Braves 5, Cubs 1
Ramiro Pena snapped a tie with a two-run sixth-inning single, and Tim Hudson pitched into the seventh inning as host Atlanta finished a three-game sweep of Chicago.
Pena finished with two hits and Hudson (1-0) added an RBI single in addition to 6 2/3 innings of one-run, three-hit pitching as the Braves capped their season-opening homestand at 5-1. Hudson struck out seven and walked two, throwing 66 of his 102 pitches for strikes.
Chicago starter Jeff Samardzija (1-1) struck out 13 hitters in 5 2/3 innings, but could not hold a 1-0 lead. Pena doubled in the fifth and scored the tying run on Samardzija’s wild pitch. In the sixth, Pena lined a single to right off Samardzija, scoring Dan Uggla and Juan Francisco to put the Braves ahead 3-1.
David DeJesus led of the game with a double to right for the Cubs. Anthony Rizzo brought home DeJesus on a groundout to give Chicago a 1-0 advantage. Starlin Castro finished 2-for-4 for the Cubs, who finished 2-4 on their season-opening six-game road trip.
Hudson settled down after DeJesus’ double, retiring 16 of the next 18 hitters. Dan Uggla added a solo homer to center in the eighth.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Atlanta placed 1B Freddie Freeman on the disabled list before Sunday’s game with a strained right oblique muscle. Freeman is hitting .417 with a homer and seven RBIs in five games. … Chicago manager Dale Sveum announced Kyuji Fujikawa will replace Carlos Marmol as closer. Marmol gave up ninth-inning homers Saturday to B.J. Upton and Justin Upton. … The Braves swept Chicago for the first time since 2006.