Wood waits out Brewers in 13th to lift Cubs

MILWAUKEE — Thirty-eight games into their season and the National League Central-leading Cubs still have not lost on consecutive days.

They came close on Wednesday night at Miller Park, but Chicago tied the game in the ninth off previously perfect Brewers closer Jeremy Jeffress, escaped a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the 12th and won in the 13th, 2-1, on pitcher Travis Wood’s bases-loaded walk.

Wood retired three straight Brewers batters with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 12th before stepping to the plate against Carlos Torres, who had just intentionally walked Miguel Montero to move the potential go-ahead run to third base, knowing the Cubs had long ago employed their last bench player. A career .181 hitter, Wood swung at strike one before looking at four consecutive pitches out of the zone.

He then returned to the mound for the bottom of the 13th and teamed with Neil Ramirez and Clayton Richard to seal the Cubs’ victory. Richard stranded the potential winning run at second base for his first career save.

Right-hander Jimmy Nelson continued the Brewers’ string of encouraging starts by pitching 7 1/3 scoreless innings, and reliever Tyler Thornburg stranded a pair of Cubs runners in the eighth to pass the shutout to Jeffress, who found trouble after hitting the first batter he faced with a curveball. The Cubs eventually tied the game on Addison Russell’s run-scoring …

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