Jameson Taillon’s return helped the Cubs finally flip the Brewers script

The Chicago Cubs looked dead in the water following their 7-0 loss on Monday to the Milwaukee Brewers. The series opening loss put Craig Counsell's squad nine games back in the division and another poor game from Kyle Tucker landed the struggling outfielder on the bench. But for the first time in what seems a very long time the Cubs finally gave their fans some hope that the team could be turning it around thanks to the steady performance of their returning starting pitcher.

The offense stepped up in game one of Tuesday's double header against the Brewers as rookie outfielder Owen Caissie drove in three runs and hit his first MLB home run in a 6-4 win. The nightcap against Milwaukee looked like the Brewers were back to being the annoying pest to Chicago as the Brewers quickly took a 1-0 lead in the first inning and then Brandon Woodruff escaped a first-and-third jam. However, the Cubs finally turned the tide against their division rivals, as Jameson Taillon shut down the hottest team in baseball.

Jameson Taillon returns from IL and sweeps Brewers

The Brewers have been on an incredible run since the end of May, but they've looked unstoppable since the All-Star break. Entering this five-game series against the Cubs at Wrigley Field the Brewers had not lost two consecutive games since July 25 and 26, against the Miami Marlins. Since then, Milwaukee lost a total of two games.

But baseball is unpredictable. OK yeah, the Cubs won the first game of Tuesday's double header as Counsell used all his top relievers to hold on to the lead in the final four innings. Caissie had a big home run late in the game to give the team some breathing room heading into the ninth. Solid win, but Cubs fans weren't expecting Jameson Taillon to out-pitch Brandon Woodruff.

Since coming back from the injured list on July 6, Woodruff recorded a 2.06 ERA in seven starts and didn't allow more than two runs in any of those games as he prepared for the Cubs Tuesday night. Meanwhile, Taillon was set to make his first start in the majors since June 29, as the veteran right-hander missed nearly two months because of a calf strain. Prior to the injury Taillon had struggled on the mound and saw his ERA go up to 4.44. Advantage Brewers, right?

Wrong. After allowing a two-out RBI single to Andrew Vaughn in the first inning and working around a jam in the second, Taillon retired 12 of the last 13 batters that he faced. Suddenly the dominant pitching was on the Cubs' side, while Woodruff was out of the game in the fifth inning.

Cubs clutch hits helped back Jameson Taillon's performance

It was the Cubs, not the Brewers coming through with clutch hits. Michael Busch and Nico Hoerner each had two-out, RBI hits. You want hustle? Players going all out on the field? It was rookie Matt Shaw, running like a wild animal for a triple that set up an insurance run for the Cubs.

The big defensive play? It came from the Cubs as Willi Castro threw out Brice Turang, ending the seventh inning with a double play at home.

Taillon pitched six innings and while he wasn't flashy, striking out four, walking one and allowing five hits, it got the job done.

That was the first game since July 25 that the Brewers were held to only one run.

Milwaukee probably isn't sweating the double header sweep, but it was certainly a big positive for the Cubs. The Brewers still have the division in control, but it's important to point out that if the Cubs do win one of the next two games, then they'll win the season series against the Brewers, which means Chicago will have the tiebreaker over Milwaukee.