Pete Crow-Armstrong powers Cubs to 6-2 win over White Sox for 3-game sweep at Wrigley

CHICAGO (AP) — Pete Crow-Armstrong tripled, doubled and scored two runs, and the Chicago Cubs completed a three-game sweep of the crosstown White Sox at Wrigley Field with a 6-2 victory on Sunday.

Nico Hoerner doubled twice and had an RBI as the Cubs extended their franchise-record winning streak against the South Siders to eight games. Seiya Suzuki drove in two runs, and Michael Busch and Vidal Brujan each had two hits and an RBI.

The NL Central-leading Cubs improved to 75-74 in the series and handed a fourth straight defeat to the White Sox, who are last in the AL Central.

Miguel Vargas his his third homer of the series for the White Sox, taking Colin Rea deep to left-center in the fourth inning. Drew Pomeranz (1-0) relieved Ray with one out in the sixth and finished the frame.

Jonathan Cannon (2-5) allowed four runs, three earned, in five-plus innings. Cannon retired 13 straight before Brujan singled in the sixth, when the Cubs scored three times to take a 4-1 lead.

Brujan raced home with the go-ahead run in the sixth on a play that withstood a video review.

After Crow-Armstrong doubled down the right-field line, Brujan beat shortstop Chase Meidroth’s throw to the plate to make it 2-1. Kyle Tucker reached second on Brooks Baldwin's dropped fly, and then Suzuki’s sacrifice fly and Busch’s RBI single made it 4-1.

Crow-Armstrong is 11 for his last 21, raising his average to .290. He’s reached base in 15 straight games.

RHP Davis Martin (2-4, 3.65 ERA) faces Seattle RHP Luis Castillo (3-3, 3.65) when the White Sox return to the South Side on Monday.

Cubs RHP Ben Brown (3-3, 4.75) faces Marlins RHP Edward Cabrera (0-1, 5.52) at Miami on Monday.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Chicago White Sox's Miguel Vargas celebrates with teammates after hitting a solo home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Sunday, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong reacts after scoring on a sacrifice fly by Seiya Suzuki, of Japan, during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Sunday, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago White Sox's Chase Meidroth reacts after he was tagged out by Chicago Cubs catcher Carson Kelly during the first inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Sunday, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago Cubs' Vidal Bruján, bottom, scores on a one-run double by Pete Crow-Armstrong past Chicago White Sox catcher Edgar Quero, right, during the sixth inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Sunday, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong runs after hitting a one-run double during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Sunday, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

ADEN, Yemen (AP) — Southern separatists in Yemen said Saudi warplanes carried out new airstrikes Saturday on a military camp in the port city of Mukalla and other areas where their forces are stationed, as Saudi-backed forces moved to retake the city.

There was no immediate Saudi comment. It was the latest direct intervention by Saudi Arabia, which in recent weeks has bombed the separatist Southern Transitional Council, or STC, and struck what is said was a shipment of Emirati weapons destined for it.

The Saudi strikes hit Barshid Brigade camp west of Mukalla in Hadramout, one of two governorates seized last month by the STC, according to the group’s AIC satellite news channel.

Yemen has been engulfed in civil war for more than a decade, with Iran-backed Houthi rebels controlling much of the north and a Saudi-led coalition supporting the internationally recognized government in the south. But coalition member the United Arab Emirates also supports the separatists, who call for South Yemen to secede again from Yemen.

The latest Saudi strikes came a day after the separatist movement announced a constitution for an independent nation in the south.

Last month, the STC moved into Hadramout and Mahra and seized an oil-rich region. That pushed out allies of the Saudi-supported National Shield forces, a group in the anti-Houthi coalition.

After Saudi pressure and an ultimatum from anti-Houthi forces to withdraw from Yemen, the UAE said early Saturday it had pulled out all its forces.

The tensions in Yemen have further strained ties between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, neighbors on the Arabian Peninsula that have competed over economic issues and regional politics, particularly in the Red Sea area. Ostensibly, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have shared the coalition's professed goal of restoring Yemen's internationally recognized government.

An official with the STC told The Associated Press on Saturday that more than 100 Saudi airstrikes struck multiple locations across Hadramout over the past 24 hours, resulting in deaths and injuries. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief the media.

Mukalla residents Ahmed al-Faradi and Salem Maadan told the AP the city was now controlled by the Hadramout Tribes Confederacy and the National Shield forces.

Col. Ahmed Baqatyan, a military commander in the Hadramout Tribes Confederacy, said that striking the Barshid Brigade camp was necessary because it sits on the route to the southern port city of Aden. He said clearing the camp of STC forces was aimed at preventing them from regrouping and launching a return to Mukalla.

Meanwhile, Yemen’s Transportation Ministry, aligned with the STC, condemned Saudi airstrikes late Friday it said targeted the international airport in Seiyun, “exposing the airport to serious risks that could damage its infrastructure, hindering its operation and the resumption of flights.”

Earlier on Saturday, Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said it plans to hold a conference in its capital, Riyadh, to bring together all southern factions in Yemen "to discuss just solutions to the southern cause."

Saudi Arabia was responding to a request for dialogue from Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, the ruling organ of the internationally recognized government.

There were no immediate details about the proposed conference.

The anti-Houthi coalition was showing other signs of strain. Clashes erupted on Friday between National Shield forces and the southern forces in Hadramout and their allies, killing at least eight people, paramedic Ahmed al-Ketheri told the AP.

Hilal Khashan, political science professor at the American University of Beirut, said that when Saudi Arabia and the UAE began a military operation against the Houthis a decade ago, the Saudis were interested in controlling the mountains of Saada, while the UAE wanted to capture Aden because of its importance as a gateway to the Red Sea.

Khashan said the situation got out of control in recent weeks when the UAE-backed STC started capturing areas in Hadramout that border the kingdom.

“For the Saudis that was a red line,” Khashan said, adding that the Saudis felt that they were being “held captive between the Houthis in the north and the UAE in the south.” They ”decided to stop the UAE from its regional expansionism," he said.

Khaled reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.

Supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags during a rally, in Aden, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo)