John Lackey and three relievers combined on a three-hitter, and Anthony Rizzo homered among his three hits to lead the Chicago Cubs past the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-1 on Sunday.
The defending World Series champions took two of three in Pittsburgh and improved to 34-34 this season.
Lackey (5-7) allowed two hits and struck out four over six innings. Carl Edwards Jr., Hector Rondon and Brian Duensing finished up for the Cubs.
Batting leadoff, Rizzo doubled and scored in the first, singled and scored in the third and hit a two-run homer in the seventh. The home run was Rizzo's 16th of the year, surpassing Kris Bryant for the team lead.
Willson Contreras drove in three runs with a pair of doubles. John Jay had three hits with an RBI and scored twice.
The first four Chicago runs came against Jameson Taillon (3-2), who made his second start since returning from surgery to treat testicular cancer. Taillon gave up eight hits in five innings while striking out four.
Ian Happ added a solo homer in the ninth, his eighth of the season.
Chicago Baseball
Jordy Mercer homered leading off the fifth for the Pirates.
