Dayan Viciedo shook off his slump – for one night at least – and helped the White Sox rally twice from three-run deficits to overtake the Detroit Tigers.Viciedo, the Sox No. 8 hitter, and the two batters on either side of him in the lineup, Alexei Ramirez and Brent Morel, all entered the game hitting under .200 – and all three delivered Monday night in a 7-5 victory.

“I don’t feel there is any pressure. Collectively we help each other out. We’re a young squad and we’ll have our ups and downs,” Viciedo said after hitting a homer and a go-ahead, bases-loaded single during a career-high four RBI night. “We’re confident and we pick each other up.”

Adam Dunn also homered, his 12th of the season, allowing him to surpass his total from last season in the White Sox’s 36th game of 2012.Dunn’s two-run homer came after the Tigers scored three in the first against shaky White Sox starter John Danks, who lasted only three innings in his shortest outing of the season, allowing nine hits and five runs.

“Spot them three runs early and it’s nice to get a couple in the first,” said Dunn, who struck out three times after his homer.”There are some good things going but a lot of bad things for me right now,” Dunn added. “Hopefully we can get those cleaned up and keep producing.”

Zach Stewart (1-1) earned the win, allowing only one hit over three scoreless innings.Hector Santiago relieved Stewart in the seventh and retired three straight with two runners on. Matt Thornton pitched the eighth and Addison Reed gave up a single and walk in the ninth before getting his third save in as many chances. White Sox relievers allowed three hits in six shutout innings.Detroit finished with 13 runners left on.

“We had an opportunity to really break the game open,” manager Jim Leyland said. “We weren’t able to do that, but we did swing the bats much better tonight.”

Trailing 5-4, the White Sox loaded the bases with one out in the sixth against reliever Luke Putkonen (0-2). Alex Rios and A.J. Pierzynski singled before a walk to Ramirez, who also had two hits.Viciedo followed with a two-run single to center to put the White Sox ahead. Brent Morel, who came in batting .182 and appeared ready to bunt two pitches earlier, then lined an RBI single to left for a 7-5 lead.

“You get Morel and Viciedo having the nights they had, you like seeing that. I like the way we are going about it and offensively it has been a little slow the last couple of days, but nobody is laying down,” Robin Ventura said.

Tigers starter Drew Smyly allowed five hits and four runs in five innings, including Dunn’s two-run shot in the first.During Detroit’s quick start, Andy Dirks walked, Miguel Cabrera singled and Prince Fielder hit a two-run double when Alejandro De Aza appeared to misjudge his line drive and the ball went over his head. Delmon Young followed with another double over De Aza’s head and the Tigers were up 3-0.But one out after a single by De Aza in the bottom half of the first, Dunn lifted his homer to deep right.Danks gave it right back in the third, surrendering three singles and then walking Jhonny Peralta with the bases loaded to make it 4-2 before Gerald Laird’s sacrifice fly put the Tigers back up by three.

“It’s on me. Physically I feel great,” said Danks, whose ERA was inflated to 6.46. “I’ve just got to go out there and do it. Definitely winning the ball game takes the sting out of it. That’s definitely the ultimate goal is to win ballgames and we’re happy to do that.”

Viciedo, in a 1-for-17 slump at the time, connected on his fourth homer in the fifth, a two-run blast that made it 5-4.

NOTES—Leyland came out to argue with third base umpire Gerry Davis in the second after a shot down the third base line by Cabrera was ruled foul. Replays showed the ball may have been fair and would have scored at least one run since Austin Jackson had doubled earlier in the inning past third before Andy Dirks was hit with a pitch. … Dunn’s homer was his first off a lefty since Aug. 6, 2010, when he hit a pair off the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw while he was with the Nationals. Dunn batted .064 (6 for 94) against lefties last season with just one extra base hit, a double. … Detroit’s Max Scherzer (2-3, 5.73 ERA) pitches against Jake Peavy (4-1, 1.89) in the finale of the brief two-game series. It will be the finale of a nine-game road swing for the Tigers, who are 3-5 on the trip.

ST. LOUIS—Ryan Dempster’s winless streak is now at 15 starts. But the Cubs took a step forward with their luckless pitcher.

“It’s all right. Baby steps,” Dempster said after the Cubs sent the St. Louis Cardinals to their fourth straight loss at home with a 6-4 victory on Monday night. “We got a win when I started a game.”

