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Cubs extend their division lead with win over Pirates

Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon likes to talk about getting "jug" runs late in the game, as in going for the jugular.

That mentality appears to be in the works for the Cubs as far as the season goes, even though Maddon wouldn't say so exactly.

The Cubs entered Saturday with a 10½-game lead over the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central, and the lead was 13 over the Pirates.

You can add another to that as the Cubs came from behind Saturday night to beat the Pirates 4-3 at Wrigley Field. The Cardinals fell 4-3 to the Texas Rangers.

In other words, the Cubs are going for the jugular for the season, and it's only Father's Day.

"It would be awesome to be able to do that," Maddon said. "I'm just focusing on us winning. That's one of those things that if you do that, that other stuff takes care of itself. I don't look for 15 (games ahead). I don't really think in those terms. We're playing the Pirates. I think about us winning and hopefully gaining that next increment of 5.

"That's where my focus is, not the negative side of them 5, 10 or 15. It's more the positive side of us 10, 15 or 20."

On a gorgeous night before 41,424 revved up fans, the Cubs used the longball to pound away at the Pirates. Solo homers by Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and David Ross did most of the damage, as did some small-ball, in the form of a successful squeeze bunt by Ross.

The Cubs even withstood the loss of center fielder Dexter Fowler, who left after the first inning with right-hamstring discomfort. He'll undergo an MRI, but Maddon said he was "a little sore."

Rizzo connected for his 16th home run of the season to lead off the second. It was a drive that got out quickly to right field against Pirates starting pitcher Jonathon Niese. It tied the game at 1-1 after the Pirates' Jordy Mercer led off the game with a homer against Cubs lefty Jon Lester. The Pirates scored single runs in each of the third and fourth innings before the Cubs came back.

Ross' squeeze bunt toward first base brought the Cubs within a run in the fourth. In the fifth, Bryant crushed his 16th, a booming drive out of the park to left. Ross finally put the Cubs ahead in the sixth with a one-out solo shot that chased Niese.

"It' just nice to contribute," said Ross who took a curtain call. "Yeah, it's nice to get runs across, no matter what it is. Joe had the bunt on there, and it was nice to get that run across and chip away at their lead. We knew if we could get it close, we had a chance. Usually it's somebody else on this team, so it's nice for me to get a big hit every once in awhile."

Lester (9-3, 2.06 ERA) worked 6 innings, giving up 7 hits and 3 runs. He was helped by some sparkling defense, especially by third baseman Javier Baez, who made several nice plays, including throwing a batter out while still on the ground. Lester has marveled at the maturity of his young teammates, but he wasn't getting caught up in the big division lead.

"I don't think the guys are concerned about that," he said. "I think that's what makes us really good. We live in the moment, and then we either enjoy the victory or talk about the loss and move on to the next one. Obviously it's nice to have a cushion, but you can't worry about leads right now. We've got a lot of baseball to go."

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