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CHICAGO -- A long, odd night turned into a frustrating early morning for a Chicago Cubs team that appears to have lost its swagger.Nick Markakis homered twice, including a tying solo shot in the ninth inning, and Tyler Flowers two-out single in the 11th early Friday morning gave the Atlanta Braves a 4-3 victory.A tough game, catcher Willson Contreras said in a nearly silent clubhouse after Chicagos 13th loss in 18 games.Contreras two-run triple in a three-run eighth inning put the Cubs up 3-2. But closer Hector Rondon blew his fourth save when he gave up the second homer to Markakis to lead off the ninth, Atlantas first hit since the second inning.Flowers then singled to right off Spencer Patton (1-1), and Freddie Freeman, who walked, barely beat Ben Zobrists throw home.Dario Alvarez (3-1) worked a perfect 10th before giving up consecutive singles to Contreras and Jason Heyward to lead off the 11th.Mauricio Cabrera came in and got his second save by getting Addison Russell to ground into a double play before Jeimer Candelario flied to center as the last-place Braves snapped a four-game skid.It was big to get a win, especially against a ball club like that, in ballpark like this, Markakis said.After starting 25-6, the Cubs have gone 27-27. Their three-game skid and losses in seven of eight games have dropped them a game behind San Francisco for the best record in the major leagues.It happens to everybody, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said of his teams woes. For anybody out there who believes it doesnt happen to every team, youre wrong.Tensions boiled after Markakis fourth homer in the ninth. After Rondon struck out Adonis Garcia, Rondon threw an inside fastball to Jeff Francoeur. He and Contreras started jawing, and the benches and bullpens emptied. There was only some pushing and no ejections.I called a fastball in and he didnt appreciate that, Contreras said. After that he started talking to me and I stood in front of him.Before that, Cubs slugger Kris Bryant was twice hit by Lucas Harrell, one on a curveball, and Hunter Cervenka plunked Anthony Rizzo. Bryant didnt return to the field with stiffness in his left leg after his second hit by pitch.Markakis put Atlanta ahead with a two-run homer in the first off Jason Hammel. The right-hander settled down to retire 11 straight before he was lifted with cramping in his thumb on the humid night after a four-pitch walk to Gordon Beckham.Its annoying, said Hammel, who said he had the issue one other time in his career. For a thumb to pull me out of a game, it ticks me off.After Lucas Harrell threw 7 2/3 innings of four-hit ball in his second straight impressive start, the Braves bullpen gave up the lead.Cervenka allowed an RBI single to Zobrist. Then Jim Johnson entered and the rookie Contreras hit a sinking liner to center that got by Ender Inciarte and scored two runs.But the Cubs couldnt bust out of a slump in the makeup of an April 30 rainout that was delayed 1 hour, 35 minutes by rain and included a scary pregame incident.A man was carted off Wrigley Field and hospitalized after he slipped and fell to the warning track while attempting to jump from the bleachers before the game. The Cubs didnt identify the man and didnt provide his condition.TRAINERS ROOMBraves: RHP Julio Teheran, Atlantas lone All-Star, returned to the team after being treated for an infection due to ingrown hair on his right thigh. Teheran thinks hell start Saturday. I threw a bullpen today and I feel pretty good, he said. ... Beckham (hamstring) started at shortstop and went 0 for 4 after being activated off the disabled list before the game. Emilio Bonifacio was designated for assignment.Cubs: CF Dexter Fowler (hamstring) will begin a rehab assignment Friday as the DH for Class A South Bend. Maddon said Fowler will play in the field Saturday, then theyll determine whether hell be activated so he can play in his first All-Star Game.HENDRICKS RELIEVESNot scheduled to start before the All-Star break, Cubs RHP Kyle Hendricks made his first career relief appearance in the sixth. He walked one in two hitless innings.UP NEXTBraves: RHP Matt Wisler (3-8, 4.16 ERA) goes up against White Sox ace Chris Sale (14-2, 2.93) on Friday night.Cubs: RHP Jake Arrieta (12-3, 2.33) starts Friday night in the opener of a division series at surging Pittsburgh and LHP Francisco Liriano (5-8, 5.34). Cheap MLB Jerseys . Takahashi, who had a 10-point lead after the short program, received 268.31 points after the free skate to finish 15 points ahead of second-place Nobunari Oda. Cheap Tigers Jerseys . With the first unit struggling of late and Amir Johnson - one of the teams iron men - hobbling on an injured right ankle, Patterson knew he could get the nod in a challenging matchup against one of the leagues up and coming players at his position. http://www.cheaptigersjerseys.com/ . It is a cliché dragged out by fans and pundits regularly when discussions take place around which teams are better than others. Cheap Detroit Tigers Jerseys . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap. Wholesale Tigers Jerseys . Emery skated the length of the ice and fought an unwilling Holtby during the third period of the Flyers 7-0 loss Friday night in Philadelphia. He was given 29 penalty minutes, including a game misconduct. But Emery did not face even a disciplinary hearing with NHL senior vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan because rules 46. CLEVELAND -- LeBron James announced last week that he has no intentions of leaving the Cavaliers this summer after winning the first pro championship for his city in 52 years. Now his likeness, shown on an iconic 10-story-tall Nike banner hanging from the Sherwin-Williams headquarters downtown, isnt going anywhere, either.Sherwin-Williams announced Tuesday that the James banner, which was originally scheduled to be replaced by a new banner this summer commemorating the companys 150th anniversary, will continue to hang. In addition, Sherwin-Williams will donate $150,000 to the LeBron James Family Foundation.For 150 years, Sherwin-Williams has been proud to call Cleveland our home, and were committed to doing the right thing for the people of this great city, said John Morikis, president and CEO of Sherwin-Williams, in a statement. For the last year, weve been planning to hang a celebratory banner outside our building during the summer months. But what better way to celebrate our 150th year than with a NBA championship. As a llongtime supporter of the Cavs, and the entire community, we want the energy and excitement in this city to continue.ddddddddddddThe banner, located across the street from Quicken Loans Arena, has become a popular tourist destination for visitors to Cleveland. It was installed before the Cavs home opener in October 2014 after James returned for a second stint with the team.James himself posed in front of it with his arms outstretched during the Cavs championship parade last week, a parade that Sherwin-Williams co-sponsored.When word spread that James banner was scheduled to come down, more than 20,000 people supported a petition on Change.org to keep it up. Petition organizer Kathy Springer of Macedonia, Ohio, wrote, in part, The banner is a symbol of persistence, promise and pride in the Cleveland Cavaliers and Northeastern Ohio. Removing this banner will be a travesty to what we call Cleveland. ' ' '