CHICAGO — The Cubs are still alive in the World Series, and they might have Cleveland right where they want them.
Kris Bryant, the likely National League MVP, homered to tie the game in the fourth inning, and Anthony Rizzo followed by doubling to spark a rally for two more runs and the Cubs, 18 outs from elimination before that, handed Cleveland a 3-2 loss, the American League champions’ first since Sept. 28 in a game they led.
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The game marked a shift in aggression in bullpen management, as Terry Francona, with many options available, let Trevor Bauer face the heart of the Cubs’ order a second time with disastrous results. Joe Maddon, meanwhile, turned to Aroldis Chapman with the tying run on second base in the seventh inning. Chapman threw 42 pitches in getting the final eight outs, an appearance that included Maddon choosing to let him hit with two outs and a runner in scoring position in the eighth, when the lefty flamethrower already had thrown 30 pitches.
The series shifts back to Cleveland for Game 6 on Tuesday, when the Cubs will have Jake Arrieta on the mound against Josh Tomlin on three days’ rest and Kyle Schwarber gets to return to the lineup as the designated hitter. Win that game, and Chicago gets one more crack at Corey Kluber, making a second straight short-rest start, to try to win their first world title since 1908.
Cleveland, of course, still needs just one more win for its first championship since 1948. But for a team that came into Sunday night down 3-1 in the series, and that trailed against a team with a feeling of invincibility early in Game 5, Chicago has to like where it stands now.
Here are the player ratings for Game 5.
MORE: Game 5 live blog
CLEVELAND
Rajai Davis – 7: Struck out leading off the game. Lined out to end the top of the third. Singled with one out in the sixth. Took advantage of Jon Lester’s refusal to make pickoff throws to steal second, enabling him to score on Francisco Lindor’s single. Got a gift single in the eighth when he grounded to first, Rizzo made a diving stop and Chapman didn’t cover the base. Stole second again with one out, then stole third with two outs — the first three-steal game since Melvin (then B.J.) Upton in 2008, and sixth all time.
Jason Kipnis – 3: Struck out on three pitches his first time up. Grounded out leading off the fourth. Struck out looking after Davis’ steal in the sixth. Popped up with the tying run on second in the eighth.
Francisco Lindor – 5: Struck out to end the top of the first inning. Flied out his second time up. Singled home Davis in the sixth to cut Cleveland’s deficit to one, but was caught stealing to end the inning on a great throw by David Ross and even better tag by Javier Baez. Struck out to end the top of the eighth.
Mike Napoli – 5: Popped up to start the second inning. Popped up again, into foul territory, to end the fourth. Led off the seventh with a long single. Grounded out leading off the ninth.
Carlos Santana – 5: In his first at-bat, popped out in foul territory on a ball that David Ross failed to reel in but Anthony Rizzo was there to snag by the dugout. Doubled to start the fifth inning. Flied out his next time up. Popped up in the ninth. Was adept again in left field, not at all a comfortable position for him.
Jose Ramirez – 6: Smashed a homer on the road for the first time since May to get Cleveland the lead in the second inning. Grounded out in his next at-bat, but advanced the runner from second to third on the first out of the inning. Struck out in the seventh with the tying run on second. Struck out to end the game.
Brandon Guyer – 4: Grounded out to end the top of the second on a questionable call as it appeared Rizzo’s foot was off first base, but Cleveland did not challenge. Struck out looking on another questionable call in the fifth, but you’ve got to swing the bat on a close pitch with two strikes. Got hit by an Aroldis Chapman in the least painful possible way as it grazed his pants.
Roberto Perez – 3: Popped up to lead off the third inning. Grounded out to end the top of the fifth. Grounded out to end the top of the seventh with the tying and go-ahead runners on. Exited in a double switch in the bottom of the inning.
Coco Crisp – 4: Pinch-hit for Mike Clevinger to lead off the sixth inning and grounded out.
Yan Gomes – 4: Entered in the bottom of the seventh. Struck out leading off the eighth.
