Mickey Moniak hits walk-off RBI triple to lift the lowly Rockies past the Cubs, 6-4

DENVER (AP) — Pinch-hitter Mickey Moniak hit a walk-off RBI triple, Tanner Gordon struck out a career-high nine and the Colorado Rockies beat the Chicago Cubs 6-4 on Sunday to avoid a series sweep.

The major league-worst Rockies snapped a four-game losing streak to improve to 39-98. They finished August with 11 wins, their most in any month this season.

Orlando Arcia had three hits and an RBI for Colorado, and Braxton Fulford added two hits and an RBI. Ryan Ritter had two hits and scored the winning run, and Brenton Doyle drove in two runs.

Gordon allowed two earned runs in six innings. Juan Mejia (2-1) picked up the win, striking out two in a perfect ninth. Daniel Palencia (1-5) took the loss.

Ian Happ hit his 18th homer of the season for the Cubs, a tying three-run shot off reliever Luis Peralta in the eighth. Kyle Tucker had three hits, and Seiya Suzuki drove in two runs for Chicago.

After a lead-off single from Ritter in the ninth inning, Moniak hit Palencia's slider down the right-field line, bringing home Ritter.

Cubs starter Matthew Boyd has allowed at least four earned runs in each of his past three starts.

The Cubs return home to face Atlanta on Monday, with RHP Colin Rea (10-6, 4.23 ERA) set to start opposite Braves RHP Spencer Strider (5-12, 4,95). Colorado remains at home Monday to play San Francisco. Rockies RHP Chase Dollander (2-11, 6.55) was set to oppose LHP Carson Whisenhunt (2-1, 5.01).

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

Chicago Cubs' Ian Happ follows through with his swing after connecting for a three-run home run off Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Luis Peralta in the eighth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Tanner Gordon works against the Chicago Cubs in the sixth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies' Mickey Moniak yells after being doused by Orlando Arcia after hitting a walkoff RBI single off Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Daniel Palencia in the ninth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies' Brenton Doyle, left, congratulates Mickey Moniak, second from left, after Moniak's walkoff RBI single off Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Daniel Palencia in the ninth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies' Mickey Moniak, center, celebrates after his walkoff RBI single with Braxton Fulford (37) and Tyler Freeman, back left, and Orlando Arcia, front right, in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

The White House and a bipartisan group of governors are pressuring the operator of the mid-Atlantic power grid to take urgent steps to boost energy supply and curb price hikes, holding a Friday event aimed at addressing a rising concern among voters about the enormous amount of power used for artificial intelligence ahead of elections later this year.

The White House said its National Energy Dominance Council and the governors of several states, including Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia, want to try to compel PJM Interconnection to hold a power auction for tech companies to bid on contracts to build new power plants,

The Trump administration and governors will sign a statement of principles toward that end Friday. The plan was first reported by Bloomberg.

“Ensuring the American people have reliable and affordable electricity is one of President Trump’s top priorities, and this would deliver much-needed, long-term relief to the mid-Atlantic region," said Taylor Rogers, a White House spokeswoman.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is expected to be at the White House, a person familiar with Shapiro’s plans said, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of the announcement. Shapiro, a Democrat, made his participation in Friday’s event contingent on including a provision to extend a limit on wholesale electricity price increases for the region’s consumers, the person said.

But the operator of the grid won't be there. “PJM was not invited. Therefore we would not attend,” said spokesperson Jeff Shields.

It was not immediately clear whether President Donald Trump would attend the event, which was not listed on his public schedule.

Trump and the governors are under pressure to insulate consumers and businesses alike from the costs of feeding Big Tech’s energy-hungry data centers. Meanwhile, more Americans are falling behind on their electricity bills.

Consumer advocates say ratepayers in the mid-Atlantic electricity grid — which encompasses all or parts of 13 states stretching from New Jersey to Illinois, as well as Washington, D.C. — are already paying billions of dollars in higher bills to underwrite the cost to supply power to data centers, some of them built, some not.

However, they also say that the billions of dollars that consumers are paying isn’t resulting in the construction of new power plants necessary to meet the rising demand.

Pivotal contests in November will be decided by communities that are home to fast-rising electric bills or fights over who’s footing the bill for the data centers that underpin the explosion in demand for artificial intelligence. In parts of the country, data centers are coming online faster than power plants can be built and connected to the grid.

Electricity costs were a key issue in last year's elections for governor in New Jersey and Virginia, a data center hotspot, and in Georgia, where Democrats ousted two Republican incumbents for seats on the state’s utility regulatory commission. Voters in New Jersey, Virginia, California and New York City all cited economic concerns as the top issue, as Democrats and Republicans gird for a debate over affordability in the intensifying midterm battle to control Congress.

Gas and electric utilities sought or won rate increases of more that $34 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, consumer advocacy organization PowerLines reported. That was more than double the same period a year earlier.

Meta's Stanton Springs Data Center is seen Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Newton County, East of Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)