CHICAGO — Alfonso Soriano hit a pair of two-run homers and the Chicago Cubs finally gave Tom Gorzelanny some run support in their 10-5 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday.
Marlon Byrd also hit a two-run shot for the Cubs, who won the last three games of the series following a loss in the opener. After managing only three runs in two losses to Washington, the Cubs scored 33 times against Arizona.
Soriano had four homers, including the go-ahead shot Friday and the tying home run Saturday.
Gorzelanny (1-3) had been winless despite a 2.45 ERA because the Cubs had totaled only seven runs in his first four starts. This time, they scored eight times in four innings off Edwin Jackson (1-3), who has given up 18 runs over 6 1/3 innings in his last two outings.
Gorzelanny allowed two runs — both on Rusty Ryal's fourth-inning homer — and six hits in seven innings. He had a career-high 10 strikeouts, continuing a series- and season-long trend: Cubs pitchers, who lead the majors in the category, fanned 49 Diamondbacks, who strike out more than any other team.
In the first inning, Byrd had an RBI grounder and Chad Tracy a run-scoring single before Soriano connected to make it 4-0.
Soriano, who also doubled to set up a third-inning run, went deep again in the fifth. It was his 24th career multiple-homer game and first by any Cubs player this year. After a rough start, he is batting .390 with five homers and 16 RBIs in 18 games since April 12.
Signed to a team-record $136 million contract before the 2007 season, Soriano has had a love-hate relationship with Chicago fans. They go wild when he's in one of his hot streaks but they boo him when he slumps even a little bit. They were really on his case last year, when knee injuries limited him to 20 homers and 55 RBIs in 117 games.
Tracy, playing third base for slumping Aramis Ramirez, had three hits. So did Ryan Theriot, whose 12-game streak includes 10 games with multiple hits.
The Cubs (13-13) are back at .500 for the fourth time this season. They haven't been above the break-even mark yet.
Jackson, who came to Arizona from Detroit in the three-team trade that resulted in Curtis Granderson going from the Tigers to the Yankees, has an 8.07 ERA. The right-hander went 13-9 and made the AL All-Star team last year but had a 5.07 ERA after the break.
Arizona scored three ninth-inning runs off John Grabow.
Notes
Ramirez, batting .155 with 25 strikeouts in 97 at-bats, had a .300 average in his first seven years with the team. … Cubs manager Lou Piniella has had trouble finding playing time for OF Xavier Nady, who was signed to a $3.3 million contract during the offseason to rotate with Soriano, Byrd and Kosuke Fukudome. Those three are hot and rookie Tyler Colvin also has played well. Piniella said Nady will be in right field Tuesday at Pittsburgh. … The Diamondbacks plan to call up RHP Cesar Valdez from Triple-A Reno to start Monday night at Houston. Valdez will take the rotation spot of Kris Benson, who is on the DL with a strained right shoulder. "We'll give him the opportunity to stick," manager A.J. Hinch said.