CUBS 8, BREWERS 4
CHICAGO -- It's purely about the math for Anthony Rizzo and the Chicago Cubs.
A three-game lead is better than a one-game advantage, and that was all that mattered Wednesday.
Rizzo homered, drove in three runs and stole two bases in his return to the cleanup spot, and Chicago beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-4 to strengthen its hold on the NL Central.
The Cubs bounced back nicely from their 7-0 loss in the opener of the two-game series, improving to 9-4 against the Brewers this year. But they have six more games left in the season series and St. Louis is gaining quickly, so Rizzo and company coolly packed up their three-game advantage over the second-place Brewers and got ready for a six-game trip.
It's just about the numbers in the middle of August.
"I think early on we knew it was going to come down to the wire," Rizzo said, "so I don't see us or any team pulling away like crazy. Winning games versus our division is always big, and this one was nice."
Jason Heyward added 3 hits and 2 RBI as Chicago moved 19 games over .500, matching its season high. David Bote had two hits, scored twice and made a terrific barehanded play at third base in his first action since he hit a game-ending grand slam in Sunday night's 4-3 victory over Washington.
Kyle Hendricks (9-9) struck out eight in six-plus innings on his bobblehead day, providing a lift for the Cubs after Jon Lester and Jose Quintana struggled in recent starts.
"Psychologically, I mean obviously there was a lot of folks that would have been running for the hills had we lost," Manager Joe Maddon said. "The fact that you win the game, it settles down that method. There's still a long way to go."
Milwaukee had a chance to inch closer to Chicago, but instead lost for the fourth time in six games. Junior Guerra (6-8) lasted just 3 2/3 innings, and first baseman Eric Thames committed an error that helped set up a run.
"It was definitely a hard game," Guerra said. "Some of the things just didn't go our way today."
The Brewers, who are in position for a wild card, also lost left fielder Ryan Braun and catcher Manny Pina to injuries. Braun departed with tightness on the right side of his rib cage, and Pina hurt his left shoulder when he collided with Javier Baez while he was diving back to second in the seventh.
Pina stayed in after the play and scored on Mike Moustakas' single. But Erik Kratz took over behind the plate in the bottom half of the inning.
"We're going to take him to Milwaukee for tests tomorrow, but he was adamant about staying in the game," Manager Craig Counsell said. "It's just kind of precautionary. So we'll get some tests and we'll see."
Braun is considered day to day. He got hurt trying to make a sliding catch on Heyward's RBI double in the third.
"I don't anticipate making a quick move with this one, but if it lingers, we're going to have to make a move," Counsell said.
Rizzo, who had been leading off, drove a 0-1 pitch from Guerra into the basket in left for a two-run shot in the first. The big first baseman also blooped a run-scoring single into center in the Cubs' three-run fourth, helped by a partly cloudy sky that made life difficult for each team all afternoon.
The Brewers closed to 7-4 on Hernan Perez's RBI single in the seventh. But they wasted a chance for more when Travis Shaw popped out and Jonathan Schoop lined to left with the bases loaded, ending the inning.
Albert Almora Jr. then led off the bottom half of the inning with a line drive into the bleachers in left. It was his first home run since June 28 and No. 5 on the year.
CUBS 8, BREWERS 4
“Psychologically, I mean obviously there was a lot of folks that would have been running for the hills had we lost,” Manager Joe Maddon said. “The fact that you win the game, it settles down that method. There’s still a long way to go.”
Milwaukee had a chance to inch closer to Chicago, but instead lost for the fourth time in six games. Junior Guerra (6-8) lasted just 3 2/3 innings, and first baseman Eric Thames committed an error that helped set up a run.
“It was definitely a hard game,” Guerra said. “Some of the things just didn’t go our way today.”
The Brewers, who are in position for a wild card, also lost left fielder Ryan Braun and catcher Manny Pina to injuries. Braun departed with tightness on the right side of his rib cage, and Pina hurt his left shoulder when he collided with Javier Baez while he was diving back to second in the seventh.
Pina stayed in after the play and scored on Mike Moustakas’ single. But Erik Kratz took over behind the plate in the bottom half of the inning.
“We’re going to take him to Milwaukee for tests tomorrow, but he was adamant about staying in the game,” Manager Craig Counsell said. “It’s just kind of precautionary. So we’ll get some tests and we’ll see.”
CARDINALS 4, NATIONALS 2 Marcell Ozuna homered and Austin Gomber tossed six shutout innings to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a win over the Washington Nationals. St. Louis has won a season-high eight straight. The Cardinals, captured their sixth successive series after taking the first three of the four-game set. BRAVES 5, MARLINS 2 Slugging rookie Ronald Acuna Jr. was hit by a pitch before he could take the Marlins deep again, but Dansby Swanson filled the power void for Atlanta, hitting a two-run homer that led the Braves to a win over Miami.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
MARINERS 2, ATHLETICS 0, 12 INNINGS Light-hitting Dee Gordon homered off Yusmeiro Petit in the 12th inning to break a scoreless tie and the Seattle Mariners beat the Oakland Athletics to avoid a three-game sweep. Jean Segura had four hits to help the Mariners closed within 2½ games of the A’s for the second AL wild-card spot.
WHITE SOX 6, TIGERS 5 Jose Abreu and Matt Davidson each hit two-run home runs to lift Chicago past Detroit. The White Sox have won two in a row after losing six of seven. The Tigers have lost nine of 12.
RAYS 6, YANKEES 1 Mallex Smith hit a two-run homer, rookie Brandon Lowe got his first two major league hits and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees. Kevin Kiermaier, who was mired in a 4-for-46 slump in August, had two hits, scored a run and drove in one for the Rays. BLUE JAYS 6, ROYALS 5 Curtis Granderson hit a grand slam, Marco Estrada pitched effectively into the seventh inning and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals.
INTERLEAGUE
TWINS 6, PIRATES 4 Logan Forsythe had three RBIs, the Minnesota bullpen tossed 5 1/3 shutout innings and the Twins beat Pittsburgh. Oliver Drake, Gabriel Moya (3-0), Tyler Duffey and Taylor Rogers scattered five hits and struck out three before Trevor Hildenberger picked up his third save in four chances.
METS 16, ORIOLES 5 Kevin Plawecki hit his first career grand slam during a nine-run sixth inning, Brandon Nimmo went 5 for 5 with three RBIs and the New York Mets breezed past the Baltimore Orioles. Todd Frazier homered and drove in four runs to help the Mets earn a split of the two-game interleague series.
PHILLIES 7, RED SOX 4 Wilson Ramos had three extra-base hits and three RBIs, helping the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Boston Red Sox in his first game with his new team. The Phillies, who remained two games behind first-place Atlanta in the NL East, split a two-game interleague series with the major league-leading Red Sox for the second time in three weeks.
INDIANS 4, REDS 3 Melky Cabrera lofted a go-ahead two-run homer into the left-field seats in the sixth inning, and the Cleveland Indians rallied to beat the Cincinnati Reds, extending their winning streak to five games.
ASTROS 12, ROCKIES 1 Evan Gattis and Tyler White hit two homers each, Yuli Gurriel added a two-run shot and the Houston Astros broke out of their offensive slump in a huge way with a win over the Colorado Rockies to snap a five-game skid. Gerrit Cole struck out 12 and the defending World Series champions stopped a nine-game home losing streak with their first win in Houston since July 14.
Sports on 08/16/2018