Alfonso Soriano singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning and Bryan LaHair had three hits, including a two-run homer — his ninth overall and fourth against the Cardinals — to break a 1-for-14 slump. Chicago’s runs in the eighth and ninth innings came too late for Dempster, whose last victory was Aug. 16 against the Nationals.Shawn Camp (2-1) allowed one hit in two innings of work and Rafael Dolis worked the ninth for his fourth save in six chances for the Cubs, who won for only the fourth time in their last 13 games in St. Louis despite stranding a season-worst 14 runners.Jake Westbrook became the latest Cardinals starter who couldn’t pitch deep into the game, allowing four runs on 11 hits in five innings. Of the other four pitchers during this run through the St. Louis rotation, only rookie Lance Lynn lasted six innings.

“I didn’t feel any added pressure, I put that on me every night no matter what the situation is,” Westbrook said. “I just didn’t get the job done.”

The Cardinals got swept by Atlanta over the weekend and hadn’t lost four straight at home since a five-game skid Aug. 14-20, 2010.
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“Over the course of the season you’re going to have little ruts where you’re not getting the breaks and when you’re not playing well that compounds the problem,” Lance Berkman said. “This team’s got a lot of character. We knew it wasn’t going to be smooth sailing the whole year.”

Dempster gave up four hits over the first five innings before surrendering four runs on five hits in the sixth that tied it 4-4. Three of Dempster’s first five innings were perfect and he retired 10 of 11 batters from the second to the fifth inning — totaling just 27 pitches.Soriano’s go-ahead RBI single off Mitchell Boggs (0-1) salvaged the Cubs’ eighth after the Cardinals turned an unusual 3-5-4 double play earlier in the inning. Berkman, the first baseman, fielded Starlin Castro’s popped-up bunt and threw to third to force David DeJesus, then David Freese’s relay to first was there in plenty of time to get Castro.The Cubs still had Tony Campana on second, and after La Hair was intentionally walked, Soriano’s first hit in 10 career at-bats against Boggs — seven of them strikeouts — gave them the lead.

“It wasn’t a scalded dog, it just got out of the infield,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “It’s just where we are right now, we’re just going to have to fight.”

Freese’s wild throw to first in a bid for a double play on another bunt allowed an insurance run to score in the ninth against Boggs. The Cardinals committed a season-high three errors, two in the ninth.Dempster entered with a majors-best 1.02 ERA, the lowest for a Cubs pitcher winless through the first five starts since the NL began tracking earned runs in 1912. He is 0-1 mainly because the Cubs have totaled just eight runs combined in his starts. The Cardinals got to Dempster after the Cubs’ four-run sixth, and the right-hander exited with a 1.74 ERA.LaHair’s two-run homer was the highlight of the Cubs’ four-run fifth, and he added a pair of singles and his first career steal in the seventh.

“I just wanted to slow things down,” LaHair said. “I came off a rough series and I just wanted to get back on track and hit the ball hard and help the team.”

Yadier Molina’s two-run double and Skip Schumaker’s tying RBI single were the key hits in the Cardinals’ four-run sixth. Schumaker is a career .431 hitter against Dempster, the best ever against the right-hander with a minimum of 30 at-bats.One of the early hits in the rally was Matt Holliday’s liner off the left-field wall that gave Soriano a perfect rebound to hold him to a single.

NOTES—The Cardinals’ Carlos Beltran, who entered with six homers in six games and a NL-leading 13, did not start due to knee soreness and Matheny wasn’t sure whether Beltran would be in the lineup for the finale of the two-game series Tuesday afternoon. Beltran is 6 for 12 against Dempster with a homer and three RBIs….The three-hit game was LaHair’s third of the season, matching his career best. He has reached base safely in 31 consecutive games and is 8 for 19 with eight RBIs against the Cardinals. Berkman has reached safely in a major-league high 33 games…..The Cubs have scored three or fewer runs when Dempster was in the game 13 times during his winless drought…..Rafael Furcal was 0 for 5, ending a 12-game hitting streak in which he batted .510 (25 for 49) with two homers.

MILWAUKEE—For the first time in more than a year, the Cubs finally won a game in Milwaukee.Ian Stewart hit a solo homer and scored the go-ahead run on an error, helping the Cubs beat the Brewers 8-2 Sunday to avoid a three-game sweep by their division rivals. The win snapped the Cubs’ 10-game losing streak at Miller Park dating to last April.

“They’ve kind of had our number here,” Cubs starter Jeff Samardzija said.

