Alex Bregman Just Had the Game of His Life — and the Cubs Are Rolling

WASHINGTON — Alex Bregman has never done this before. Not once. In 10-plus big league seasons, the three-time All-Star had stacked multi-homer games, but never a three-jack night. That all changed Wednesday, in emphatic fashion.

Bregman launched three homers, drove in a career-high seven runs, and the Chicago Cubs demolished the Washington Nationals 12-6. It was the kind of performance that makes you check the box score twice.

One night, three bombs

Bregman started the fireworks in the fifth, ripping a sweeper from Jake Bird into the visitors' bullpen in left for a three-run shot that capped a four-run inning. The Cubs led, but they weren't done.

Dansby Swanson put Chicago ahead in the sixth with a go-ahead RBI double off Tom Cosgrove. Two batters later, Seiya Suzuki added a two-run single, and then Bregman pulled a two-run shot to left off rookie Yovanny Cruz to make it 9-4. Just for good measure, Bregman added a two-run drive off Trevor Williams into the Chicago bullpen in the eighth.

History made

This was Bregman's ninth multi-homer game, but his first-ever three-homer performance. He's now got 16 homers in his first season with the Cubs. Swanson was the last Cub to go deep three times in a game, doing so July 1 against San Diego.

The Cubs have won eight of nine and are a season-high 21 games over .500 at 71-50. They're sitting just three games behind NL Central-leading Milwaukee, and nights like this make you believe something special is brewing on the North Side.

Pitching notes

David Peterson improved to 7-7 despite allowing four runs (three earned) over five innings, striking out six. He's now 9-2 with a 3.23 ERA in 17 appearances against Washington in his career — and he's still never allowed a home run to the Nationals in 86 1/3 innings.

Javier Assad spelled the bullpen with four scoreless innings of relief for his second save.

On the other side, Washington got homers from Abimelec Ortiz and José Tena, plus three RBIs from Daylen Lile, but it wasn't nearly enough. Jackson Kent's major league debut was forgettable: three runs, three hits and five walks over four-plus innings, though he did strike out six.

By the end, this was less a game and more a Bregman highlight reel — and the Nationals were just along for the ride.