Mike Tauchman hits walk-off homer in Cubs’ win

CHICAGO — This week gave Cubs manager Craig Counsell his first taste of the crosstown rivalry with the White Sox. After a wild game on Tuesday night to open the series, Counsell described the clash as feeling “bigger” than most games.

On Wednesday night, the Cubs and Sox waged another back-and-forth battle at Wrigley Field, where the North Siders prevailed in a 7-6 walk-off win to sweep the two-game set. Mike Tauchman played hero, launching a game-winning homer off righty Michael Kopech to send the fans in the old ballpark into a frenzy.

The White Sox ran to a 5-1 lead thanks largely to a four-run push in the fourth inning. The South Siders sent nine batters to the plate against Cubs righty Jameson Taillon, who allowed six singles in the frame, including run-scoring hits to Oscar Colás, Korey Lee, Lenyn Sosa and Nicky Lopez.

Taillon also allowed a leadoff homer to Corey Julks on the first pitch of the game, accounting for the five runs on the righty’s five-inning line for the Cubs.

The Cubs started to chip away with two runs in the fifth, when Dansby Swanson scored on a groundout and Tauchman later trotted home on a balk by Erick Fedde. The North Siders then grabbed a 6-5 lead in a three-run seventh, culminating in a go-ahead, RBI single off the bat of Ian Happ.

In the eighth inning, Paul DeJong belted a leadoff homer off Cubs righty Hayden Wesneski, pulling the game into a 6-6 tie. The North Side bullpen held the line from there, putting the Cubs in position to walk away with the win in the ninth.