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Edmonds homers twice in fourth inning to power Cubs

Jun 21, 2008 - 10:35 PM CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Jim Edmonds is having little trouble adjusting to the Friendly Confines.

Edmonds homered twice to highlight a nine-run fourth inning Saturday as the Chicago Cubs extended their home winning streak to 13 games with an 11-7 victory over the crosstown Chicago White Sox.

Mike Fontenot hit a solo homer and Aramis Ramirez belted a three-run blast as part of the Cubs' uprising in the fourth, which sent the Wrigley Field faithful into a frenzy.

Edmonds started the Cubs' biggest inning in over four years with a leadoff homer the opposite way into the left field bleachers. Fontenot followed with a shot of his own into the bleachers.

After Edmonds and Fontenot went deep, the Cubs did plenty of other damage against Jose Contreras (6-6), who failed to make it out of the inning in his shortest outing of the season.

Kosuke Fukudome, Eric Patterson and Derrek Lee all added consecutive RBI singles before Ramirez, who won Friday's game with a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth, sent a blast over the left field wall to give the Cubs a 9-4 lead and end Contreras' afternoon.

"It happened so quickly," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "Jose's been pitching well all year. Every time Jose threw the ball around the plate, they hit the ball hard. You don't make your pitches, that's going to be the results."

Edmonds greeted reliever Boone Logan with another shot into the left field seats, capping the Cubs' biggest inning since they scored 10 times against the St. Louis Cardinals in the fourth inning on June 10, 2004.

Edmonds became the first Cub to homer twice in an inning since Mark Bellhorn accomplished the feat against Milwaukee on August 29, 2002. The Cubs also hit four homers in an inning for the first time since April 27, 2000 against Houston.

"It was great being part of this today," Edmonds said. "I thought as a team we had a good approach to Contreras. Personally, I saw the ball well and was able to put a few good swings on his pitches."

Released earlier this season by the San Diego Padres, Edmonds has helped fill a major void for Chicago in center field. The veteran is batting .310 (23-for-74) with four homers and 16 RBI in 25 games since joining baseball's best team.

The offensive explosion for the Cubs came on the same day they placed ace Carlos Zambrano on the 15-day disabled list with a shoulder strain.

Patterson, who was recalled from the minors to take Zambrano's roster spot, had three hits and an RBI.

"It was great being part of this today," Patterson said. "I thought as a team we had a good approach to Contreras said. Personally, I saw the ball well and was able to put a few good swings on his pitches."

Sparked by their offense, the Cubs have reeled off 13 straight wins at Wrigley Field for the first time since the 2001 season. The Cubs are a major league-best 31-8 at home.

"We just play well in this park," Ramirez said. "Our approach is good. We don't try to lift balls out of the park or hit home runs. We just try to hit the ball hard and work the count."

While their offense carried the day, Jason Marquis (6-3) did enough on the mound to win his fourth straight start.

Marquis gave up five runs and eight hits in seven innings, walking one and striking out four.

"Everything went well today," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. "(Jason) Marquis pitched good enough for us. The offense was explosive.

After Bobby Howry ran into trouble, Kerry Wood came on to record the final out with two runners on for his 19th save.

Red-hot Jermaine Dye reached Marquis for a two-run homer in the first inning and Dewayne Wise added a two-run blast in the fourth, giving the the White Sox a 4-1 lead. For Dye, it was his fourth homer in the last three games.

Contreras was ripped for nine runs and 10 hits in 3 1/3 innings. The Cuban righthander saw his ERA rise from 3.24 to 3.96.

"In 90-plus innings, I gave up four home runs," Contreras said. "Today, I gave up three. I've never had an inning like that in my career."

While the Cubs have excelled at home, the White Sox lost their eighth straight road game.