6th straight W puts Cubs in historic company

CHICAGO — Addison Russell drove in three runs, including two on a tie-breaking double with two outs in the seventh inning, to lift the Cubs to an 8-5 victory over the Nationals on Saturday. Chicago now has a 3-0 lead in this four-game showdown between the teams with the best records in the National League.

The Cubs improved to 23-6 and are the first NL team to win 23 of its first 29 games since the 1977 Dodgers.

Kris Bryant defied a 20-mph wind with a solo home run in the fourth to put Chicago ahead, 2-1, and the Cubs took a 5-4 lead in the sixth on pinch-hitter Ryan Kalish’s two-run single. But the Nationals tied the score in the seventh as Ben Revere tripled and scored two batters later on Ryan Zimmerman’s fielder’s choice.

With one out in the Chicago seventh, Bryant walked and reached third on Anthony Rizzo’s ground-rule double. Ben Zobrist was intentionally walked, and one out later, Russell lined a double to right. The Nationals challenged whether Russell’s hit was fair, and after a review, the call stood.

The Cubs have a +101 run differential through 29 games (180 runs scored, 79 allowed). Through 29 games last season, the Cardinals led the Majors at +50 (134-84) and were 22-7.

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