Brewers resume 4-game set with Cubs

Young right-hander Tyler Thornburg can continue a stretch of quality starts on Wednesday night when the Milwaukee Brewers host the Chicago Cubs in game three of a four-game series at Miller Park.

The 24-year-old Texan has appeared in 16 overall games for the Brewers in 2013 and made five starts, most recently on Sept. 12 at St. Louis, where he gave up two runs on three hits in six innings of a 5-3 victory.

His fourth start had come 10 days earlier and resulted in similar numbers, with Thornburg giving up two runs on six hits in six innings of a tough luck 5-2 loss to Pittsburgh.

He's pitched six innings in each of five starts and given up 25 hits and seven runs in 30 innings.

The first of those five starts came against the Cubs on July 30 in Chicago and ended in a 3-2 win after Thornburg was touched for just four hits in six scoreless innings with six strikeouts.

For the Cubs, 26-year-old lefty Chris Rusin faces the Brewers for the second time in 12 days.

He was the recipient of a no-decision in a 3 2/3-inning outing at Chicago on Sept. 6 and was nicked for seven hits and two runs in a game the hosts ultimately won, 8-5.

Rusin took a hard luck 3-1 loss at Pittsburgh in one subsequent outing after tossing seven innings and allowing four hits and two runs.

His last victory came Aug. 9 at St. Louis and the Cubs are 2-4 in six subsequent games which he's pitched.

On Tuesday, a suicide squeeze by Logan Schafer in the bottom of the ninth brought home the winning run, and the Brewers picked up a 4-3 win over the Cubs.

Schafer came up to face Justin Grimm (0-2) with the bases loaded and one out. Jeff Bianchi stood at third and broke for home when Schafer dropped a bunt down the third base line. The Cubs didn't see it coming and Bianchi scored easily to lift the Brewers to victory, their fifth in six games.

Carlos Gomez went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBI in the win. Jim Henderson (5-5) tossed a scoreless ninth behind seven solid innings from starter Marco Estrada. He allowed three runs and struck out seven.

Welington Castillo went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer for the Cubs, losers of four straight and six of seven.

The Brewers won 10 of the first 15 games with the Cubs this season, after winning the 2012 season series 13-4.