CHICAGO — Josh Rojas launched his first three longballs of the season and the Arizona Diamondbacks powered past the Chicago Cubs 10-6 Friday in a game of home run derby at Wrigley Field.
With a strong wind blowing out on a warm day, the teams combined to clear the walls 11 times — the Diamondbacks connected seven times.
David Peralta went deep twice and Alek Thomas and Christian Walker added solo shots as the Diamondbacks won their second straight after a six-game slide.
Rojas posted his first three-homer game and third career multi-homer effort. After a flyout in the first inning, he hit a solo homer in the third, a two-run drive in the fifth and another solo home run in the seventh.
Rojas led off the ninth with a chance to tie the big league record of four home runs in a game but struck out looking. There have been 18 four-homer game performances in the majors, the last by J.D. Martinez for the Diamondbacks in 2017.
The versatile Rojas, who started at third base, entered batting .250 with three RBIs in 13 games after being reinstated from the injured list on May 6. The 27-year-old had been out with a strained right oblique.
On a day when the Cubs honored Hall of Fame pitcher Ferguson Jenkins, they lost their third in a row. Jenkins, in fact, led the National League in home runs allowed during five of his 10 seasons with Chicago.
Jonathan Villar homered and doubled for the Cubs in his 1,000th big-league game. Patrick Wisdom hit his seventh homer to end an 0-for-10 slump
Cubs rookie Christopher Morel and Ildemaro Vargas also homered.
Humberto Castellanos (3-1) allowed three runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings for the win.
Rojas and Peralta tagged Kyle Hendricks (2-4) with Arizona’s first four homers as the Cubs ace righty yielded a season-high seven runs and eight hits in five innings. Hendricks entered having allowed just one run in his previous 14 1/3 innings.
Rojas and Peralta hit solo drives off Hendricks in the third to put Arizona ahead 4-2. The pair went deep again, one out apart in the fifth, to make it 7-3. Peralta recorded his fourth multi-homer game.
Morel and Vargas hit back-to-back homers in the seventh off Caleb Smith to pull Chicago within 9-5.
After Rojas struck out in the ninth, Walker followed with his team-leading 10th homer.
HR DERBY
Rojas became the 11th Diamondbacks hitter to hit three homers in a game. It was the 13th time an Arizona batter hit three homers in a game.
“FERGIE” STATUE UNVEILED
The Cubs unveiled a statue of right-hander “Fergie” Jenkins outside Wrigley Field before the game. The metal sculpture of Jenkins delivering a pitch joins a row that includes ones of Ernie Banks, Billy Williams and Ron Santo.
Jenkins, who spent 10 of 19 seasons with the Cubs, spoke from the dais in a plaza on the west side of the ballpark. The native of Chatham, Ontario, was 167-132 with a 3.20 ERA for Chicago in 401 games -- completing 154 of them -- and was a three-time All-Star and the 1971 NL Cy Young Award winner while with the Cubs.
The 79-year-old Jenkins took note of the gusty wind during the ceremony. “I pitched many days, turning on to Addison (Street) and said, ‘Oh, the wind is blowing out.'"
DBACKS ROSTER MOVE
Arizona recalled OF Jake McCarthy from its taxi squad and optioned RHP Jacob Webb to Triple-A Reno, but he remained on the taxi squad. McCarthy had two hits and two RBIs.
UP NEXT
Arizona LHP Madison Bumgarner (2-2, 2.29) faces Chicago LHP Justin Steele (1-4, 4.50) on Saturday afternoon.
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