SAN FRANCISCO -- He was out of breath as he laid at home plate after a head-first slide, but Chicago Cubs infielder Javier Baez had a smile on his face knowing he earned his first career inside-the-park home run in Monday's 5-3 win over the San Francisco Giants.

Afterward, Baez was still smiling inside the clubhouse.

"I couldn't see it so I just tried to run faster," Baez said. "I thought [third-base coach Gary Jones] was going to stop me."

There would be no stopping Baez, though he did manage a glimpse of his right-center blast in the top of the second inning off Giants starter Matt Moore. It traveled to the farthest part of AT&T Park, and as it bounded away from right fielder Carlos Moncrief, Baez picked up steam.

"Even as it was in the air, going to hit the wall, guys in the dugout were saying, 'That might be perfect for a bounce,'" pitcher Kyle Hendricks said. "Then it hit the wall, and kicked, and guys started yelling and screaming, 'It could be an inside-the-parker.'"

As Baez rounded second it looked more and more like he had a shot. The Cubs pitcher was on-deck and there were two outs. Why not?

"Once I gauged it and he was halfway to third base, not to take anything away from Jake, with two outs, I thought we had a chance," Jones said.

Hendricks added: "We would have been all over Jonesy if he doesn't wave him home."

Jones went for it, leaving Baez with just one obstacle: Carlos Moncrief's arm.

"The right fielder has a cannon and showed it," the third-base coach said.

Moncrief finally tracked the ball down, back near where he began the play, then fired a rocket to home plate where a sliding Baez just got in under the tag.

"He had a great arm," Baez said. "He showed it right there. He almost got me out at the plate."

Jones joked: "[Baez] told me afterward he drank too much water so he was a little heavy then."

The Cubs ended up with two runs that would be the difference in the win and a 2017 memory. There have been fewer of those this season compared to last, but a hot finish for the defending champions could still fill up their highlight reel. They're 16-7 since the All-Star break and extended their lead in the National League Central on Monday to 1½ games over the Milwaukee Brewers. Most of it was thanks to a rare play, as exciting as any in the game. And it was made even more exciting by the defense after it looked like Baez would have an easy run to home.

"That guy may have the best arm I've ever seen," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "That's a Bo Jackson arm right there. ... It was an exciting play."