March 06--The summary
The Cubs opened the exhibition season with split-squad games in which they couldn't hold leads. At Mesa, Mike Olt staked the Cubs to a 2-0 lead on a home run off Barry Zito, but the A's held the Cubs to three hits over the final seven innings. At Scottsdale, Kyle Schwarber hit a grand slam in the second off Ryan Vogelsong, but the Giants rallied for five runs in the eighth.
At the plate
Javier Baez took a ball and a strike before flying to left against Zito in the second. Billy McKinney, acquired in the Jeff Samardzija trade, hit a home run off Giants reliever Hunter Strickland.
On the mound
Left-hander Travis Wood, battling for the fifth spot in the rotation, changed speeds effectively and retired all six batters he faced.
In the field
Left fielder Chris Coghlan made a shoe-top catch of a sinking line drive by the A's Billy Butler in the second.
Key number
16. Hits collected by the Cubs in their split-squad games.
The quote
Wood : "We're definitely going to play in October. I feel like it right now."
Up next
Vs. Reds at 2:05 p.m. Friday at Sloan Park; LH Tony Cingrani vs. LH Jon Lester.