It was the fourth homer of the season for Stewart, who was hitless in his previous four games. Reed Johnson added a pinch-hit home run in the sixth for the Cubs.Samardzija was lifted after throwing 91 pitches in five innings. He gave up only one run on three hits and two walks.

“You’ve got to give their lineup some kudos,” Samardzija said. “They batted and made me throw a lot of pitches and kept fouling balls off. I felt all right. It was just one of those outings, we had to make some pitches and we had to work.”

The converted reliever had won two straight coming into Sunday’s game.

“He pitched well numbers-wise, but the ball was up, you could tell it wasn’t coming out of his hand like it can,” Cubs manager Dale Sveum said. “It was time to pinch-hit, time to take a shot.”

Struggling Cubs reliever Kerry Wood pitched a scoreless eighth, stranding Ryan Braun on third.

“Woody was really sharp,” Sveum said. “He did a great job.”

Michael Bowden finished the ninth and Shawn Camp (1-1) earned the win. Brewers starter Marco Estrada went six innings, giving up five hits and two runs, both on solo homers. Estrada didn’t allow a baserunner in the first three innings. Despite the loss, the Brewers were happy to take two of three from the Cubs after losing four straight series.

“We’re all upbeat,” Estrada said. “Obviously taking two out of three from anybody, it’s a boost.”

Milwaukee took a 1-0 lead in the fourth, when Braun reached on a walk, went to second on a single by Aramis Ramirez, took third on a sacrifice bunt by Corey Hart and scored on a sacrifice fly by Taylor Green. Ramirez went to third on a wild pitch, but Samardzija struck out Brooks Conrad to end the inning.Stewart’s homer tied the game in the fifth, and the Cubs took the lead on Johnson’s homer in the sixth.

“It’s always good to be able to affect the game like that,” Johnson said. “I knew that [Estrada] was up there pitch count-wise.”

Hart made a diving catch of a deep line drive by Starlin Castro later in the sixth, preventing an extra-base hit and possibly saving Milwaukee a run with speedy Tony Campana on first.Ramirez walked with two outs in the sixth and Hart doubled to put runners on second and third. Green then hit a grounder to shortstop and slid into first to beat the throw for an infield hit while Ramirez scored to tie the game. But the Cubs regained the lead in the seventh when Stewart doubled, then scored when shortstop Edwin Maysonet threw high to first on a grounder by Darwin Barney. Stewart took third, then was awarded home plate on the error for a 3-2 lead. Maysonet is getting playing time in the wake of a significant knee injury to starting shortstop Alex Gonzalez and had a grand slam on Saturday. Brewers manager Ron Roenicke didn’t seem particularly bothered by the error, saying the Brewers still were in the game at that point.

“We just can’t let it get away from us like it did,” Roenicke said.

A pair of Cubs errors — one by Stewart at third and the other by first baseman Bryan LaHair, who failed to catch a pickoff throw — put Cesar Izturis on third base with one out. But Barney threw out Izturis at the plate on a grounder to second by Norichika Aoki, and Jonathan Lucroy flied out to end the inning.The Cubs added a pair of runs in the eighth when Campana walked, went to second on a fielder’s choice and stole third. Brewers reliever Manny Parra walked LaHair, then unleashed a wild pitch that allowed Campana to score.Alfonso Soriano doubled to score LaHair, and Soriano took third on another wild pitch, but Stewart grounded out to end the inning.The Cubs added three runs in the ninth on an RBI double by Barney and RBI singles by Campana and Castro.Kameron Loe (2-1) took the loss.

NOTES—Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez, on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left hamstring, will go on a minor league rehab assignment this week….Aoki hit his first career triple in the third…..LaHair has reached base in 30 straight games, dating back to April 8.

