Pujols Hits Home Run Hat Trick

Albert Pujols’ third homer on a testy Tuesday at Wrigley Field brought the St. Louis Cardinals back and sent the Chicago Cubs to a crushing defeat.

“It was the first time I’ve hit three home runs, and it came at the right time,” Pujols said after his shot in the ninth inning helped the Cardinals to an 11-8 comeback victory at Chicago.

“It’s one of those days you never forget.”

Pujols was five for five with a double and five runs batted in, helping St. Louis rally from a six-run deficit in the final meeting of the season between the heated rivals. The Cardinals left town with a 10-game lead over the third-place Cubs in the NL Central.

A day after the teams nearly scuffled, there was more trouble. St. Louis starter Matt Morris threw a fastball behind Corey Patterson in the first, prompting a warning to both benches from plate umpire Tim Tschida.

Cub reliever LaTroy Hawkins, who gave up Pujols’ go-ahead homer, was ejected after he started yelling at Tschida as he walked toward the dugout in the middle of the ninth.

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Philadelphia 4, Atlanta 3 -- Bobby Abreu’s run-scoring single in the 10th inning at Atlanta capped the Phillies’ 30th come-from-behind win of the season and pulled the team back into a first-place tie in the NL East with the Braves.

The Phillies rallied for two unearned runs in the eighth, ruining another strong outing by Atlanta’s Jaret Wright. Wright (7-5) went seven innings, giving up four hits and a run, but could only watch as the Phillies rallied in the eighth. Wright hasn’t lost since May 22, going 5-0 with six no-decisions.

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San Francisco 3, Arizona 1 -- Jerome Williams (9-6) outpitched Randy Johnson (10-8), yielding four hits over seven-plus innings at Phoenix to send the Diamondbacks to their ninth consecutive loss. Barry Bonds was one for four with a double and an RBI for the Giants. He missed Monday’s series opener following root canal surgery.

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Florida 9, New York 7 -- Miguel Cabrera homered and drove in three runs at New York, and the Marlins won despite blowing a six-run lead.

Mike Piazza sprained his left wrist when Juan Pierre ran into his arm as he reached for a wide throw at first base in the second inning. X-rays were negative and he was to be reevaluated.

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San Diego 9, Colorado 7 -- Ryan Klesko homered and drove in three runs, Khalil Greene homered and Adam Eaton finally beat Jason Jennings to lift the Padres at Denver. Eaton (5-8) was in danger of becoming the first pitcher since 1976 to lose to an opponent four times in a season.

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Cincinnati 6, Milwaukee 2 -- Brandon Claussen pitched seven strong innings in his NL debut, and Jason Romano’s first home run led the Reds at Cincinnati. Claussen (1-0) gave up Bill Hall’s two-run homer and only five hits.

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Pittsburgh 2, Montreal 1 -- Rookie Sean Burnett limited the Expos to one run in seven innings to beat them for the second time in a row, and Rob Mackowiak hit a two-run homer at Pittsburgh.