CHICAGO (AP) — Colin Ray pitched the seventh inning and the Chicago Cubs beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-1 on Monday night for their sixth straight victory.
Dansby Swanson hit a three-run homer for Chicago and Michael Conforto added a sacrifice fly.
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Since the Cubs won six consecutive games from August 26 to September 1, 2024, they defeated their opponents 44-14, which is the team’s longest winning streak. They are tied with Atlanta for the longest active winning streak in the majors.
The Phillies have lost six straight and seven of eight. They trailed 42-10 during their losing streak.
Rhea (3-0) allowed one run and six hits in 6 2/3 innings, helped by a stellar defensive performance from his Cubs teammates.
Gold Glove left fielder Ian Happ entered the stands to catch a fly ball from Kyle Schwarber. Gold Glove second baseman Nico Hoerner made diving stops on hard grounders from Bryce Harper in the first and Schwarber in the seventh. First baseman Michael Busch took a diving steal off Bryson Stott in the sixth inning.
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Matt Shaw also provided a nice assist by catching Trea Turner on a line drive to right field in the ninth inning.
Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola (1-2) allowed five runs and six hits in 4 1/3 innings. He struck out five and walked four.
The Cubs took control in the second quarter. They loaded the bases with no outs and Happ ran home when Miguel Amaya bounced into a double.
After Pete Crow-Armstrong loaded the bases, Swanson hit a 3-1 sinker to center for a 4-0 lead. Swanson’s fifth home run of the season had a projected distance of 424 feet.
The Phillies scored their only run in the fourth on Justin Crawford’s RBI double. Crawford was in trouble when Rafael Marchán jumped to first in the final inning.
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Jesús Luzardo (1-3, 7.94 ERA) will start for the Phillies on Tuesday night and left-hander Shota Imanaga (1-1, 2.45) pitches for the Cubs.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
