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Sampson, Scott lead Astros past Cubs

Apr 11, 2007 - 12:20 AM CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Chris Sampson gave the Houston Astros a surprising lift. Jason Marquis did not fare as well for the mistake-prone Chicago Cubs.

Sampson allowed three hits over five scoreless innings and Luke Scott had three RBI as the Astros held on for a 4-2 victory over the Cubs.

Making his fourth major league start, Sampson (1-0) walked one and struck out three. He was replaced prior to the sixth inning due to a strained calf muscle and is considered day-to-day.

"Coming out of the box I kind of tweaked a calf," Sampson said. "In the bottom of the fifth I had to cover first base and that bothered me. I told Phil (Garner) when he came out that I could pitch but I couldn't really run, so he decided not to chance it and turned the game over to the bullpen."

Signed to a three-year, $21 million contract as a free agent, Marquis allowed four runs - three earned - and four hits in five innings. The righthander walked four and struck out three.

"I thought I threw some quality pitches," Marquis said. "The pitch to Scott was out off the plate and he hit it with his arms extended, (Lance) Berkman's was a broken-bat so I thought I made some quality pitches. They just did a good job of hitting them."

Marquis hardly was helped by his defense as the Cubs committed three errors - all by former Gold Glove-winning shortstop Cesar Izturis.

Alfonso Soriano, inked by the Cubs to an eight-year contract worth $136 million in the offseason, also had his first gaffe of the season in center field.

Soriano misjudged a line double off the bat of Scott in the first inning that went for a two-run double. Houston scored three times in the frame.

"It was a hard line drive and it was difficult to tell that if I went straight back, I could have caught it or not," Soriano said. "Maybe if I had a better jump, who knows? It's just real tough to tell."

Izturis' error on a grounder by Craig Biggio led to Scott's run-scoring groundout in the fifth, which allowed the Astros to grab a 4-0 lead.

"You can't blame the field that's just making excuses," Izturis said. "You know it is just part of the game, you come back tomorrow, forget about today and get a W."

Despite the miscues, the Cubs attempted to rally from a 4-0 ninth-inning deficit against new Astros closer Dan Wheeler.

Wheeler gave up two runs and four hits in the ninth. But with two runners on, he got pinch hitter Matt Murton to pop out to first to end it.

"I told the GM (Jim Hendry) today that if it stays 40 degrees, we will have trouble winning ballgames," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said.

Derrek Lee and Cliff Floyd each had two hits for Chicago, which has its first three-game losing streak under Piniella.