three hits over six innings for Double-A Binghamton. He threw 69 pitches.
Up Next
Cubs: LHP Tsuyoshi Wada (2-1) will make his seventh big league start when Cubs host the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday. Wada had Tommy John surgery in May 2012.
Mets: RHP Dillon Gee (4-5) is set for his first start at the Oakland Coliseum. He gave up four runs in four innings vs. the A's at Citi Field on June 21, 2011.