CHICAGO -- Kansas City Royals fans made their presence felt at Wrigley Field on Friday with frequent and vocal chants.

The Royals rewarded several thousand noisy road warriors with an 8-4 victory while snapping a four-game losing streak in the opener of a three-game inter league series.

"When we went out for batting practice it was just packed with Royals fans," said Kansas City manager Ned Yost after his team scored four runs in the final two innings to pull away on a steamy afternoon.

"It was really obvious when Eskie (shortstop Alcides Escobar) hit a home run," he added. "The cheering that was going on caught me by surprise. I looked around and it was all Royals fans. It was pretty cool."

Royals center fielder Lorenzo Cain went 3-for-4, including an eighth-inning RBI double for the go-ahead run.

That two-base hit off Chicago reliever Pedro Strop scored third baseman Mike Moustakas for a 5-4 lead. Kansas City added two more runs in a three-run eighth and a run in the ninth.

Neither Royals right-hander Edinson Volquez nor Cubs right-hander Jake Arrieta factored into the decision in their respective starts in the interleague game.

Volquez still had a solid outing with a season-high nine strikeouts before leaving in the sixth with a 4-3 lead following Jorge Soler's two-en home run with two out.

"It was good, I really competed and my breaking ball was good tonight," he said. "I was hoping to get out of there with two outs, but I got behind on the count on him (Soler) and he hit it out."

Royals right-hander Kelvin Herrera (1-1) allowed one run and two hits in the sixth inning but still collected the victory. Strop (1-3) gave up three runs, one hit and two walks in one-third of an inning and suffered the loss.

The Royals, making their first visit to Wrigley Field since 2001, used three solo home runs to help build an early lead before the Cubs replied with their own long-ball attack to forge a 4-4 tie.

Escobar gave the Royals an instant 1-0 lead, taking Arrieta's first pitch to the left field bleachers for his second home run of the season. It was his second leadoff home run of the year and second of his career.

"I knew going in that he likes to come out hacking early," said Arrieta. "I had a heater there to start the game and obviously wanted to get ahead but it leaked over the heart of the plate too much and he put a good swing on it."

Kansas City left fielder Alex Gordon made it 2-0 with a solo shot with one out in the second. He sent Arrieta's first offering to left center for his sixth homer of the season.

The Cubs got one run back in the third inning on third baseman Kris Bryant's RBI double that scored second baseman Addison Russell.

But catcher Salvador Perez gave the Royals a 3-1 lead with his bases-empty homer in the fourth. Kansas City first baseman Eric Hosmer made it 4-1 in the fifth when he doubled off the wall with two outs.

Soler's fourth homer of the year drove in shortstop Starlin Castro and trimmed the Royals' margin to one in the sixth.

The homer, on a 3-0 pitch with two outs, marked the end for Volquez, who pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing six hits and three runs while while also walking one.

In the bottom of the seventh, Herrera gave up a one-out solo blast to Russell, whose fourth home run of the season landed in the left field bleachers and made it 4-4.

Arrieta did not return for the eighth. He allowed four runs and eight hits, struck out five and walked nine in seven innings.

After Kansas City grabbed the lead in the top of the eighth, Cubs center fielder Dexter Fowler botched a fly ball by second baseman Omar Infante that brought home Cain and Hosmer.

Escobar's ninth-inning single scored pinch-hitter Jarrod Dyson to make it 8-4.

"It was such a great game for 7 2/3 innings and I thought we wer