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July 22, 2008 - 9:57PM
Updated: July 22, 2008 - 11:16PM
Petit shuts down Cubs in 9-2 Diamondbacks' rout
Kyle Odegard, Tribune
For two harrowing minutes Tuesday, a worst-case scenario emerged for the Diamondbacks.
Bordow: D-Backs should make effort to re-sign Hudson
D'Antona finally gets big league call
D-Backs acquire P Rauch from Washington
Orlando Hudson, seen crumpled in a heap at home plate after a beanball, threatened to put a damper on two straight days of solid baseball, plus the fact backup second baseman Emilio Bonifacio had been traded to the Nationals earlier in the day.
But Hudson stood up and would be OK, and Jon Rauch — the player gained in the Bonifacio trade — pitched a scoreless ninth as this night ended rosy with a 9-2 win over the Chicago Cubs at Chase Field.
The Diamondbacks (50-50) scratched back to .500 and took a one-game lead in the NL West after the Dodgers lost to Colorado.
“Right now we’re going to jell together,” Hudson said. “Hopefully this is the start of something and we can carry on with it.”
Conor Jackson hit a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning for an early advantage and the offense kept after it.
Arizona would score each of its next four runs with two outs in the inning for a 5-1 lead through seven. A home run by Cubs pinch-hitter Daryle Ward cut it to 5-2, but the Diamondbacks put up four runs in the eighth to put the game away.
“It was nice to get runs late,” Jackson said. “It’s nice to give the bullpen a little breath.”
Yusmeiro Petit gave up one run in five innings of work just a day after being notified he would start. He gave up one run in six innings of work against Milwaukee on July 2 in his other emergency start.
Petit is 1-1 with a 2.78 ERA this season.
“You can spot-start him on a dime, where he hasn’t been stretched out, and he can still give you 90 pitches, five innings in that fashion,” manager Bob Melvin said.
Hudson was hit in the right ankle by a slider from Kevin Hart and hit the ground in agony. He left the game, but X-rays were negative and he is day-to-day.
“I thought it was (worse than it was),” Hudson said.
The beleaguered Arizona bullpen combined to give up one run on three hits in four innings of work. Rauch struck out a pair in his debut.
Jamie D’Antona made his major league debut in the game, singling to left field as a pinch-hitter in the seventh for his first major league hit.
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