Houston Leads Cubs Past Pirates

He launched two baseballs into the wind toward the ivy in center field and Tyler Houston took off running Friday. There was no time to stop and admire his work.

"If I hit a ball down the line, I know if it's going out. You hit a ball to center field at Wrigley Field, unless you're Sammy Sosa, you keep running until the umpire tells you to stop," Houston said after homering twice to lead the Chicago Cubs over the Pittsburgh Pirates 12-9 Friday.

Houston is getting more of a chance to catch because Scott Servais is in a 4-for-41 slump and owning a .194 batting average.

"You can get a feel when you're in the lineup. It's tough to be a bench player, tough to come in and play defense after sitting for eight innings," Houston said. "Every bench player will tell you he'd like to be an every day player."

Maybe Houston's bat will allow him to be so. He's 9-for-21 with three homers since coming of the disabled list (hamstring) June 24.

"Right now I'm getting a few hits and a couple of them have been homers," he said. "Not too many people hit three in a game and that would have been a real thrill. But it's highly improbable for a lot of people to hit two in a game."

Kevin Tapani (9-6) won for the first time since June 6, stopping his three-game losing streak. He allowed seven runs six earned and 10 hits in eight-plus innings, stiking out eight and walking one.

The Pirates drove him out in the ninth, scoring five runs with the help of three Cubs errors, until Mulholland and Beck got strikeouts for the final two outs.

"We had a chance. We had a couple of good pitchers down in the ninth. You can't complain about that," Pirates manager Gene Lamont said.

Houston's second homer, his fifth of the season, capped a five-run third inning that started with hustle on the basepaths by Sosa and featured two Pirates errors.

Sosa reached on a fielder's choice and sprinted to third on Mark Grace's single to right, drawing a throw that allowed Grace to take second. Rodriguez singled him home and Grace came around for a 5-4 lead when center fielder Turner Ward overran the ball.

Manny Alexander reached on third baseman Aramis Ramirez's error and Houston followed with a three-run homer to make it 8-4.

Hernandez hit his 12th homer leading off the seventh against Jeff Tabaka.

Chicago added three runs in the eighth off Elmer Dessens on RBI singles by Kevin Orie and Mickey Morandini, and a throwing error by Dessens.

But in the ninth, Tapani allowed an RBI single to Kevin Polcovich and was relieved by Bob Patterson, who gave up an RBI single to Tony Womack. Terry Adams allowed a sacrifice fly to Keith Osik, an RBI grounder to Kevin Young and a run-scoring single to Jose Guillen. Mulholland came on to strike out Al Martin before Beck, the Cubs fifth pitcher of the inning, got the final out for his 21st save.

"I didn't expect to be in the game," Beck said. "There's like a little hex on in the ninth. Some weird things have been happening and the last three outs have been real tough to get in this ballpark."

Pirates starter Francisco Cordova (6-7), who hasn't won since May 31, lost his fourth straight decision, giving up eight runs and eight hits in three innings.

The Pirates pounded Tapani for three runs and four hits in the third, taking a 4-3 lead. Jason Kendall had a RBI double, Young a sacrifice fly and Guillen a run-scoring hit.

Rodriguez hit his 19th homer in the second, Alexander doubled and Houston homered.

Pittsburgh went ahead 1-0 in the top half of the inning on a run-scoring wild pitch.

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