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NEW YORK -- Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon thought his team played a pretty good ballgame. Starter John Lackey was not as forgiving.Getting beats one thing. When you feel like you kind of gave one away, let one go, thats a different kind of loss, Lackey said.Yoenis Cespedes socked a colossal home run , Jeurys Familia pitched out of a huge jam in the ninth inning and rookie replacement Brandon Nimmo keyed a three-run rally in the seventh that sent the New York Mets past the Cubs 4-3 on Thursday night in their first meeting since last years NL Championship Series.Chicago put runners on second and third with no outs against Familia, who got two strikeouts and a bases-loaded popup for his 27th save -- most in the majors. He screamed and pumped his arms repeatedly after Javier Baez popped up to end it.I think our last three at-bats were a little bit too anxious, said Kris Bryant, who fanned for the first out in the ninth. But hes supposed to do that. Thats why hes the closer on their team.Baezs throwing error at second base allowed Nimmo to score the go-ahead run, and the Mets overcame a 3-0 deficit to stop their four-game slide.New York, which swept Chicago last October to reach the World Series, had lost nine straight regular-season games to the Cubs dating to August 2014.We made one mistake on defense, but otherwise it was a pretty good game of baseball, Maddon said.Bryant hit a two-run homer for the major league-best Cubs. Baez added a solo shot off rookie Steven Matz before a scuffling Mets lineup finally pushed back in the opener of a four-game series between banged-up teams.Cespedes launched a solo drive in the sixth that soared into the third deck in left field, two or three rows deep.Travis dArnaud singled with one out in the seventh, chasing Lackey. Joel Peralta (0-1) walked slumping pinch-hitter Alejandro De Aza before Nimmo, starting for injured outfielder Curtis Granderson, singled on the ninth pitch of a gritty at-bat for his first career RBI.The walk to De Aza was the tough one, Maddon said. It was just one of those nights.The throw to third allowed Nimmo to reach second, and the Mets had two runners in scoring position. With the Cubs playing their infield in, Neil Walker hit an RBI chopper toward the middle against reliever Pedro Strop.Figuring he had no play at the plate, Baez threw to third in an attempt to get Nimmo. But the wide throw ticked off Bryants glove and rolled into foul territory, letting Nimmo cross the plate with a big smile on his face.KB was backpedaling to the base. It was tough for him to catch it, because he was moving the other way, Baez said. I went to third because I didnt think I had a chance at first, either.Erik Goeddel (1-0) struck out two in 1 2/3 hitless innings for the win.LONG BALLCespedes drive came off the bat at 110 mph and would have traveled 441 feet unimpeded, according to MLBs Statcast. ESPN Stats & Info had it at 466 feet. Either way, it was thought to be the first home run to reach the third deck at Citi Field, which opened in 2009. I really think that got the guys energized, Mets manager Terry Collins said.TRAINERS ROOMCubs RF Jason Heyward was rested against the left-hander with Chicago in the middle of playing 24 straight days. He has a little soreness on his left side but certainly could have started, Maddon said. Heyward pinch-hit in the eighth and shattered his bat on a weak grounder back to the mound against lefty Jerry Blevins, stranding two runners. ... INF Tommy La Stella (strained right hamstring) went 1 for 4 in his third rehab game for Triple-A Iowa and is getting close to coming off the DL. RHP Adam Warren started that game for Iowa against Round Rock and threw 73 pitches over five innings, his second Triple-A tuneup as he gets stretched out in the minors to make a spot start for Chicago next Tuesday or Wednesday at home against Cincinnati.UP NEXTCubs RHP Jason Hammel (7-4, 2.58 ERA) starts Friday night against RHP Jacob deGrom (3-4, 2.67), who won Game 3 of the NLCS last year at Wrigley Field. The 2015 All-Star is 0-4 in 10 starts since beating San Francisco on April 30. Chicago has lost Hammels last four outings after going 9-2 in his first 11. He is 0-3 with a 4.91 ERA in five career starts against the Mets, but all those losses came before 2013.Luis Gonzalez Jersey . After Martin Skrtel put the Reds in front from close range at Stamford Bridge after only four minutes, Hazard hit back in the 17th with a superb strike. Etoo gave Jose Mourinhos team a decisive lead from Oscars back pass in the 34th. Abraham Almonte Diamondbacks Jersey .Gather a group of friends, or find a league to join online, draft your team, set your lineup and compete in a number of different formats. http://www.diamondbackssale.com/diamondbacks-luis-gonzalez-jersey/ . That gave fans outside Joe Louis Arena another chance to ask for autographs from the 19-year-old whose stardom in the NHL has arrived earlier than most expected. Taijuan Walker Jersey . Spiller left Week 3s 27-20 loss to the New York Jets with a thigh injury, but fully practiced with the team all week and expects to be ready to go on Sunday. Andrew Chafin Jersey . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively.DENVER -- A couple of bullpen sessions over the All-Star break helped Jeff Samardzija resolve the mechanical problems in his pitching delivery that had been bothering him much of the season. The refinements were evident Friday night when Samardzija pitched effectively into the eighth inning, and Anthony Rizzo doubled home the go-ahead run in the seventh in Chicago Cubs 3-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. "We changed a couple things with my mechanics, kept me on line a little more," Samardzija said. "But if you had asked me all year how I felt about my mechanics, I would say they were off, to tell you the truth, until today. So, Im really excited to stop making adjustments and really just working on pitch selection and pitch location. As a pitcher, sometimes those things happen. It clicks for you and you go from there." Alfonso Soriano added a home run, his 17th, and Junior Lake, recalled by Chicago from Triple-A Iowa before the game, had three hits in his major league debut, including a double in his first career at-bat. Darwin Barney drove in an insurance run with a ninth-inning double. Samardzija (6-9) kept the Rockies in check by limiting them to one run on four hits in 7 1-3 innings, bouncing back after tying a career high by allowing nine runs in a 13-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels on July 10. "Tonight, the guy was nasty and dominated," Michael Cuddyer said. "Youve got to tip your hat every once in a while. He pitched really well." Samardzija was able to paint the corners with his fastball and kept the Rockies off balance with a devastating splitter. "It was so good tonight," Cubs manager Dale Sveum said. "It was diving out of the strike zone so much you couldnt even get swings at it sometimes." Samardzija walked three and struck out six, including striking out the side in the seventh, when he set down All-Stars Carlos Gonzalez, Troy Tulowitzki and Cuddyer. "I was working both sides of the plate with my fastball, really established it for a strike, and when you do that, it makes your splitter that much better," he said. "Just being aggressive helped out a lot." Added Cuddyer: "He throws 96 mph with an 83-mph splitter that was on tonight. He didnt walk many guys until the very end.&qquot; D.dddddddddddd. LeMahieu doubled off Kevin Gregg to start the ninth and advanced to third on a ground out by Gonzalez. Tulowitzki walked before Gregg induced Cuddyer to ground into a game-ending double play for his 18th save in 20 chances. Chicago regained the lead in the seventh, sparked by Cody Ransoms two-out walk off reliever Edgmer Escalona (1-3). Rizzo followed by lining a double down the right field line. He was thrown out trying for third but not before Ransom had crossed the plate with the go-ahead run. Soriano gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead when he homered to start the fourth inning, driving Jorge De La Rosas 0-1 pitch into the stand of evergreens beyond the centre field wall. It was his 389th homer, tying him with Hall of Famer Johnny Bench for 57th on the career list. Dexter Fowler evened the score when he led off the Rockies half of the fourth with a homer, his 11th. He drove Samardzijas first offering beyond the centre field wall in almost the same spot as Sorianos. The Rockies had a chance to go in front after Tulowitzki and Cuddyer hit consecutive two-out singles. With Todd Helton up, a low pitch skipped past Welington Castillo, but the ball bounced off the backstop and the catcher corralled it, making an off-balance throw to Samardzija covering at home just in time to tag out Tulowitzki, who had broken for the plate. De La Rosa went six innings and allowed one run on five hits. Lake, an oufielder-infielder, filled the roster spot of outfielder Brian Bogusevic, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a left hamstring strain. Sveum said he was extremely encouraged by Lakes exceptional debut. "Since Ive been here, thats the first kid thats come up and looked like a major leaguer, aggressive, aggressive on the bases," Sveum said. "He did a great job and swung the bat really nice." NOTES: The home run was Sorianos 15th extra-base hit since June 28, tops in the NL in that span. ... Fowlers home run was his first since hitting two against the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 2. ... The Rockies opened the second half with a 10-game homestand, while Cubs began a 10-game road trip. ... Rockies right-hander Juan Nicasio (5-4) is set to pitch Saturday nights game against the Cubs. Hell be opposed by RHP Carlos Villanueva (2-5). ' ' '