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CINCINNATI (AP) -- Fred McGriff is finishing with a flourish.

	McGriff

McGriff got his 1,500th career RBI with a two-run homer, and Moises Alou hit a three-run shot as the Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-6 Friday night.

McGriff and Alou got off to slow starts, setting up the Cubs' poor season. McGriff had only one homer in his first 90 at-bats -- a huge disappointment for a consistent run producer.

His homer off Jimmy Haynes gave McGriff 100 RBI for the eighth time in his career and made him the 40th player to drive in 1,500.

"To have 100 RBI is special,'' McGriff said. "I had a slow start the first month -- 10 RBI. To come back after that is a great personal accomplishment. I hung in there.''

Kerry Wood (11-9) started slowly but revved up his fastball as the game went along. The right-hander gave up seven hits and six runs in seven innings, fanning eight.

A day after they stranded 15 runners in a 15-12 loss, the Cubs made the most of their opportunities against Haynes, who gave up six runs in six innings.

They broke a tie against Chris Reitsma (6-11) in the seventh, when Jason LaRue's 20th passed ball of the season allowed Bobby Hill to score from third. Baltimore is the only team in the majors with more passed balls than LaRue.

Joe Borowski pitched a perfect eighth, and Antonio Alfonseca worked the ninth for his 19th save in 25 chances.

The Cubs fell behind 4-0 before they got rolling in the fourth. Sammy Sosa singled, McGriff walked and Haynes went to a 2-0 count on Alou. Pitching coach Don Gullett visited the mound, and Alou hit the next pitch for his 15th homer.

Corey Patterson singled with two outs in the fifth and came around when center fielder Reggie Taylor let Sosa's single get past him for an error. McGriff then hit his 29th homer for a 6-4 lead.

"A lot of bad pitches,'' Haynes said, summing up the two innings. "After I walked McGriff, I got behind Alou and tried to come inside, but it ran back out over the middle of the plate and he hit the three-run homer.

"Then, in the fifth, I tried to come inside to McGriff, and that ran back over the middle.''

McGriff had the home run ball nestled on the shelf in his locker, a memento of his 1,500th RBI.

"When I quit playing, I'll look back on it then,'' McGriff said. "I just want to keep going.''

McGriff has driven in 101 runs this season, two more than Sosa. The Cubs haven't had two players with 100 RBI in a season since 1991, when Andre Dawson and Ryne Sandberg reached the mark.

Woods struggled at the outset as the Reds pulled ahead by four, then got his fastball up to the 95 mph range and settled in.

Todd Walker hit a two-run homer in the first, extending his hitting streak to 10 games. The second baseman is 21-for-38 (.553) with two homers during that stretch.

Aaron Boone's triple drove in two more runs in the third, and Taylor hit a two-out, two-run homer that tied it at 6 in the sixth and left Wood angry with himself.

"I was just all over the place,'' he said. "My slider was nonexistent. My fastball I wasn't able to spot consistently. You're not going to win many games like that.''

Hill and Patterson opened the seventh with singles off Reitsma, Sosa grounded into a double play, and Hill scored from third on the passed ball.

Hill made a headfirst dive and touched the plate with his left hand just before Reitsma arrived to take the throw from LaRue. Reitsma accidentally stepped on Hill's hand, forcing Hill from the game with a bruise and cuts on two swollen fingers.

"The only way was to slide headfirst and try to stretch my arm in there,'' he said. "It was all instinct.''

Game notes

Cubs RHP Matt Clement plans to start Saturday. Clement missed his last scheduled start because of a sore back, but threw without a problem during a workout Thursday. ... The Cubs lead the majors in strikeouts on the mound and at the plate. ... LaRue extended his hitting streak to a career-high 10 games. ... Reds owner Carl Lindner was 350th on Forbes magazine's ranking of the wealthiest Americans, with a net worth estimated at $675 million. Last year, Lindner was 381st on the list, with a net worth of $650 million. Yankees owner George Steinbrenner didn't make the list