CHICAGO _ The Brewers downed the Cubs, 7-0, before 37,870 at Wrigley Field Friday afternoon, winning their seventh straight and moving into a first-place tie in the National League Central.
Gio Gonzalez pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings in his third start, allowing only two hits for his first win. Ryan Braun homered to kick-start the Brewers offense, and they never looked back.
Cubs left-hander Jose Quintana pitched well before tiring in the seventh, falling to 4-2 on the season.
The Brewers have now beaten the Cubs in 11 of their last 15 meetings.
Braun's solo home run came off Quintana in the fourth, his 18th career homer at Wrigley in 84 games. The Brewers knocked out Quintana during a two-run seventh, and added four more insurance runs off the Cubs bullpen in the eighth and ninth.
With runners on second and third and no outs in the seventh, Mike Moustakas hit a grounder to Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who made an ill-advised throw to the plate instead of taking the easy out at first. Yasmani Grandal beat the throw to the plate, and Moustakas reached on the fielder's choice.
A bases-loaded sacrifice fly by Ben Gamel made it 3-0.
The Brewers scored a pair in the eighth after a throwing error on a pickoff attempt at first by catcher Willson Contreras put runners in scoring position.
Friday's game was the first of a three-game series between the two division rivals, and the first time they've met at Wrigley since the Brewers took Game 163 last Oct. 1 to win the division.