The Kansas City Royals lost their starting pitcher in the first inning and were in the middle of a listless day at the plate before Johnny Giavotella turned it all around with one big swing.Giavotella hit a two-run double off Matt Thornton in the seventh inning and Jeff Francoeur belted his first homer of the season, leading the Royals to a 9-1 victory over the White Sox 9-1 on Sunday.Alcides Escobar went 3 for 3 with two walks for Kansas City, which broke it open with six runs in the ninth inning. Francoeur also had an RBI single and made a nice play in right field.Kansas City won for the fourth time in five games despite losing Danny Duffy to elbow tightness after just three batters. The left-hander recorded two outs before catcher Humberto Quintero saw him shake out his arm at the end of a throw, prompting a mound visit from manager Ned Yost and a trainer.Duffy was headed back to Kansas City on Sunday night and is scheduled for an MRI exam on Monday. He also experienced tightness in his elbow last month.Luis Mendoza came in and pitched 5 2-3 innings, keeping the Royals in the game while they struggled to score against Philip Humber. Mendoza (2-2) allowed one run and seven hits, struck out four and walked two.Humber broke out of his post-perfect game slump, pitching four-hit ball into the seventh inning, but the White Sox still lost for the fourth time in their last five home games.Humber walk Escobar with one out in the seventh, but got Humberto Quintero to foul out before he was replaced by left-hander Matt Thornton (1-3) with the White Sox clinging to a 1-0 lead.Jarrod Dyson then walked, and both runners moved up on a wild pitch. Giavotella followed with a double down the right-field line, giving the Royals the lead with his first hit of the season. He is 1 for 10 in four games since he was recalled from Triple-A Omaha on Wednesday.Humber struck out seven and walked three in his best start since his gem at Seattle on April 21. The 29-year-old right-hander was 0-2 with a 13.50 ERA in his previous three outings. Francoeur hit a drive to left off Nate Jones in the eighth for his first homer since Sept. 23 at U.S. Cellular Field. He also made a nice sliding catch on Brent Morel’s drive to the warning track in the fourth before nearly doubling off Tyler Flowers with a strong throw to first. The White Sox put runners on first and second with one out in the eighth but Kosuke Fukudome struck out and fellow pinch-hitter A.J. Pierzynski bounced out to end the inning.

NOTES—Chris Sale said he felt fine one day after his first start since May 1. “Everything went well today,” he said. Sale was moved to the bullpen because the team was concerned about his sore elbow, but he talked his way back into the rotation after an MRI came back clean. … Royals 3B Mike Moustakas (sore left hamstring) rested for the second straight day. “Just one more day,” Yost said. “Playing cautious with it.” … Ventura said he wants to keep Adam Dunn in the lineup when they face the crosstown Cubs at Wrigley Field next weekend, and he’s leaning toward playing the burly slugger in left. “Plus he’ll enjoy the fans out in the outfield,” Ventura said with a grin. “He likes to talk. He likes fan interaction.” … The Royals open a two-game series at AL West-leading Texas on Monday. LHP Bruce Chen (1-4) is scheduled to face Rangers RHP Scott Feldman (0-0). …The Sox host Detroit in the opener of a two-game series on Monday. White Sox LHP John Danks (2-4) is slated to face LHP Drew Smyly (1-0). … White Sox reliever Jesse Crain (oblique) threw a scoreless inning in his second rehab appearance with Triple-A Charlotte.

PHOENIX—It was bad enough that the Rush did not have there starting quaterback,had DB Vick Hall go down with a knee injury, and had a third quarter meltdown that caused a rare one-sided loss, but adding insult to injury, the Arizona Rattlers organization proved that they have no idea when they are doing, at least off the field. We never got our local TV webcast going since the people from the Rattlers and the U-Stream people could not get their act together. THEN there was this awful game as Nick Davila and the Rattlers (6-3) coasted in the second half to blow out the Rush (6-3) 77-43 Saturday night in front of 7,280 fans at the U.S. Airways Center.

The Rush started backup quarterback Luke Drone (28-51, 396 yards, 4 TD, 2 rush TD), who began the game strong by leading the Rush offense to a touchdown on the game’s opening possession. A 35-yard completion to Jared Perry was followed up by a muscling effort by Drone to rush in for the first of his two rushing scores. However, the increase in team confidence was short-lived as Arizona’s Trandon Harvey (153 all-purpose yards) ran through Mike Salerno on the kickoff and continued all the way to the end zone to tie the game at seven.The Rush continue to have problems covering kickoffs,and have been allowing oppopnents to start with way too good of field position. But now a TD to boot.

Drone continued to match Arizona QB Nick Davila (16-22, 213 yards, 6 TD) score for score in the first half outside of an interception by Rattlers JLB Kevin McCullough (5 tackles, 1 INT) who sprinted in for six points. Regardless, two touchdown passes and two rushing touchdowns highlighted a successful beginning by Luke Drone who led the Rush to 31 first half points.

Reception streaks marked the first two quarters for the Rush wideouts, as Marquis Hamilton (6 catches, 69 yards) caught four straight passes and Terrance Turner (11 catches, 101 yards, 1 TD) topped that with six straight catches during the second quarter.

