MILWAUKEE — Oh, sure. Why shouldn’t the Cubs have loved their chances in the 10th inning Sunday just because the Brewers trailed 4-3 and had the bases loaded with nobody out against emergency call-up Jordan Wicks, he of the 15.63 ERA in two previous big-league appearances this season?
At that point, it was either Wicks or a bucket with an upside-down mop in it to stand tall atop the mound at American Family Field and face down the first-place Brewers, who already had scored two runs in the inning. Given the state of the Cubs’ injury-ravaged pitching staff, Wicks probably was the better way to go.
Facing his first batter, pinch hitter Garrett Mitchell, with the score at 4-2, Wicks walked in a run. But then — just as the home fans began making more of a ruckus than the thousands upon thousands of Cubs fans on hand — Wicks got Jake Bauers to pop out and Gary Sanchez to roll into a 5-4-3 double play.
Game over. Series won, two out of three. Hope restored that maybe, just maybe, the Brewers aren’t untouchable in the division and that maybe, just maybe, the Cubs — injuries and all — are the team to hunt them down.
You know, maybe?
‘‘I think this shows a lot,’’ shortstop Dansby Swanson said. ‘‘It shows the toughness of this group, the competitive spirit, the willingness to fight. That what it takes to be good in this league, that’s what it takes to beat a good team like them and that’s what it takes to be able to build off the confidence in winning.’’
Man, though, does it take a lot to outfight the Brewers (50-31), who still lead the Cubs (46-38) by 5½ games in a division they’re trying to win for the fourth season in a row.
A parade of bullpen guys — Ryan Rolison, Bryse Wilson, Caleb Thielbar, Tyler Ferguson, Jacob Webb, Ethan Roberts, Wicks — somehow got the Cubs from the start to the finish, with only Roberts failing to rise to the moment. Newcomer Wilson was so clutch in 4⅓ innings, it almost defied reason. Only two of the hurlers, Thielbar and Webb, were even on the Cubs’ Opening Day roster. Some of them might not stay on it for long at all.
‘‘I don’t know what’s next, but that was crazy,’’ Wicks said.
Even with a badly needed two-out, two-run single by Seiya Suzuki that made it 4-1 in the 10th, the Cubs nearly went home with what would have been the biggest gut-punch loss of the season.
It’s amazing to sit back and really think about it: These Cubs were the first major-league team in 71 years to have two 10-game winning streaks before their 40th game of the season. They piled up 15 victories in a row at Wrigley Field, the longest Cubs home streak in 91 years. They have a winning record on the road and a superstar in Pete Crow-Armstrong, who’s leading all big-league position players in WAR. They’ve done all that, but they’re still not all that close to the Brewers, who are second only to the Dodgers for the majors’ best record and best run differential.
One big factor has been the head-to-head season series, which the Brewers still lead 4-2, having swept a three-game set at Wrigley in May. Combined, Crow-Armstrong, Alex Bregman, Michael Busch, Ian Happ and Swanson had zero hits Sunday and are 9-for-104 (.086) in those six games. If that doesn’t turn around in a big way during the teams’ remaining seven games, all in late summer, the Cubs can forget about anything better than competing for another wild-card spot.
Again, it’s going to be hard as all get-out to top the Brewers.
‘‘I wouldn’t necessarily use the word ‘hard,’ ’’ Busch pushed back. ‘‘Obviously, they’re a good team. But we know how good we can be. It’s more of a battle.’’
If it’s a battle, it’s one the Cubs widely are expected to lose. Their odds on one leading sportsbook to win the division after the weekend were 6-to-1.
‘‘Really, we’re just trying to stack wins together, no matter who it’s against,’’ Busch said. ‘‘The opponent doesn’t matter.’’
But it has to mean more when it’s against the Brewers, doesn’t it?
‘‘Well, yeah, for sure,’’ he said. ‘‘Especially when it’s the Brewers. They kind of have a hold on the division right now, but there’s still a lot of season left.’’
The Cubs can’t piece together an active roster with tin cans and string for too long, however. We’ll see if having a hard-to-come-by good overall experience in Milwaukee — to complete a 6-1 road trip — buoys the team for a bit longer.
‘‘That was a fun game,’’ manager Craig Counsell said. ‘‘It was a fun game, but now it’s over and on to the next one.’’