Home Runs Give Cubs, Cardinals Victories

After coming close to hitting a home run the previous few games, Kris Bryant believed he was due to get one to go out. He got one in a big situation.

Bryant's two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted the Chicago Cubs to a 9-8 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Monday night.

Colorado had taken an 8-7 lead in the ninth inning on a two-run home run by Carlos Gonzalez -- his second of the game. However, Bryant hit the second pitch he saw from John Axford (3-4) over the wall in left-center to give Chicago a dramatic victory and snap a three-game skid.

Cardinals 4, Reds 1

Kolten Wong came through with the bases loaded. When faced with the same predicament, Lance Lynn minimized the damage. Wong hit a grand slam that backed Lynn's seven resourceful innings and led the St. Louis Cardinals over the Cincinnati Reds 4-1 Monday night.

Wong connected on a 3-2 fastball from rookie Raisel Iglesias (1-3) with two outs in the fourth, putting St. Louis ahead 4-1. Wong's second career grand slam easily cleared the right-field wall, landing in the home bullpen.

Iglesias said through a translator he struck out Wong the prior at-bat on "two bad pitches," but the St. Louis leadoff man didn't bite the next time.

"He made the adjustments really fast," Iglesias said. "So I have to come back with something hard in the middle, and you saw the consequence."

The Cardinals have won six of seven. They are a big league-best 64-35 and lead the NL Central by 6 1/2 games.

White Sox 10, Red Sox 8

Adam Eaton was given some unusual advice on what to do between at-bats in his first appearance as a designated hitter. It must have worked. He made his time at the plate look easy.

Eaton, inserted as the DH because of a sore left shoulder, had three hits and drove in two runs to lift the Chicago White Sox to a 10-8 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Monday night.

It was the fifth straight win for the White Sox, coming off a four-game sweep at home over Cleveland.

Eaton had a triple, double and single to key Chicago's 15-hit night. He opened the game with his triple, sparking a four-run first.

Angels Acquire Victorino

The Los Angeles Angels have acquired veteran outfielder Shane Victorino and more than $3.8 million from the Boston Red Sox for infielder Josh Rutledge. Victorino is a two-time World Series champ, a two-time All-Star and a four-time Gold Glove winner.

Tulowitzki Heads to Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays acquired All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki from the Colorado Rockies. In return the Rockies get shortstop Jose Reyes and minor leaguers.

The deal is a signal that the Rockies have gone into rebuilding mode as they clear more than $50 million from their payroll.

Monday, July 28 Scoreboard

Baltimore 2, Atlanta 1 (F/11)

Chicago White Sox 10, Boston 8

Kansas City 9, Cleveland 4

Tampa Bay 5, Detroit 2

New York Yankees 6, Texas 2

Chicago Cubs 9, Colorado 8

St. Louis 4, Cincinnati 1

Arizona 4, Seattle 3 (F/10)

San Francisco 4, Milwaukee 2

Tuesday, July 28 Schedule (All Times Central)

Atlanta at Baltimore, 6:05 p.m.

Philadelphia at Toronto, 6:07 p.m.

Chicago at Boston, 6:10 p.m.

Kansas City at Cleveland, 6:10 p.m.

San Diego at New York, 6:10 p.m.

Washington at Miami, 6:10 p.m.

Detroit at Tampa Bay, 6:10 p.m.

New York at Texas, 7:05 p.m.

Colorado at Chicago, 7:05 p.m.

Pittsburgh at Minnesota, 7:10 p.m.

Los Angeles at Houston, 7:10 p.m.

Cincinnati at St. Louis, 7:15 p.m.

Arizona at Seattle, 9:10 p.m.

Oaklandat Los Angeles, 9:10 p.m.

Milwaukee at San Francisco, 9:15 p.m.