The second half is where the mistakes unfortunately piled up for the Rush offense. A fumbled snap and two turnovers on downs allowed Nick Davila to take a four point Rattlers lead and build it up to 33 early in the fourth quarter. Rattlers WR Glen Fox (9 catches, 107 yards, 4 TD) was a key contributor, adding four touchdown receptions. The Rush couldn’t settle down as the Arizona lead climbed and didn’t score in the second half until the 10:01 mark of the fourth quarter.

Even though the game spiraled out of hand, WR Reggie Gray (6 catches, 132 yards, 2 TD) was able to snare two touchdown receptions and surpass WR Bobby Sippio for the all-time team record for career receiving touchdowns.Nice, but a small consolation on this ‘long’ night.

The Rattlers second half offensive boost was aided by the injury to Hall. Breaking up a touchdown pass, Hall fell awkwardly near the wall and would leave the game during the first minutes of the third quarter. First time AFL players Jack Williams and Brian Lainhart tried to acclimate to the secondary, but the seasoned Davila took advantage of the inexperience and kept picking on them with success.

The loss drops the Rush into a tie with the San Antonio Talons (6-3) for first place in the National Central Division. The 34-point loss is the worst defeat in the Bob McMillen coaching era and the largest for the Rush since 2006.

“This entire team takes responsibility for the loss, but we’ll come back from it as a team,” stated McMillen.

Drone’s 51 passing attempts are a new single-game team record, breaking the mark of 47 set in 2008.

The Rush goes into their bye-week and will return to action May 26th with a road contest in San Jose (7-2).

LES

Luke Hochevar allowed three hits in seven shutout innings Saturday night and the Kansas City Royals scored three first-inning runs off Chris Sale to beat the  White Sox 5-0. The Sox had blanked KC by the same 5-0 score Saturday night.Hochevar (3-3) cruised as the White Sox mustered only one real scoring threat against him all night. That came in the second on a walk and single by Alex Rios before Alexei Ramirez hit into a double play.Hochevar walked one and struck out five, and his strong effort came after two rough outings against Detroit and New York Yankees when he surrendered a total of 19 hits and 16 runs in 6 1/3 innings. Greg Holland pitched the eighth and Aaron Crow walked two in the ninth before completing the shutout.Sale (3-2), returning to the rotation after a one-appearance stint in the bullpen with a sore elbow, made his first start since May 1 and lasted five innings.

MILWAUKEE—Edwin Maysonet did not come to Miller Park on Saturday expecting to play. Milwaukee’s reserve infielder, who was called up from Triple-A Nashville six days ago, started at second base with Rickie Weeks sidelined by a sore wrist and hit his first career grand slam to help the Brewers beat the Cubs 8-2.Maysonet had only one career home run before Saturday — and it took him three years to get the second after hitting his first for Houston in May 2009 against Pittsburgh.Weeks was hit on the left wrist during the Brewers’ 13-inning win Friday. X-rays were negative and Weeks is listed as day to day.

“I’m just trying to get a good fastball that I can hit a line drive because I am not a home run hitter,” Maysonet said. “You can see my stats.”

Maysonet even got to take a curtain call in front of the sellout crowd, something that really made an impression on him.

“It was a great day,” he said. “You go out there and play hard and try to help your team win. It felt amazing.”

Maysonet’s teammates were also thrilled for him.

“It was awesome,” said catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who had two hits to continue his recent hot hitting streak. “It’s fun to see a guy like that get a hit and help us win.”

Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said Weeks would be back at second base on Sunday if he is feeling better, but he was very pleased with Maysonet’s offensive and defensive contributions.

“He had a really nice day,” Roenicke said. “He looked good in the field and had some really nice at-bats.”

Roenicke was also very pleased with the performance of starting pitcher Shaun Marcum (2-1), who gave up just one run on three hits and had six strikeouts. After giving up a run in the first he did not allow a runner past second, retiring 10 of the last 11 he faced.

“Marcum was very good today,” Roenicke said. “He was changing speeds well and it was fun to watch. He really messes with hitters with his speed changes and the way the ball moves.”

