CHICAGO _ The lack of clutch hitting left the Cubs bullpen with no margin for error, and it looked ominous Tuesday after Andrew McCutchen's two-out single in the seventh inning scored the tying and go-ahead runs as the Phillies took a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth at chilly Wrigley Field.
But the Cubs offense, which was 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position and had stranded 12 runners, came alive in the bottom of the ninth for a 3-2 victory.
Kris Bryant led off with a walk and moved to third on a double by Anthony Rizzo off Juan Nicasio. With one out, Jason Heyward was intentionally walked.
Albert Almora Jr. hit a dribbler in front of the mound that Nicasio charged but lobbed home too late to get a force play on Bryant as the tying run scored.
Javier Baez, who missed his second consecutive start because of a right heel bruise, came off the bench to hit a single to right for the game-winning hit.
Bryant provided the first run when he scored from second base on a grounder to shortstop in the first. The Cubs went on to load the bases but didn't score.
That set the tone on a miserable night in which they nearly wasted six scoreless innings by Jose Quintana.
In the seventh, Carl Edwards Jr. allowed a single to Cesar Hernandez and a one-out double by Maikel Franco that sailed well over the head of Kyle Schwarber in left.
With two out, manager Joe Maddon summoned Brandon Kintzler, who had stranded 12 of the 13 runners he inherited.
But McCutchen singled up the middle to wipe out the Cubs' lead.
The Cubs also lost a run on a review in the second. With two out, Bryant hit a double down the left-field line that enabled Schwarber to score from first. But Phillies manager Gabe Kapler asked for a review, and replays showed the ball left the field of play, forcing Schwarber to return to third.
Rizzo flied to center to end the inning.
