Cubs Beat Brewers 4-3 To Finish 4-Game Sweep; Bryant Hurt
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Closer Hector Rondon nearly squandered a three-run lead, and Chicago Cubs rookie Kris Bryant got hurt in a 4-3 win on Sunday that completed a four-game sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers.
Starter Clayton Richard (2-0) and the Cubs' bullpen held off the Brewers until the ninth, when Rondon allowed the first two runners to reach base with his team leading 4-1.
Ryan Braun scored on a groundout with one out, and Hernan Perez drove in another run with a two-out single. Rondon then got pinch-hitter Logan Schafer to line out sharply to center for his 16th save.
Bryant left in the fifth after sliding headfirst into second and appearing to get tagged on the helmet by shortstop Jean Segura.
Bryant's neck or upper back also appeared to bump into Segura's leg. Bryant, who reached on an RBI single off Kyle Lohse (5-13), was running after a throw to the plate was cut off.
Bryant was lifted for a pinch runner after a safe call was upheld on a replay review.
The All-Star third baseman has played a key role in the Cubs' resurgence. They've won five straight heading into an important three-game series starting Monday in Pittsburgh against the NL Central-rival Pirates.
Richard came up big in a spot start. He will be replaced in the rotation by right-hander Dan Haren, who was acquired at the trade deadline from Miami.
The left-hander still had an afternoon to remember, lining an RBI double to left in the fourth just over the glove of leaping third baseman Hernan Perez to give the Cubs a 3-1 lead. On the mound, Richard allowed five hits and one run in six innings.
Anthony Rizzo drove in a run on a groundout in the first but had his streak of four straight games with a homer snapped.
The Cubs also lost manager Joe Maddon after he was ejected in the third for arguing a safe call confirmed on another replay review.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cubs: Maddon expects C Miguel Montero, who has been on the disabled list since July 12 with a sprained left thumb, to return soon. "I don't think it's going take very long for him to be OK," Maddon said.
Brewers: Manager Craig Counsell said that young LF Khris Davis should get regular plate appearances following the trades of outfielders Carlos Gomez and Gerardo Parra. Davis was hitting .196 with two homers and seven RBIs in 46 at-bats since coming off the disabled list on July 7. He missed about five weeks with a right knee injury.
UP NEXT
Cubs: Ace LHP Jon Lester (6-8) opens the Pirates series for the Cubs. Lester is coming off a 14-strikeout performance in last game, a 3-2 win on July 29 against Colorado.
Brewers: RHP Wily Peralta (2-5) makes his second start since coming off the DL for a left oblique injury when the San Diego Padres open a four-game series at Miller Park.
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