BOX SCORE
CHICAGO — Cubs manager Craig Counsell tried to simplify the task his team faced.
Down 2-0 in the best-of-five NL Division Series to the Milwaukee Brewers, it was just about taking it one step at a time.
“In the end, it boils down to just taking care of pitches, taking care of the moment and not getting past it. That’s all you think about,” Counsell said during the team’s workout Tuesday afternoon, one day before Game 3 of the NLDS at Wrigley Field. “Win the moment, and then move on to the next one. We’re going to have to do it a whole bunch over the course of three games.
“That’s the challenge, and it’s a big one, and it’s a fun one. But that’s the one in front of us. We get to tackle it tomorrow.”
They did it — even if it was nerve-racking to the bitter end.
The Cubs eked out a 4-3 win over their northern neighbors Wednesday night to stave off elimination and play at least one more game in 2025. The opening act of the script followed the same one as the first two games of the series. The second and final act, though, followed a new screenplay — one much more in line with what Cubs fans wanted to see.
Here are three takeaways from the Cubs’ first win in the best-of-five series:
Another hot start
The Cubs couldn’t have asked for better starts in each of their two first innings in the series, scoring one run in Game 1 and three runs in Game 2.
That trend continued in Game 3.
Michael Busch led off the frame with a solo home run to right field, making some history along the way, as he also homered to start Game 1.
But the Cubs didn’t stop there, which was the important thing.
Nico Hoerner followed with a single, and Kyle Tucker drew a walk. Ian Happ coaxed a free pass two batters later to load the bases, and Pete Crow-Armstrong then delivered the big knock with two outs, roping a single to right field to score two runs and send the Wrigley crowd into a frenzy.
Happ scored one batter later on a wild pitch, making it 4-1 Cubs.
It was the kind of opening act they needed to engage an anxious crowd that knew it could be the last time the Cubs played in 2025.
The timing of it was key, too.
The Brewers had taken the lead on a fluky play in the top of the first inning. William Contreras hit a one-out pop-up that wasn’t called an infield fly — and thus an automatic out — and instead dropped for a base hit to load the bases. Christian Yelich scored one batter later on a sacrifice fly to give Milwaukee the lead.
The Cubs negated it with their big bottom half of the inning, but it was a wild way to start an elimination game.
Jamo delivers again
Facing elimination for the second time this season, the Cubs again turned to Jameson Taillon to extend their season.
And Taillon again did his share.
The veteran right-hander delivered the best start by a Cubs pitcher in the NLDS and kept a pesky Brewers lineup at bay.
Taillon again showed his importance to Counsell’s pitching staff, playing the role of stopper in the Cubs’ biggest game of the season. He attacked the Brewers’ lineup and worked out of trouble more than once.
Taillon escaped that first-inning jam with a Caleb Durbin flyout. He gave up three consecutive singles in the fourth but wiggled out of it when Brett Lockridge’s bunt was turned into a fielder’s choice out at home plate and Joey Ortiz later grounded out to third.
That put the bow on Taillon’s outing, and he turned it over to the Cubs’ bullpen, which allowed only one run over the final 15 outs to seal the win.
Momentum?
The pop-fly issue aside, this pretty much was exactly what the Cubs hoped for with their backs against the wall.
They had a big first inning, played solid defense and limited the Brewers at the plate. That’s some good momentum to build off, for sure.
But can they carry that over to Thursday? That’s the biggest question the Cubs will face between now and first pitch in Game 4 at Wrigley.
They had momentum after claiming a winner-take-all Game 3 in the NL Wild Card Series against the San Diego Padres, then lost two in a row to the Brewers.
So, the Cubs have another elimination game at Wrigley, and a similar performance could mean they’ll head 90 miles north for another winner-take-all game with an NL Championship Series trip on the line.