It was the second straight win for the Brewers, who beat the Cubs on Friday in a 5-hour game that ended just past midnight. Saturday’s start remained at noon because it was a nationally televised game.Chris Volstad (0-5) pitched six innings for the Cubs, giving up six runs on nine hits. It was the 18th straight start that Volstad did not record a victory. His last win was July 17, 2011, for Florida. The Cubs grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first inning when David DeJesus scored on Starlin Castro’s double-play groundout.The Brewers tied it in the bottom half as Nyjer Morgan came home when Ryan Braun got caught in a rundown while trying to steal second base.Milwaukee broke the game open in the sixth inning. Lucroy, who led off with a double, scored on Aramis Ramirez’s fielder’s choice. Corey Hart doubled to the left field wall and the Cubs walked Travis Ishikawa to load the bases.Maysonet then hit the second pitch from Volstad into the second level in left field.Tony Campana’s RBI double in the eighth cut it to 6-2 for the Cubs, but Norichika Aoki’s suicide squeeze and Jonathan Lucroy’s RBI single in the bottom of the inning pushed the Brewers ahead 8-2.

NOTES—The Cubs put Carlos Marmol on the 15-day disabled list after he suffered a strained right hamstring Friday. The Cubs called up Casey Coleman from Triple-A Iowa….Both teams were warned in the second inning after Marcum hit Alfonso Soriano with his first pitch. Braun had been drilled in the back by Volstad in the first inning….Bryan LaHair’s sixth inning single extended his streak of reaching base safely to 29 games, the longest in the NL this season.

MILWAUKEE — In a five-hour game filled with clutch plays, Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke couldn’t recall everything.But the Cubs dropped a tough one. Corey Hart hit an RBI single in the 13th inning to give the Brewers an 8-7 victory over the Cubs on Friday night.With the bases loaded and no outs, Hart sent Lendy Castillo’s first pitch back up the middle to end the game after 5 hours, 4 minutes. Castillo (0-1) plunked Rickie Weeks on the left hand and Ryan Braun in the elbow and back before Aramis Ramirez hit a flare single to right to bring Hart to the plate.

“Unfortunately, when Lendy came out, he hit a couple guys to start the inning,” Dale Sveum said. “It wasn’t in our favor to start with in that inning when he did that.”

Weeks went for an X-ray on the hand and wrist after the game.

“He got hit pretty good,” Roenicke said.

Hart also hit a two-run homer in the ninth to tie it at 7. Vinnie Chulk (1-0) pitched the final two innings for his first victory since Aug. 19, 2007, for San Francisco against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“It feels good,” Chulk said. “It’s nice to go out there and have the confidence to go out there and get stuff done.”

The wild game included the end of John Axford’s run of 49 consecutive saves for the Brewers, the fourth-longest streak in major league history.

Axford’s wife, Nicole, went into labor Friday night with the couple’s second child, so the Brewers closer had left Miller Park and was not available after the game. He did leave a handwritten note for the media on his chair at his locker that he signed: “Love, Ax.”

“I put my wife into contractions with my performance tonight,” he wrote. “The luck I’ve had in the past didn’t show up tonight. All I can do is begin another streak and keep my head up.”

There were 14 walks by Cubs pitchers, none intentional.Milwaukee ran out of position players and had to use starter Zack Greinke as a pinch hitter in the 11th with the potential winning run at second. The right-hander hit into an inning-ending double play.

“It was ugly a little bit,” Milwaukee catcher Jonathan Lucroy said of the game.

David DeJesus had a pinch-hit grand slam in the seventh, giving the Cubs a 4-1 lead. Lucroy hit a three-run double as the Brewers responded with four runs in the bottom half.The Brewers led 5-4 before the Cubs got to Axford for three runs in the ninth. DeJesus hit a tying triple with one out, driving in Ian Stewart and stopping Axford’s streak. DeJesus then scored on a wild pitch that struck out Starlin Castro, but bounced a couple feet in front of home plate, off catcher Lucroy and went back into fair territory.Alfonso Soriano added an RBI single to give the Cubs a 7-5 lead.Sveum went to Rafael Dolis to try to close it out, but the rookie walked Ramirez before Hart hit a drive to left on a full-count pitch.DeJesus’ first career pinch-hit homer gave the Cubs the lead in the seventh, and Cub bullpen gave it right back.Carlos Marmol walked Braun and allowed an RBI double to Ramirez. He then had a 1-2 count on Hart when he had to leave the game due to a strained right hamstring.Marmol was to return to Chicago for an MRI, and Sveum said the reliever might have to go on the disabled list.Michael Bowden then loaded the bases, and Lucroy’s hit gave Milwaukee the lead again.Milwaukee starter Randy Wolf pitched six scoreless innings, giving up six hits. He struck out five and walked three.Starter Matt Garza pitched five innings, giving up one run and three hits. He walked five and struck out three. Garza was pitching on 11 days’ rest after missing his last start due to flulike symptoms.

