CHICAGO -- The Cubs are on the cusp of clinching their second consecutive trip to the postseason, but the champagne will need to be kept on ice at least one more night.
The North Siders’ bullpen held the line for a long stretch before a late flurry by the Marlins sent the Cubs to an 8-2 loss in 12 innings at Wrigley Field. With the D-backs beating the Rockies on Tuesday, Chicago remains one win, or one Arizona loss, away from sealing a spot in the playoffs as one of the National League’s Wild Card teams.
The Cubs (87-70) are currently tied with the Phillies in the standings, while the Padres (87-69) hold a half-game lead, pending the result of their late game with the Dodgers. Chicago holds the tiebreaker over Philadelphia and San Diego, having won the season series against each team.
Cubs lefty Shota Imanaga turned in five solid innings -- his lone setback coming via an RBI single by Agustín Ramírez in the fourth -- and the bullpen was strong for the next six frames, as well. The only blemish prior to the 12th was a solo homer that Kyle Stowers launched against Cubs right-hander Aaron Civale in the sixth.
In the 12th, Miami broke through for six runs combined against lefty Caleb Thielbar and righty Edward Cabrera to pull away.
The Cubs’ lineup, which was without Alex Bregman as he recovers from being hit in the face by a foul ball on Sunday, was blanked over five innings by Marlins starter Jansen Junk. Chicago did break through for a pair of runs in the sixth against Miami’s bullpen -- one run coming courtesy of an RBI single by Ian Happ. From the seventh through 11th innings, though, the Cubs went 0-for-8 with runners on base.
Pete Crow-Armstrong continued his pursuit of becoming the seventh player in MLB history to reach at least 40 homers and 40 stolen bases in a season. He drew a walk against Junk in the third and promptly stole second, giving him 39 steals to go along with his 45 homers in his MVP-caliber campaign.