Baez bunts Cubs to 10th-inning win over Nats

[September 14, 2018]  Chicago third baseman Javier Baez had three hits and three RBIs, and his bunt single in the 10th inning drove in the go-ahead run as the visiting Cubs slid past the Washington Nationals 4-3 in a makeup game Thursday at Nationals Park.

Kris Bryant doubled to left-center field with one out in the 10th inning off Sean Doolittle (3-3). Daniel Murphy reached on an infield single to put runners on the corners before Baez pushed a bunt past the mound toward second base that could not be fielded cleanly, driving in Bryant.

Baez wound up a triple short of the cycle and scored twice. Bryant had three hits and scored twice, and Anthony Rizzo had two hits for the Cubs, who had lost four of five.

Spencer Kieboom homered and Trea Turner had an RBI double for the Nationals, who had a five-game winning streak broken as the teams finally completed their four-game series disrupted by rain last weekend. There were nearly 11 hours of rain delays and exactly 10 hours of game play spanning the three games and two postponements, one of which was made up in a doubleheader swept by Washington on Saturday.

The Cubs (85-61) pulled 1 1/2 games ahead of Milwaukee in the National League Central after losing two of three to the Brewers in a series that concluded Wednesday. Chicago plays host to the Cincinnati Reds for three games this weekend.

Following a three-game series in Arizona that begins Monday, the Cubs play their final 10 games in Chicago, including a three-game series against the White Sox on the south side.

Pedro Strop (6-1), the eighth of nine Cubs' pitchers, got the victory, and Randy Rosario recorded his first career save. Strop was forced to leave the game when he sustained a left leg injury while attempting to beat out a double-play grounder to end the 10th.

Kieboom's second homer of the season, the first hit off Cubs starter Mike Montgomery, gave the Nationals a 1-0 lead in the third inning. Kieboom had a three-hit game against the Cubs last Thursday and hit his first homer Tuesday.

Cubs shortstop Javier Baez (9) is congratulated by teammates after scoring a run against the Washington Nationals during the fourth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

The Cubs scored twice in the fourth inning for a 2-1 lead. Bryant singled to open the inning and scored on Baez's opposite-field double. Victor Caratini singled to drive in score Baez, who is the first player in Cubs history with 35 doubles, 30 homers, 100 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in the same season.

After Victor Robles' sacrifice fly tied the game in the fifth inning, Baez homered for a 3-2 lead in the sixth. The Nationals tied it in the seventh when Robles walked, stole second and scored on Turner's double to cap an 11-pitch at-bat off Carl Edwards Jr.

Montgomery gave up three hits and two runs in four-plus innings, with two strikeouts and one walk.

Washington right-hander Joe Ross made his first official start of the season, giving up four hits and two runs in five innings. Ross, who missed last year after undergoing Tommy John surgery, pitched 1 2/3 innings against the Cubs last Friday before the game was called because of rain.

--Field Level Media

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