Cubs weather Phillies Thursday night

The Cubs and the Phillies were nearly blown away in the literal sense Thursday night at Citizens Bank Park.

High winds, followed by rain, halted play for an hour and 17 minutes.

For their part, the Cubs were hoping not to get blown away by the Phillies, the best team in the National League with one of the most formidable pitching rotations of this day.

Tyler Colvin scored from second on a throwing error in the 11th inning to cap the Cubs' rally with a 4-3 win Thursday night. They tied the game at 3-3 in the ninth inning when Geovany Soto hit a solo homer off Ryan Madson. They appeared to go ahead when the next batter, Colvin, hit one into the stands in right-center.

However, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel argued that a fan reached over the fence. Umpires checked the replay and agreed with Manuel. Colvin was sent to second base with a double, and the game eventually went into extra innings tied at 3-3.

As far as hanging with the Phillies, Cubs manager Mike Quade said the Cubs could do it.

“You respect them, but you don't get intimidated by them,” Quade told reporters before the game. “I think you just show up at the ballpark expecting it to be a (heck) of a battle, (heck) of a challenge and see if you can't make the most out of it.”

This seems hardly the ideal time for the Cubs to be playing the Phillies. After all, they had just snapped an eight-game losing streak Wednesday in Cincinnati, and they have to face pitchers Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt in the final three games of this series.

“You realize you better play good baseball and not give up extra outs against pitching like this,” Quade said.

The Cubs went with Randy Wells on the mound Thursday against Kyle Kendrick. Jimmy Rollins gave the Phillies a 3-0 lead in the second with a two-out, 3-run homer to right-center.

Then, the weather got interesting. Storms were expected in the area, but the wind began howling as the Phillies batted in the third, forcing umpires to stop the game with one out and no rain falling.

The rain did hit, and Rodrigo Lopez replaced Wells and did a nice job, holding the Phillies scoreless for 2⅔ innings. The Cubs got an RBI single from Starlin Castro in the sixth and back-to-back doubles from Castro and Carlos Pena in the eighth to come within a run.

The Cubs received some good injury news before the game. Pitcher Ryan Dempster, who experienced hip tightness before his Wednesday victory in Cincinnati, ran before the game, and it looks like he'll be fine for his next start, Monday against the Milwaukee Brewers at Wrigley Field.

Outfielder Reed Johnson and infielder-outfielder Jeff Baker both began minor league rehab assignments Thursday night at Class AAA Iowa. Both hitters went 0-for-2 in a game suspended by rain.

Left fielder Alfonso Soriano is expected to join the Iowa club on Sunday, and all three should be ready to return on the homestand.

bmiles@dailyherald.com