CHICAGO (AP) – Zack Greinke pitched three-hit ball over six innings and the Arizona Diamondbacks supported him with three home runs in a 6-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.
Greinke (3-1) won for the third time in four starts since a season-opening loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner also picked up his first victory in six career starts at Wrigley Field, giving him at least one win at every National League ballpark.
Taylor Clarke worked the final three innings for a save in his major league debut. Called up from Triple-A Reno, he allowed one hit and preserved Arizona’s first shutout since a 9-0 romp over Chicago last Sept. 19.
Eduardo Escobar and David Peralta hit back-to-back solo homers against a shaky Yu Darvish (1-3) in the first. John Ryan Murphy capped a three-run sixth against Allen Webster with a two-run homer that made it 6-0.
Christian Walker had a career-high four hits and scored a run, helping the Diamondbacks win for the fifth time in six games.
The Cubs had won eight of 11 following a 1-6 start and were trying to go above .500 for the first time since a season-opening victory at Texas.
Darvish lasted five innings, allowing three runs and five hits. The shaky outing followed three straight dominant starts against Miami and Arizona by Jose Quintana, Cole Hamels, and Kyle Hendricks, who each went seven scoreless innings.
