The wind was clearly apparent in the Windy City on Monday, and the Braves will take it.
The Braves used the home run ball to defeat the Cubs, 6-5, on a beautiful afternoon in Chicago. It was a far cry from the Braves’ last visit, when frigid conditions forced the rubber game’s postponement.
Both teams hit several balls deep to the warning track. The difference proved to be Jose Bautista’s three-run shot that put the Braves ahead 6-4 in the fifth inning.
Ozzie Albies led off with a homer, his third leadoff blast of the year, that tied him with Bryce Harper for the most in baseball (13). Tyler Flowers homered in the third to put the Braves in front 3-2 after they’d lost the lead on Albert Almora’s homer.
The Cubs scored a run in the bottom of the ninth with Braves reliever A.J. Minter hit Ian Happ with the bases loaded and two outs. The Braves won when Kris Bryant flew out for the final out.
Julio Teheran entered Monday with 2.25 ERA (5 ER/20.0 IP) in three starts at Wrigley Field. He allowed four runs in six innings, but it proved enough.
The Braves again hammered Jose Quintana, scoring six runs on nine hits against him in 4-2/3 innings. They hit him for seven runs in 2-1/3 innings in the teams’ last meeting on April 14.
It moved the Braves 10 games over .500 at 25-15.
