Nico Hoerner powers the Cubs to a 6-2 victory over the error-prone Rays at Tropicana Field

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Nico Hoerner hit a leadoff homer and then delivered an RBI double during a five-run fifth inning as the Chicago Cubs beat the sloppy Tampa Bay Rays 6-2 on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field.

Michael Conforto had a two-run double for the Cubs, who took advantage of three Tampa Bay throwing errors in the fifth to win the rubber game of the series before an announced crowd of 20,483. Colin Rea (1-0) allowed one run in five innings.

Hoerner went 3 for 5 with two RBIs and two runs, extending his on-base streak to 11 games. His leadoff shot to left field snapped a homerless streak for Rays right-hander Joe Boyle (0-1) that lasted 30 2/3 innings.

After that, Boyle retired 11 of his next 12 batters before it all unraveled in the fifth.

A leadoff double, two walks and Conforto’s bases-loaded double broke it open. Two throwing errors — one by right fielder Jake Fraley, the other by catcher Hunter Feduccia — helped the Cubs score two more runs before Boyle could escape. He gave up six runs, five earned, and four hits in 4 1/3 innings.

It was the third time this season Tampa Bay committed three errors in a game.

Rea, who attended St. Petersburg College, stepped into the rotation after Cade Horton went on the injured list with a right forearm strain and held the Rays to two hits.

Hoby Milner, Ben Brown (two innings) and Hunter Harvey finished the five-hitter.

Tampa Bay's first run came in the third on Jonathan Aranda’s sacrifice fly. Aranda scored in the eighth on Jake Fraley’s single.

Cubs LHP Shota Imanaga (0-1, 4.50 ERA) faces Pirates RHP Carmen Mlodzinski (0-0, 4.00) on Friday at Wrigley Field.

Rays LHP Steven Matz (2-0, 4.09 ERA) starts Friday night at home against the New York Yankees.

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

Chicago Cubs' Dansby Swanson reacts after scoring on a two-run double by Michael Conforto off Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Joe Boyle during the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Chicago Cubs left fielder Michael Conforto can't make the catch on a single by Tampa Bay Rays' Jonathan Aranda during the eighth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Joe Boyle, right, hands the ball to manager Kevin Cash as he is taken out of the game against the Chicago Cubs during the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Chicago Cubs pitcher Colin Rea delivers to the Tampa Bay Rays during the first inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Chicago Cubs' Michael Conforto watches his two-run double off Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Joe Boyle during the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Chicago Cubs' Nico Hoerner runs the bases after his RBI double off Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Joe Boyle during the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea said Thursday its testing spree this week involved various new weapons systems, including ballistic missiles armed with cluster-bomb warheads, as it pushes to expand nuclear-capable forces aimed at rival South Korea.

The report by North Korean state media came a day after South Korea’s military said it detected North Korea firing multiple missiles from an eastern coastal area in its second round of launches in two days.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said the tests lasted three days starting Monday and also included demonstrations of anti-aircraft weapons, purported electromagnetic weapons systems and carbon-fiber bombs.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missiles launched Wednesday flew 240 to 700 kilometers (150 to 434 miles) before falling into the sea, and that it also detected at least one projectile launched Tuesday from an area near the North Korean capital of Pyongyang.

Japan’s Defense Ministry said none of the weapons fired Wednesday entered waters within its exclusive economic zone, while the U.S. military said the North Korean launches on Tuesday and Wednesday posed no immediate threat to the United States or its allies.

KCNA said the latest tests included demonstrations of cluster-munition warhead systems mounted on the nuclear-capable Hwasong-11 ballistic missiles, which resemble Russia’s Iskander missiles in their design for low-altitude, maneuverable flight to evade missile defense systems. The report said the launches confirmed that the short-range missile, when armed with such warheads, “can reduce to ashes any target covering an area of 6.5-7 hectares (16 to 17.2 acres) with the highest-density power.”

Jang Do-young, a spokesperson for South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a briefing that the military was analyzing the launches while sharing information with U.S. and Japanese counterparts, but declined to provide specific assessments about the North’s claims of progress in its military capabilities.

The launches underscored continuing tensions between the Koreas, blunting South Korean hopes for warmer relations.

In a statement Tuesday night, Jang Kum Chol, a first vice minister at Pyongyang’s Foreign Ministry, said South Korea would always remain the North’s “most hostile enemy state” and mocked Seoul’s liberal government for seeking to revive restore long-stalled dialogue, calling its officials “world-startling fools.”

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has suspended virtually all diplomacy with Seoul and Washington since the collapse of his nuclear talks with President Donald Trump in 2019, and has since accelerated the development of nuclear-capable missiles that threaten U.S. allies in Asia as well as the U.S. mainland.

Kim has also pursued closer ties with Russia, China and other countries embroiled in confrontations with the United States as he looks to break out of isolation and strengthen his regional footing. North Korean state media says Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will arrive in the country on Thursday for a two-day trip in the latest round of diplomacy between the countries.

A TV screen shows a file image of North Korea's missile launch during a news program at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A TV screen shows a file image of North Korea's missile launch during a news program at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)