NOTES—DeJesus’ first career grand slam was on June 15, 2008, against Arizona when he played for Kansas City.It was the Cubs’ first pinch-hit grand slam since Mike Fontenot on May 7, 2010, at Cincinnati…..Castro has a 10-game hitting streak……Axford’s streak only counted regular-season games. He did blow a save in Game 5 of the NL division series against Arizona last year…..The record for consecutive saves is 84 by Eric Gagne of the Los Angeles Dodgers from Aug. 28, 2002, to July 3, 2004. Tom Gordon is second with 54 games and Jose Valverde is third with 50 games.

Adam Dunn shrugged off his horrendous first season with the White Sox by pretty much starting over. He’s seeing the ball well and approaching his at-bats the way he did through successful years with the Reds and Nationals. And so far, it’s working.Dunn hit his 11th homer to match his total from all of last year and the White Sox got strong pitching from Gavin Floyd during a 5-0 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Friday night.

“I’m definitely not where I want to be. This is one of those starts to a season I expect to do,” Dunn said. “There are a lot of things for me personally that I want to work on and get better.”

Dunn’s long drive to right off Felipe Paulino gave the White Sox the lead in the first. His sixth homer in his last 10 games was enough offense for Floyd (3-3), who allowed five hits, struck out five and walked two in 7 2-3 innings.Dunn also doubled and drew a pair of walks while ending a streak of 36 games in which he had struck out. He said he can’t worry about striking out, not the way he swings.

“To me, strikeouts, I get as mad as anyone. I’m not going to change my approach or what I’m going to do unless the situation dictates that,” Dunn said. “If it’s first inning two outs nobody on, I’m not going to get off my approach. I’m still trying to look for something to drive, whether it’s 2-0 or 0-2.”

Floyd escaped a bases-loaded situation in the second when he got Alcides Escobar and Humberto Quintero to hit back-to-back comebackers. Kansas City loaded the bases again in the eighth on three straight singles before Floyd struck out Billy Butler swinging on a full-count offering, ending his night after 116 pitches.Matt Thornton came in and fanned Eric Hosmer to end the inning. Hector Santiago pitched the ninth to complete the five-hitter.Floyd gave up five singles while bidding for his first shutout in six years. The 6-foot-6 right-hander has given up just four earned runs in his last 28 2/3 innings.

“I’m really honestly just trying to be aggressive with whatever I’m throwing,” Floyd said. “Try to let the team field the ball. That’s about it. I’m trying to simplify things, go out there and attack guys.”

The White Sox added a run in the third when Alejandro De Aza singled, stole second and scored on Gordon Beckham’s two-out single. Dunn then doubled, but a big inning was averted when Royals left fielder Alex Gordon made a nice diving catch on Paul Konerko’s sinking liner.Alex Rios’ two-out, two-run triple off the wall in right-center in the sixth made it 4-0 and chased Paulino (1-1).Paulino, who pitched six shutout innings against the Yankees in his first start of the season six days ago, allowed seven hits, struck out six and walked one.

NOTES—Chris Sale was returned to the White Sox rotation after a one-game stint in the bullpen. There was concern about soreness in his elbow, but an MRI came up clean and Sale (3-1) will pitch Saturday against RHP Luke Hochevar (2-3)….The Royals are hoping to activate reliever Greg Holland (rib cage) off the disabled list Saturday…..White Sox reliever Jesse Crain (oblique) threw a scoreless inning in an injury rehab assignment in the minor leagues.

PHILADELPHIA—Andre Iguodala hopped on the scorer’s table and played to the crowd as the catchy 76ers’ anthem blared in the arena.His teammates joined Iguodala and danced along as confetti fluttered around them.
“Number one, Philadelphia. Here they come, team of the year.”
Team of the first round, for sure. Eight years of going home empty in April is over. The Sixers at last had a reason to go wild.Iguodala made the go-ahead free throws with 2.2 seconds left and Philadelphia rallied for a 79-78 victory against the top-seeded Bulls in Game 6 on Thursday night, advancing to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs for the first time since 2003. The 76ers will face Boston, which beat Atlanta in six games, in the conference semifinals.
“I don’t know how we won this game,” coach Doug Collins said.
Collins and the Sixers hardly cared the series victory comes with an asterisk.The Bulls lost reigning MVP Derrick Rose to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee late in their Game 1 victory. Center Joakim Noah missed the last three games with a sprained left ankle.
“I thought we had more than enough to win with,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I’m disappointed in the loss but I’m not disappointed in our team.”
Without their stars, the Bulls found it tough to gut one out against the Sixers.Omer Asik missed two free throws for the Bulls with seven seconds left that would have given them a three-point lead. Iguodala grabbed the second miss, sprinted the length of the court, and was fouled by Asik on the driving layup. The Sixers put their season in the hands of one of the worst fourth-quarter free-throw shooters in the NBA. Collins was hunched over and his hands clasped with Iguodala at the line.He made both — and 20,362 fans went absolutely wild. Iguodala made nine of 10 free throws in the fourth quarter in this series after shooting 45 percent (23 of 51) from the line in the period this season.Iguodala changed his approach at the line this series. He started thinking what it would be like to teach his son how to shoot free throws.Dads don’t miss.
“I was like, `Son, this is how you shoot free throws,”‘ Iguodala said.
The Sixers are the fifth No. 8 seed to win a first-round series against a No. 1 seed. Memphis eliminated San Antonio last season, while Golden State (2007), New York (1999) and Denver (1994) also pulled off the rare feat.In his second season, Collins had already led the Sixers to their first winning season in seven years. Now, it’s on to the second round for the first time since Allen Iverson was an All-Star.The Sixers were smiling and mobbed each other as they dashed to the locker room to keep the party going.The Sixers were 2.2 seconds from playing Game 7 in the United Center, but NOOOOOOO.Now, they will pack their bags for the second round. They went 2-1 against the Celtics this season. Collins had a catch in his voice at the postgame podium and was joined by his 4-year-old grandson, Cooper. Collins rubbed his head and held back tears talking about faith, family and his guys in the locker room.
“I’m a Sixer for life,” he said.
Iguodala scored 20 points, and Jrue Holiday and Lou Williams each scored 14 for the Sixers who were outrebounded 56-33.Iguodala snagged the one that mattered.
“We win on a rebound. Something we don’t get all night,” a smiling Collins said.
The Sixers started 20-9 and led the Atlantic Division for the first half of the season until a late fade sent them tumbling toward eighth place.None of that matters now. Not even the fact the Bulls were down two stars. The 50-win Bulls are heading home early a year after they reached the conference finals.
“We were on the ropes and we battled,” forward Carlos Boozer said. “In the end, it came down to the very last second. So, it’s tough. We were right there, given everything, right there. It will be a long summer.”
Luol Deng had 19 points and 17 rebounds for the Bulls. Richard Hamilton scored 19 points and Boozer grabbed 13 rebounds.The Bulls had the lock-down defensive effort to nearly pull off the win. The signature series came in the fourth quarter when the Sixers wasted a forced turnover on the other end with a brutal offensive possession.Spencer Hawes missed a shot, Thaddeus Young missed two straight in the paint, and Hawes missed again against hands-up defense that sent the bench into a frenzy. Noah was the first one up pumping his fist and screaming encouragement for the fantastic defensive effort.Hawes fired an airball next time down and there was a collective groan from the crowd. Iguodala made up for a string of Sixers misses with a tying 3 that made it 70-all. The Sixers tried to get a laugh by showing the Bulls bench on “Kiss Cam.” Noah popped his warmup jacket toward the camera and the crowd booed the oversized “Chicago” on the big screen. Noah was one of the top offensive rebounders in the league and the Bulls figured on missing his presence in the middle. Led by Deng and Boozer, the Bulls instead went out and controlled the boards, holding a 49-29 edge early in the fourth.
NOTES—The Sixers scored a measly 26 first-half points in their Game 5 loss. They led Game 6 48-40 at halftime….The Sixers started 12 of 20 from the field and finished the half at 50 percent. They shot a season-low 32 percent in Game 5 and failed to shoot better than 40 percent in three other games…..The Bulls had a 3-pointer taken off the board right before the first half.

8-over-1 NBA Playoff upsets
Year    Upset

———————————
1994    Nuggets over Sonics
1999    Knicks over Heat
2007    Warriors over Mavericks
2011    Grizzlies over Spurs
2012    76ers over Bulls

Andre Iguodala scores 20 points, including the final two of the game with 2.2 seconds remaining to propel Philly past the Bulls and into Round 2.