 failed to make it out of the inning after giving up five hits and walking two.Baez led off the second with a homer to deep right-center field - his 10th of the season - and later added an RBI double just inside third base. Jason Heyward also had an RBI single, and two of the walks came with the bases loaded.Gonzales, who was trying to become the first six-game winner in baseball, was also hurt by an error from left fielder Domingo Santana, who dropped David Bote's liner. It was Santana's sixth error of the season, the most of any outfielder in the majors. Gonzales was only charged with three earned runs, but it was the shortest start of his career.Lester (2-1) cruised after the early run support, allowing one hit in seven innings. Pitching in his home state for the first time since September 2014, Lester struck out eight and walked only one. Seattle's only hit off the left-hander was a looping single from Ryon Healy in the second inning. It was Lester's second start since a stint on the injured list with a hamstring injury and easily his most impressive outing of the season.Allen Webster and Dillon Maples retired the last six Seattle batters in order.Anthony Rizzo and Willson Contreras both homered in the fifth. Rizzo has 10 extra-base hits in his past 11 games, including homers in three of the past four.TRAINER'S ROOMCubs: Kris Bryant was lifted for pinch-hitter David Descalso in the fifth inning. Bryant was the designated hitter for both games in Seattle.Mariners: 3B Kyle Seager believes he will be able to come off the 60-day injured list when he is eligible in late May. Seager has been out all season after having hand surgery during spring training. He took light batting practice for the first time on Tuesday and was taking ground balls during pregame on Wednesday. Seattle manager Scott Servais said how Seager's hand responses to facing increased velocity at the plate will be important. Seager will have a minor-league rehab assignment before rejoining the club.OPENING ACTThe Cubs had a special guest for batting practice before Wednesday's game: Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder. The longtime Cubs fan and Seattle resident took a few hacks in the batting cage while chatting with manager Joe Maddon. Vedder watched both games of the series with former Chicago Blackhawks star Chris Chelios.UP NEXTCubs: After a day off, the Cubs return home to open a homestand against St. Louis with Kyle Hendricks (1-4) getting the start. Hendricks allowed seven runs on 10 hits against Arizona in his last start.Mariners: Seattle opens a 10-game road trip on Friday in Cleveland with LHP Yusei Kikuchi (1-1) making his eighth start. Kikuchi pitched only one inning in his last start as Seattle tries to limit his innings for the season.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Lester hopes to keep rolling as Cubs face Mariners Jon Lester said he felt like a "caged animal" before his last start.The Chicago Cubs left-hander should feel right at home Wednesday when he takes on the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park.Lester, a native of nearby Tacoma, Wash., will be making his second start since a stint on the 10-day injured list caused by a left hamstring strain.In his first start back, Lester (1-1, 2.37 ERA) pitched well but still took the loss in a 2-1 defeat to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. Lester allowed one run on four hits in five innings, with no walks and five strikeouts."I thought he looked really good for being out as long as he has been," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "I thought the velocity was there. I thought the finish on the pitches was there and the off-speed stuff was there. He pitched really well." Lester was making his first start in 17 days."Felt fine. Felt normal," Lester told MLB.com. "It's very tough, especially when you're used to pitching every five days. It's kind of like a caged animal for a couple of days there. Just really didn't know what to do with myself. It's a testament to our training staff. They kept pushing me and I kept pushing them. I got back a little bit sooner than I think everybody thought, so (that's) always good." Lester praised the other members of the Cubs' rotation for picking up the slack during his absence."They did a great job," Lester told MLB.com. "Cole (Hamels) and Q (Jose Quintana), Kyle (Hendricks) kind of hit his stride there. (Yu) Darvish down in Miami threw the heck out of the ball. Chat (Tyler Chatwood) the other day was unbelievable. I was just glad not to mess that momentum up and keep going." In 13 career starts against the Mariners, Lester is 6-4 with a 3.27 ERA.Lester will go up against Seattle left-hander Marco Gonzales (5-0, 2.80), who is tied for the major league lead in wins with the New York Yankees' Domingo German, Tampa Bay's Tyler Glasnow and Arizona's Zack Greinke.Gonzales was the first pitcher to five wins, beating Texas 14-2 on Thursday with seven scoreless innings. He also became the first in franchise history to win that many before the end of April."It's a good start," Gonzales told MLB.com. "I've always been a firm believer in it's not how you start, it's how you finish. I just want to keep that momentum going. I've really been happy with what my pitches have been doing lately, and I want to keep that feeling going." Gonzales is 8-3 with a 3.23 ERA in 22 career appearances at T-Mobile Park and hasn't allowed a home run in seven straight home starts, one shy of the team record set by Aaron Sele in 2000-01."Marco is a very good competitor," Mariners manager Scott Servais said. "He's got four quality pitches, and when he gets them all going and mixes them, the sequences of his pitches is awesome. The back and forth, in and out, the cutter has been a big weapon for him. He's a complete package. He's a good fielder, he holds runners well, But ultimately it comes down to his competitiveness. He's a tough nut out there." The Cubs won the opener of the two-game series 6-5 Tuesday night on Kyle Schwarber's two-run homer in the eighth inning.--Field Level Media
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