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In a must-win scenario that had Wrigley Field buzzing with electric tension, the Chicago Cubs delivered a masterclass in playoff baseball, blanking the Milwaukee Brewers 6-0 in Game 4 of the National League Division Series. The victory evens the series at 2-2, setting the stage for a winner-take-all Game 5 back at American Family Field in Milwaukee. For the Cubs, it was a gritty response to the brink of elimination, powered by early fireworks and airtight pitching against their heated NL Central rivals.
The tone was set almost immediately in the bottom of the first inning, as Chicago ambushed Brewers ace Freddy Peralta for three quick runs. Nico Hoerner kicked things off with a sharp single to left, and Kyle Tucker – the Cubs’ high-profile offseason acquisition who’s now staring down free agency – drew a walk to put runners at the corners. Seiya Suzuki went down swinging, but Ian Happ didn’t miss his chance. On a 1-1 fastball right down the middle, Happ crushed a three-run homer to right field, his second of the series and a dagger that silenced the visiting Milwaukee faithful. It was Happ’s drive that marked the Cubs as the first team in postseason history to homer in the first inning of four straight games in a single playoff run.
Peralta, who entered with a 1-0 series lead for the Brewers, steadied the ship momentarily, retiring Carson Kelly to strand any further threats. But the damage was done: Chicago led 3-0, and the Brewers’ offense, which had exploded for 9 runs in Game 1, looked punchless against Cubs starter Matthew Boyd. The left-hander was lights-out through 4.2 innings, surrendering just one hit – a double by Sal Frelick – while walking three and fanning six, including a pivotal strikeout of Christian Yelich with runners in scoring position in the fifth. Boyd’s command was surgical, mixing cutters and changeups to keep Milwaukee’s bats guessing, and he escaped a bases-loaded jam in the top of the fifth when reliever Daniel Palencia induced a pop-out from Jackson Chourio.
The middle innings dragged into a pitcher’s duel, with Peralta settling in to retire the side in order in the third. But the Brewers couldn’t muster much offense of their own. They stranded runners in scoring position multiple times, including two in the fifth after Frelick’s double and a walk to Blake Perkins, only for Joey Ortiz’s sacrifice bunt to be neutralized by Boyd’s strikeout of Yelich. Milwaukee’s bullpen, taxed early after Peralta’s rough start, saw Trevor Megill load the bases in the fifth before Aaron Ashby wriggled out of it with a strikeout of Suzuki and a flyout from Happ. A bizarre moment came when Kelly’s apparent two-run homer down the left-field line was overturned on review, ruled foul by mere inches – a call the Cubs unsuccessfully challenged, with Kelly grounding out immediately after.
Chicago tacked on insurance in the bottom of the seventh, capitalizing on a Milwaukee miscue. Kelly reached on an error by third baseman Connor Durbin, Dansby Swanson drew a walk, and Matt Shaw ripped an RBI single to center, plating Kelly for a 4-0 cushion. Ashby then retired Michael Busch, but Chad Patrick couldn’t contain the rally entirely as Hoerner was retired with runners aboard. Moments later, Tucker struck again, launching a solo homer off Robert Gasser to make it 5-0 – his first of the postseason and a timely reminder of why the Cubs traded for the former Astros star last winter.
From there, it was all Cubs bullpen, with Palencia, Drew Pomeranz, Brad Keller, and Scott Thielbar combining for 4.1 scoreless innings, allowing just two hits and one walk while scattering groundouts to close out the shutout. The staff’s dominance was total: zero runs allowed on three hits, underscoring Chicago’s depth after a rollercoaster series that saw the Brewers romp in Games 1 and 2 before the Cubs clawed back with a 4-3 thriller in Game 3.
Standout performances abounded for the North Siders. Happ’s three RBIs were the game’s difference-makers, while Tucker’s multi-faceted night (walk, homer, two runs scored) highlighted his value as the designated hitter. Hoerner chipped in with two hits, and Shaw’s timely knock proved pivotal. On the flip side, the Brewers left 10 runners on base, their bats stifled by Chicago’s pitching and unable to overcome the early hole despite Peralta’s 5.2 innings of work, in which he allowed four hits and three earned runs.
As the series shifts back to Milwaukee for Friday’s decider, the Cubs carry the momentum of survival. “We came out swinging and never let up,” one Cubs insider noted postgame, capturing the sentiment in a clubhouse that refused to fold. For the Brewers, it’s back to the drawing board against a Cubs squad that’s now hit home runs in every game of the series – a first for any team in NLDS history. Game 5 promises fireworks, with both clubs’ seasons on the line in this intradivision blood feud.Â
