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MILWAUKEE (AP) – Daniel Murphy does not see a panic in his new teammates of the Chicago Cubs.
The Cubs needed a win on Wednesday night to avoid a three-game sweep by rival Milwaukee, and Murphy played a big role with three hits and a 6-4 solo win over the Brewers.
Pedro Strop completed a ninth inning as Chicago strengthened their lead over NL Central four games against Brewers second. Milwaukee is half a match in front of St. Louis for NL's best wild card.
Jose Quintana (12-9) conceded two points in 6 2/3 innings, improving to 3-1 at Miller Park with the Cubs.
Strop allowed a run and a single to open the ninth but got the last three outings, eliminating Curtis Granderson with two runners to preserve the win.
"It's a young group with a veteran mentality," said Murphy, who joined the Cubs in an exchange with Washington on Aug. 21. "You lose a tough game (Monday) and played very well yesterday. All you can do is go out and try to win this game.
Granderson crowned his first home race as a member of the Brewers in a scoring role in the seventh end, a two-point shot that reduced Chicago's lead to 6-4.
After Travis Shaw walked and hitter Christian Yelich took the ninth place, the crowd of 37,427 was almost tied between Brewers and Cubs fans. Eric Thames flew before Strop put Lorenzo Cain in third place for a game of strength. Then a nasty slider on a 2-2 pitch hit Granderson.
"I thought he had gained a lot of composure," said Joe Maddon, director of the Cubs, about Strop. "It's 95 or 96 (mph) with this sink. The slider on which he has had Granderson is against right-handers and left-handers.
Jhoulys Chacin (14-6) had 16 goal-scoreless innings against the Cubs before Murphy took a fourth-straight circuit in the Brewers center.
"I was able to take advantage of the account in my favor and I was able to look for something in the area," Murphy said. "I did not think it was going to come out of the stadium."
Javier Baez followed with a single and his aggressive baserunning helped the Cubs extend their lead. He ran for the third time on a single by Anthony Rizzo, and when Cain's throw in the middle of the pitch started, Baez scored and Rizzo took third place in a second error from Orlando Arcia. Ben Zobrist doubled to score Rizzo and give the Cubs a 3-0 lead.
A single RBI single by Willson Contreras crowned the four-run rally.
Jonathan Scoop's bad-hop single brought the ball down and the Brewers charged the goals with two outs. Quintana prompted Arcia to hit a pop-fly in the short term to escape the jam.
Zobrist flew in his second stint to the fifth with a two-point single, but Rizzo was sent off to the plate trying to score from second base.
Kyle Schwarber started his 25th circuit in the second bridge in the right field in the sixth to score 6-1.
Quintana gave Jesus Aguilar a leading single and Ryan Braun a double in the sixth, but the Brewers only managed one run at Schoop.
"It was his best fastball of the year," Maddon said. "He mainly could have pitched with his fastball today – it was so good."
The Brewers and Cubs will meet again in a three-game series at Wrigley Field next week.
"It was a fun series," said Granderson. "It's definitely something both teams can watch and say, it's going to be a fight to the end."
MOTIONLESS
A strange moment arrived at the fourth after Baez was singled out. He never left the base while Chacin rushed twice.
"They know I wanted to run," Baez said. "Just before Rizzo got on the plate, I saw the receiver (Erik Kratz) and he was not giving signs, so I knew (Chacin) was coming back (at the first). Then after the first, and he tried to act as if he was giving signs. But I saw that he was so wrong about it, I just stayed there.
Baez scored moments later after Rizzo triumphed and Cain overtook the third goal.
ROOM OF TRAINERS
Cubs: Schwarber is injured in the back and left the match after trading on the sixth round. "Before going up to hit, he told me it was tight," Maddon said. "But he may have had his best shot of the year." RHP Brandon Morrow may have reached the point of no return for the Cubs, and Maddon said he will have to use several of his pitchers during the rest of the season. Morrow, who has 22 saves before being injured, has been out of action since July 18 with an inflammation of the right biceps. He has not yet thrown a mound into his detox. "We would like to find him, but even if he comes back, how do you use that?" Said Maddon. "You can not push it two days in a row."
Brewers: Yelich was not in the starting lineup as the Brewers were entering the latter part of the season. He hit as a nipper in the ninth to reach the base in his 22nd straight game. "He needs a day off," said manager Craig Counsell before the game. "Friday was a thought, but it just reached a point where it was to be today." Yelich had not come out of alignment since July 3.
FOLLOWING
Cubs: RHP Kyle Hendricks (11-10, 3.77 ERA) will open a four-game series in Washington on Thursday night.
Brewers: RHP Chase Anderson (9-7, 3.96) begins a three-game series against the Giants on Friday at Miller Park.
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