With right-hander Kerry Wood having worked in four straight games, manager Lou Piniella did some juggling with his bullpen Friday, and his actions were telling.
The first pitcher to relieve starter Rich Harden was right-hander Chad Gaudin, who pitched a scoreless sixth inning. The Cubs tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the inning, and instead of going with a veteran, such as right-hander Bob Howry, Piniella turned to rookie Jeff Samardzija, who has been in the big leagues about a month. Samardzija worked 1 1/3 innings and picked up his first major league win despite giving up two hits and two walks. "He's a young man pitching in a pennant race against some pretty good hitters," Piniella said. "This is a learning curve for him, a learning experience. The more experience we can get him, the better he's going to be as the season goes on."
Piniella then turned to righty Carlos Marmol, who earned a save by working 1 2/3 innings. Wood has been sharp of late, but Piniella said he was not going to use him five days in a row.
CUBS 3, PHILLIES 2: LF Alfonso Soriano hit a solo homer with one out in the seventh inning to break a 2-2 tie. The Cubs rallied from a 2-0 deficit, getting a run on pinch hitter Daryle Ward's RBI groundout in the fifth and on RF Kosuke Fukudome's bases-loaded walk in the sixth. The Cubs drew seven walks. RHP Rich Harden worked five innings, throwing 100 pitches. He gave up three hits and two runs, walking four and striking out five. RHP Jeff Samardzija earned his first big league win in relief, and RHP Carlos Marmol picked up his seventh save.
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