9/17 Lopez, LaHair, Campy & Barney

Rodrigo Lopez hopes he’s doing enough to get a job next year. Lopez struck out a season-high seven batters over six innings, only the second time in his past 10 starts he’s lasted at least six innings, in the Cubs’ 2-1 win over the Astros on Saturday. When left fielder Alfonso Soriano caught Jimmy Paredes’ fly ball to end the Astros sixth, Lopez raised his arms touchdown-style as he came off the field.

“I didn’t know if I was going to get the win or not, but I was like, ‘OK, I made it,’” he said.

Said Houston’s Clint Barmes on Lopez: “He hit his spots, he attacked the zone and threw the ball pretty well. That’s nothing surprising out of him, but I mean he didn’t miss very many pitches over the heart of the plate and that made him pretty effective today.”

* Bryan LaHair hit a tie-breaking home run in the fourth that proved to be the game winner. He’s now hit safely in 10 of his 11 games with a plate appearance, and is 13-for-30 (.433).

“It’s part of my plan — I’m trying to get good pitches to hit and hit them hard like I’ve been doing all year,” LaHair said.

If you count the franchise-record 38 homers he hit at Triple-A Iowa, LaHair now has 40 for the season.

“When he squares it up, it’s pretty impressive,” Mike Quade said. “He’s a big strong kid. We like what we’ve seen so far, that’s for sure.”

* Tony Campana swiped his 22nd base of the year. That leads the Cubs and is the most by a Cubs player since Ryan Theriot stole 22 in 2008. It’s the most by a Cubs rookie since Ced Landrum’s 27 in 1991.

* Darwin Barney notched his 45th multi-hit game, tops among all rookies.

– Carrie Muskat