Bryant's Homers, Doubles Give Cubs Win, Royals Down Cardinals

By ESPN

When Kris Bryant reached the dugout after his record-setting third homer, thousands of Cubs fans in the stands cheered for a curtain call. A few teammates wanted him to take a bow, too.

Nope. That was the only thing Chicago's top hitter wouldn't do on his historic night.

Bryant became the first major leaguer to hit three homers and two doubles in a game, and Jake Arrieta added a solo shot in the ballpark where he threw a no-hitter in April, setting up an 11-8 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night.

The Cubs pulled out of their 1-6 slide behind a tandem that's had some huge moments in Cincinnati.

"The last couple of weeks haven't been what I've wanted, so I figured I'm due," said Bryant, who hit three homers one time during a college game with San Diego.

Arrieta (12-2) threw his second career no-hitter on April 21 during a 16-0 win over the Reds. Bryant led the way with a pair of homers in that game, including a grand slam that gave him a career-high six RBI.

Arrieta struggled in his return to Cincinnati, giving up a season-high five runs in five innings, but Bryant drove in six runs again to help the right-hander pull through. Bryant's 16 total bases were a Cubs record, and his five hits marked a career high.

"That keeps you back from those 0-for-20 stretches when you have a game like this," Bryant said.

Bryant doubled home a run in the first, hit a solo homer in the third and added a three-run shot deep into the upper deck in left field in the fourth off Dan Straily (4-5). His solo shot in the eighth came off Ross Ohlendorf, who also gave up a homer to Anthony Rizzo.

Most of the 31,762 fans wore Cubs blue and demanded a curtain call after the third homer. Bryant wouldn't oblige, considering it inappropriate on the road.

"He enjoys the moment, but he doesn't go over the top with it," Chicago manager Joe Maddon said. "He's very old school. He doesn't spike the ball in the end zone. He just lays it down or hands it to the official."

Royals 6, Cardinals 2

There have been plenty of times over the years when Royals pitcher Danny Duffy would give up a first-inning home run, or fall into a big early hole, and it would cause everything else to slowly unravel. The left-hander showed Monday night just how much he's matured.

After serving up Matt Holliday's two-run shot in the first, Duffy settled in to go eight innings while striking out eight without a walk, sending Kansas City to a 6-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals in the opener of a four-game, two-city series between cross-state rivals.

"I think no walks is more of a win for me than anything, outside of the team winning," said Duffy, who had gone eight innings just once before. "I don't know. Nothing fazes me anymore."

Kendrys Morales went 4 for 4 and drove in two runs, and Eric Hosmer also had a pair of RBI as the Royals roughed up Adam Wainwright (6-5) to snap a four-game losing streak to the Cardinals.

The Royals scored all their runs with two outs.

"We have a little bit of a reputation for that," manager Ned Yost said, "and it showed up."

Wainwright wasted no time coughing up the lead Holliday had given him, loading the bases for Morales in the first inning. The big designated hitter lined a single to right over a shifted infield to tie the game.

Kansas City pulled ahead for good in the second, stringing together five singles and a double while batting through the order. Lorenzo Cain provided the lead with a sharp single up the middle, Hosmer extended it with his bounding double down the right-field line, and Salvador Perez added an RBI single to make it 6-2.

Monday, June 27 Scoreboard

Los Angeles Dodgers 5, Pittsburgh 4

Texas 9, New York Yankees 6

Washington 11, New York Mets 4

Cleveland 8, Atlanta 3

Chicago Cubs 11, Cincinnati 8

Tampa Bay 13, Boston 7

Kansas City 6, St. Louis 2

Colorado 9, Toronto 5

Philadelphia 8, Arizona 0

Houston 4, Los Angeles Angels 2

Oakland 8, San Francisco 3

Tuesday, June 28 Schedule (All Times Central)

Texas at New York Yankees, 6:05 p.m.

New York Mets at Washington, 6:05 p.m.

Miami at Detroit, 6:10 p.m.

Cleveland at Atlanta, 6:10 p.m.

Chicago Cubs at Cincinnati, 6:10 p.m.

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

Minnesota at Chicago White Sox, 7:10 p.m.

Los Angeles Dodgers at Milwaukee, 7:10 p.m.

St. Louis at Kansas City, 7:15 p.m.

Toronto at Colorado, 7:40 p.m.

Philadelphia at Arizona, 8:40 p.m.

Houston at Los Angeles Angels, 9:05 p.m.

Pittsburgh at Seattle, 9:10 p.m.

Baltimore at San Diego, 9:10 p.m.

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