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          Dodgers Report

          Rapid Reaction: Dodgers 8, Cubs 4

          • Mark Saxon, ESPN Staff WriterSep 19, 2014, 12:18 AM ET
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              Mark Saxon covers the St. Louis Cardinals for ESPN.com. He served as the Dodgers team reporter for ESPNLosAngeles.com. through the 2015 season. He spent six years at the Orange County Register, and began his career at the Oakland Tribune, where he started an 11-year journey covering Major League Baseball. He has also covered colleges, including USC football and UCLA basketball.
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          CHICAGO -- The Los Angeles Dodgers went into Thursday’s game against the Chicago Cubs with a .018 winning percentage when trailing after six innings.

          Make that .036.

          They rallied from a three-run deficit in the seventh inning to beat the Cubs 8-4 Thursday night and accelerate their pursuit of the NL West title.

          The win padded the Dodgers’ division lead to 2 1/2 games over the idle San Francisco Giants and reduced their magic number to eight. And since the Milwaukee Brewers lost on Thursday, the Dodgers could clinch at least a wild-card berth as early as Friday.

          How it happened: For the third game in a row, the Dodgers got into trouble right away -- not the easiest formula for success. Zack Greinke gave up a hit to leadoff man Chris Coghlan and the first four Cubs reached base, leading to two first-inning runs. The difference between Thursday and the previous two games was that Greinke was able to keep a lid on things for the most part and the Dodgers eventually rallied. The hinge play in the seventh was Juan Uribe’s sharply hit grounder to second baseman Logan Watkins that looked like a surefire inning-ending double play. Instead, Watkins overran it for an error, Andre Ethier sliced an RBI double and the Dodgers went on to add four unearned runs. They’ll take whatever they can get at this time of year.

          Hits: The Dodgers are getting good energy at the top of the lineup. Yasiel Puig is beginning to hit rockets again and Dee Gordon is finding ways to hit his way on base. Gordon bunted for a hit in the fourth and nailed an RBI double during the seventh-inning rally. Puig also drove in a run in the seventh and singled to left. Gordon is batting .363 during his 11-game hitting streak, and Puig is hitting .379 on this road trip.

          Misses: The Dodgers got Greinke off the hook with their error-aided seventh-inning rally, but it was far from their No. 2 starter’s most artful performance. Pitching efficiency in general has been an issue for Greinke lately, and he has struggled to pitch deep into games. Cubs rookie Jorge Soler singled to left field on Greinke’s 100th pitch in the fifth inning, and Greinke didn’t come back out for the sixth. He allowed four runs on nine hits. Just once in Greinke’s last four starts has he pitched as deep as the seventh inning.

          Stat of the game: Thursday was the eighth anniversary of the back-to-back-to-back-to-back home run game against the San Diego Padres. Jeff Kent, J.D. Drew, Russell Martin and Marlon Anderson homered consecutively to send the game into extra innings, and Nomar Garciaparra, now a Dodgers broadcaster, homered in the 11th to win it.

          Up next: Clayton Kershaw (19-3) tries to become the majors’ first 20-game winner. The Dodgers will face Edwin Jackson (6-14, 6.09 ERA) Friday in a game that begins at 11:10 a.m. PT.