Major League Baseball

Cubs lose to Dodgers 6-2 for 2nd straight defeat

Published Aug. 27, 2013 3:43 a.m. ET

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The Cubs finally got Zack Greinke out of the game with a couple of runs. It was too late to stave off their eighth consecutive loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Brian Bogusevic's two-out double in the ninth spoiled Greinke's shutout bid, but the Cubs were beaten 6-2 on Monday night. They have dropped six of seven, including a 3-2 defeat in 15 innings at San Diego on Sunday.

Bogusevic worked Greinke to a 3-2 count before doubling to deep left, giving the left fielder five RBIs through four games on the team's West Coast trip.

Brian Wilson struck out Donnie Murphy for the final out.

Jake Arrieta (1-1) gave up four runs and six hits in five-plus innings, struck out three and walked five in his first road start for the Cubs since being acquired on July 2 from Baltimore.

''The margin for error is very low against a guy like Greinke. He pitched a tremendous game,'' Arrieta said. ''The thing was, I had a high strike percentage, but there were a couple of hitters that I got a little out of whack against and walked them on four pitches. That's a little uncharacteristic.

''Combine that with a couple of hits, they were able to put some runs on the board in the fourth and the sixth.''

The Cubs got swept by the Dodgers in four games at Wrigley Field earlier this month. The Dodgers equaled their longest winning streak over Chicago in franchise history, set from June 9, 1974-May 19, 1975.

Greinke (13-3) allowed two runs and five hits in 8 2-3 innings. He tied his season high with nine strikeouts and he walked two while improving to 5-0 this month. The right-hander has won 10 of 11 decisions since June 22.

Greinke helped himself offensively, too, with a two-out hit in the fourth that scored the Dodgers' first run.

''He put a heck of a swing on a curveball there and got himself an RBI knock,'' Arrieta said. ''I wanted that pitch below the zone. It was below the zone, but just low enough. Greinke's a great athlete and he found a way to get it into left field. He can swing the bat a little bit.''

After giving up a single to Starlin Castro to open the game, Greinke retired the next 13 batters before Murphy singled in the fifth.

Greinke got the first two outs of the ninth before running into trouble. Anthony Rizzo doubled, then Greinke hit Nate Schierholtz before Bogusevic's RBI double.

Greinke issued consecutive one-out walks to Murphy and Welington Castillo in the eighth before Darwin Barney grounded into a fielder's choice to third. Murphy advanced to third and Castillo was out at second.

The Dodgers thought they had completed the double play, but second baseman Mark Ellis' throw didn't beat Barney to first, leading Dodgers manager Don Mattingly to shout, ''Out!'' from the dugout.

Greinke then got pinch-hitter Dioner Navarro to ground out to third, ending the inning.

Yasiel Puig hit his 13th homer on his first pitch from Michael Bowden with two outs in the eighth.

Hanley Ramirez homered off Carlos Villanueva with one out in the seventh, extending the Dodgers' lead to 5-0.

Los Angeles had tacked on a pair of runs in the sixth on Nick Punto's RBI double and Carl Crawford's sacrifice fly that made it 4-0.

The Dodgers took a 2-0 lead in the fourth on two-out hits by Greinke and Crawford. Greinke's single scored A.J. Ellis, who walked, and Crawford's ground-rule double to deep left scored Punto, who walked.

Notes: Arrieta fell to 0-2 against the Dodgers this season, having lost to them on April 21 when he was with Baltimore. ... The Cubs fell to 30-35 on the road, where they are better than at home (25-41).

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