The Chicago Cubs shut out the Milwaukee Brewers 6-0 in Game 4 of the National League Division Series, sending the series back to a decisive Game 5 in Milwaukee on Saturday. They kept scoring in the first
inning, but this time the Cubs’ offense got to the Brewers bullpen and kept adding on as the game continued for what turned out to be an easy win, even if it didn’t seem so in the early innings.
The game started as a rerun of Game 1 with a return of both starters, Freddy Peralta and Matthew Boyd. Unlike in Game 1, Boyd managed to keep the Brewers from scoring after allowing a leadoff walk to Christian Yelich.
However, the Cubs continued to torture the Brewers in the first inning by starting a one-out rally with a Nico Hoerner single and a Kyle Tucker walk. After Seiya Suzuki struck out on a pitch in his eyes that should have been ball four, the longest-tenured and quite honestly, slumping Cub Ian Happ crushed one through the wind in right field for a three-run home run. Happ’s only hit in the series previous was a solo home run off of Peralta in Game 1. His second one was this blast Once again, the Cubs’ offense was firing on all cylinders in the first inning.
Meanwhile, Boyd returned to the form that made him an All-Star this season. Boyd allowed no runs just two hits in 4 2/3 innings tonight. He got in a bit of trouble in the fifth inning when Sal Frelick led off the inning with a kind of bloop double down the right field line. He then walked Blake Perkins, putting two on and no outs in the fifth.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy continued his love of the sacrifice and Joey Ortiz moved the runners over to second and third with well-placed bunt to Matt Shaw. But Boyd stayed in the game to faced the left-handed Christian Yelich and Boyd struck him out on an inside sinker. That was it for Boyd as manager Craig Counsell summoned Daniel Palencia out of the bullpen to face the right-handed Jackson Chourio. It only took one pitch for Palencia to get out of the jam with an easy infield pop up.
The final line on Boyd was no runs and two hits over 4 2/3 innings. He struck out six and walked three. Boyd became the first Cubs starter since Kyle Hendricks in Game 1 of the 2017 Division Series to throw more than four innings and allow no runs.
The Cubs got a real threat going in the bottom of the fifth inning off of reliever and former Cub Trevor Megill. Shaw led off the inning with a walk and after Michael Busch struck out, Nico Hoerner singled. With two on and one out, Shaw and Hoerner stole second and third and Kyle Tucker walked to load the bases. But Seiya Suzuki struck out on a borderline swing that could have been called either way. Then Ian Happ crushed a line drive to dead center, but right at Blake Perkins to end the threat.
The Cubs hadn’t scored a run after the first inning since Game 1, but that futility streak finally came to an end in the bottom of the sixth. Carson Kelly reached on an error to start the inning and Pete Crow-Armstrong bunted him over to second. Dansby Swanson then walked and Matt Shaw swung at a curve that well below the strike zone. No matter, Shaw lined the pitch into center field to score Kelly and make it 4-0. It was Matt Shaw’s first postseason RBI and his second postseason hit, both of which came in this game.
The Cubs added on another insurance run in the bottom of the seventh with a solo home run by Kyle Tucker. It Tucker’s first extra-base hit of the playoffs and he crushed it 414 feet to center field. If Tucker’s power is back, the Brewers should be very afraid in Game 5.
Carson Kelly looked to have made it 7-0 with a home run down the left field line. The umpires called it fair at first, but replay showed that it was probably foul. Was it enough to overturn the call on the field? I don’t know. I don’t know what standards New York uses because Kelly then hit a ground ball to short that he was called out by an eyelash. Replay was inconclusive, so they went with “call stands” this time.
Brad Keller came on to face the top of the order in the eighth inning with a scheduled off-day tomorrow. He had trouble finding the strike zone as he walked Yelich and fell behind 2-0 on Chourio. But Chourio would fly out to right field and William Contreras hit into an inning-ending 6-4-3 double play.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Busch hit his fourth home run of the playoffs and his third in this series as he deposited one into the left field bleachers with the bases empty to make it 6-0.
Caleb Thielbar came on to pitch an uneventful 1-2-3 ninth inning to complete the shutout.
Game 5 will be played on Saturday at 7:08 central time at American Family Field in Milwaukee, also known as “Wrigley North.” The winner of Game 5 will face the Dodgers in the National League Championship Series starting Monday in Los Angeles.
The Brewers will have home field advantage, but the Cubs have whatever momentum there might be and the Brewers will have the pressure of having blown a 2-0 lead in a best-of-five series. Let’s do this again on Saturday with the same result.
