Sosa Homers, Cubs Tie Marlins 8-8 in 9th

Sammy Sosa came through when the Chicago Cubs needed him most, hitting a two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth Tuesday night to tie Game 1 of the NL championship series at 8 and force extra innings.

It was a dramatic turnaround at Wrigley Field, where just moments earlier, the raucous crowd of 39,567 was silent, certain they were witnessing more postseason misery. But Sosa hit quite possibly his biggest home run since he was chasing Mark McGwire in 1998. It was the first postseason homer of his career.

Kenny Lofton doubled to right with one out. One batter later, Sosa sent a 1-1 pitch from Florida closer Ugueth Urbina flying toward left field. And Sosa knew it was gone as soon as it left his bat, doing his trademark home run hop. The fans exploded, roaring with delight as the ball went into a crowd of fans on Waveland Avenue.

The Marlins had taken the lead in the top of the ninth thanks to some poor defense by the Cubs. Pinch-hitter Todd Hollandsworth hit a one-out double, and Juan Pierre drew a walk off closer Joe Borowski. Luis Castillo then hit a grounder to second baseman Mark Grudzielanek.

Grudzielanek grabbed the ball and tried to tag Pierre, who was running to second. But Grudzielanek bobbled the ball, and umpires ruled he didn’t have control of it. The error loaded the bases, and Ivan Rodriguez continued his clutch hitting in the postseason with a two-run single.

Rodriguez, who also hit a three-run homer in the third inning, is 8-for-22 with two homers and 11 RBIs in the playoffs.

Miguel Cabrera and Juan Encarnacion also homered in the third off Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano, setting an NLCS record.

But Alex Gonzalez bailed out Zambrano and the Cubs with a two-run homer in the sixth that tied the game at 6.

After tagging Florida starter Josh Beckett for four runs in the first inning, the Cubs didn’t get another hit until the fifth. But with two outs in the sixth inning, Randall Simon doubled down the right-field line.

That brought up Gonzalez, who sent Beckett’s 2-1 pitch over the fence in right field. Fans knew it was gone before it cleared the fence, giving Gonzalez a standing ovation. And they refused to sit down until he came back out for a curtain call.

It was Gonzalez’s second homer of the postseason.

Moises Alou also homered for the Cubs, who are trying to end nearly a century of frustration and futility. They haven’t won a World Series since 1908, and are in the postseason for just the fourth time since 1945, their last World Series appearance.

Fans gave the Cubs a long, loud ovation as they took the field, almost shaking the stands venerable Wrigley Field. And the Cubs soon gave them even more to cheer about.

After Lofton drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the first, Grudzielanek hit a liner to center. Pierre came in, as if he thought the ball was going to drop in front of him, only to realize it was going to go over his head. He tried to put on the brakes but slipped on the grass.

Though he scrambled up quickly, the ball landed behind him and rolled all the way to the wall in center field for an RBI triple. One out later, Alou hit a monster shot that cleared the fence in left and was last seen bouncing down Waveland Avenue.

It was the fourth career postseason homer for Alou, who was the catalyst of Florida’s offense when the Marlins won the World Series in 1997. Alou had three homers and nine RBIs as the Marlins beat the Cleveland Indians; he had 15 RBIs during the 1997 postseason.

Aramis Ramirez followed with another triple, also to center. Pierre appeared to jump too soon, and then braced himself when he realized he was about to slam into the brick wall. The ball hit the wall beside him.

One out later, Gonzalez hit a liner to shallow left. Jeff Conine slid and tried to trap the ball, but it bounced over his glove for an RBI double as the Cubs took a 4-0 lead.

But the Marlins are no strangers to rallies, coming from behind in all three of their victories over San Francisco in the division series.

After managing only two hits in the first two innings, they locked in on Zambrano in the third. With one out, Pierre tripled over Sosa’s head, and Castillo walked.

Zambrano’s first pitch to Rodriguez was a ball, prompting a visit to the mound from Cubs pitching coach Larry Rothschild. But Rothschild had barely taken a seat back in the dugout when Rodriguez sent a 1-0 pitch to left for a three-run homer.

Zambrano struck out Derrek Lee, but Cabrera and Encarnacion followed with solo shots to give Florida a 5-4 lead. The three homers came in a span of just 13 pitches.

Zambrano got in more trouble in the sixth. Cabrera and Encarnacion led off with singles, and advanced on a passed ball. Conine then hit a sac fly to center, scoring Cabrera and putting Florida ahead 6-4.

The clubs also combined for four triples in the first three innings, an NLCS record.