Rodrigo Lopez escaped to the Cubs’ air-conditioned locker room between innings Monday night to change undershirts, dry off his soggy jersey and, most important, cool off.
The heat index was in the mid-to-upper 90s at Wrigley Field, and it got to Phillies starter Roy Halladay, who had to leave the game in the fifth because of the heat. Lopez, on the other hand, made his third straight quality start, giving up one run on five hits over 6 2/3 innings in the Cubs’ 6-1 win, which featured homers by Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Pena — the 250th of his career.
“A lot of Gatorade,” Lopez said of how he stayed hydrated. “I came in to the locker room to get fresh air.”
Lopez (2-2) made his fifth start for the Cubs since being acquired from Atlanta on May 26. Since giving up six runs in his first start, Lopez has a 1.85 ERA in his last four.
“That’s been a big life in the midst of [the Cubs' pitching struggles], so good for him,” Cubs manager Mike Quade said.
Halladay (11-4) was the National League starter in last week’s All-Star Game but left in the middle of Ramirez’s at-bat in the fifth inning after giving up a leadoff single. He repeatedly bent over and grabbed his knees on the mound, and he walked off it for a minute after the Phillies’ trainer came out to examine him.
“You could tell the heat was getting to him a little bit,” Philadelphia pitching coach Rich Dubee said. “I talked to him after the fourth, and he said he was somewhat lightheaded, but he wanted to go back out there. Of course, he went out there in the fifth and just had a tough time staying focused and seeing the signs. He was dehydrated, and he’s doing much better now.”
The right-hander went four-plus innings, his shortest outing since he went three innings June 12, 2009, against Florida. He gave up three runs on seven hits and a walk. The Phillies had won in each of the past 10 starts made by Halladay, who lost his streak of going at least six innings in 63 consecutive road starts. It was the longest such streak by a pitcher since Hall of Famer Walter Johnson did it in 82 straight road games from 1911-15.
Halladay gave up a run in the first on Ramirez’s 12th homer in his past 23 games. The homer was Ramirez’s eighth this year on the first pitch of an at-bat, best in the Major Leagues, and his 17th overall. Ramirez has 25 RBIs in his past 23 games.
“He’s just been unbelievable,” Quade said. “To get us on the board that way … and we’ve talked about Ramirez and Carlos Pena and how important the long ball is. When you get a night like this, it’s pretty conducive to home runs. If you get it elevated, it’s going to go.”
Two innings later, Ramirez just missed a grand slam, hitting a sacrifice fly to the right-field warning track. Pena followed with an RBI single to make it 3-0.
“Aramis is something else,” Pena said. “He’s one of the best hitters I’ve ever been around. I try to stick by him to learn from him.”
The game was on the line in the sixth when Lopez faced Ryan Howard with two on and one out. Howard hit a high fly down the left-field line that was dropped by Alfonso Soriano in foul territory for an error, the Cubs’ second of the game and 84th of the season, the most in the Majors. But Howard flied out to center for the second out, and Lopez struck out Raul Ibanez to escape the threat.
Lopez got a standing ovation when he was removed in the seventh.
“It’s priceless,” he said. “That moment will stay with me forever.”
Lopez has bounced around since coming back from Tommy John surgery in 2007. He pitched in seven games for the Phillies in 2009 and had a 5.70 ERA. Last year, he started 33 games for Arizona and had a 5.00 ERA. But he went 6-1 with a 2.59 ERA to start the season with Atlanta’s Triple-A affiliate in Gwinnett, then carried that over to the Cubs.
“It’s been tough since I got surgery,” he said. “Trying to come back to the big leagues has been tough every year. Came here, big-market team and tried to stay with the team. I think I’ve handled it pretty well. I feel proud of myself, but this is not the end. I want to continue doing it.”