Trevor Bauer – 3: Racked up four strikeouts in the first two innings, allowing only a single to Addison Russell. Had a quality at-bat against Jon Lester in the third that ended with a phenomenal catch by Jason Heyward in foul territory. Got through the third inning in order, and should have been pulled before facing the Cubs’ best hitters a second time. What followed, a three-run inning sparked by Bryant’s homer and Rizzo’s double, was preventable, and that’s on Terry Francona. Left the game after that disastrous fourth inning.
Mike Clevinger – 6: Worked around two walks for a scoreless fifth inning.
Bryan Shaw – 7: Struck out the side on 12 pitches in the sixth and retired the only batter he faced in the seventh.
Cody Allen – 5: Hit Dexter Fowler with the first pitch he threw, but escaped further trouble in the seventh after walking Rizzo to get to Ben Zobrist, who popped up. Got through the bottom of the eighth.
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CHICAGO
Dexter Fowler – 5: Struck out to start the bottom of the first. Flied out to end the third. Flied out again to lead off the bottom of the fifth. Could not make a diving catch on Francisco Lindor’s single in the sixth that cut Chicago’s lead to one. Hit by a pitch in the seventh and after getting treatment on his foot, stole second base.
Kris Bryant – 8: Struck out in his first trip to the plate. Tied the game and woke up the Wrigley crowd with a homer leading off the bottom of the fourth. Drew a walk in the next inning, stole second and went to third on Roberto Perez’s throwing error, becoming the first player since Chase Utley in 2009 to homer and steal a base in a World Series game – and the first Cub ever to do it. Struck out in the seventh.
Anthony Rizzo – 7: Had the game’s first ball in play, a flyout to end the first inning. Made a fantastic play to catch the foul pop-up from Carlos Santana in the second inning when it bounced out of David Ross’ glove. Followed Bryant’s homer with a double off the ivy in right field. Lined out in the fifth. Intentionally walked in the seventh.
Ben Zobrist – 6: Flied out to start the bottom of the second. Singled in the fourth, moving Rizzo to third. Walked his next time up. Popped up to end the seventh.
Addison Russell – 7: Picked up the Cubs’ first hit with a solid single up the middle. Dribbled a single up the third base line to drive in Rizzo and give Chicago the lead in the fourth. Lined out to end the fifth.
Jason Heyward – 5: Struck out in his first at-bat. Made an incredible catch, doing his best Spider-Man bounce off the wall in foul territory to retire Trevor Bauer in the third. Struck out for the first out of the fourth inning. Struck out leading off the bottom of the sixth. Singled in the eighth, then stole second and third.
Javier Baez – 5: Struck out on a pitch nowhere near the zone to end the second inning. Dropped a perfect bunt for a single to load the bases his next time up. Made an excellent tag on Francisco Lindor, the potential tying run trying to steal second base, to end the top of the sixth. Struck out in the bottom of the frame. Struck out a third time in the eighth.
David Ross – 7: Grounded out starting the bottom of the third. Saved by Rizzo on Santana’s pop-up in the second inning, he took a bump from Rizzo as he grabbed the pop-up from Napoli to end the top of the fourth, then drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the inning. Made a tremendous throw on the Lindor steal attempt, his last act in the game, and possibly his career.
Miguel Montero – 4: Struck out pinch hitting for Ross to end the sixth.
Willson Contreras – 5: Went behind the plate in the seventh inning. Committed a passed ball to move the tying run into scoring position with nobody out two batters into his appearance. Saved Chapman from a wild pitch that would have put the go-ahead run into scoring position and the tying run on third. Grounded out to start the bottom of the seventh.
Jon Lester – 7: Struck out the side to start the game and retired all but one of the first 13 batters he faced, but the one was Jose Ramirez’s home run. Gave up a leadoff double to Carlos Santana in the fifth inning after Chicago’s three-run rally, but had the all-important shutdown inning. Gave up a run on a single, a steal and another single in the sixth. Struck out in his two at-bats.
Carl Edwards Jr. – 5: Gave up a leadoff single in the seventh, then got a flyout after Mike Napoli moved up to second on Contreras’ passed ball.
Aroldis Chapman – 8: Came into an uncomfortable situation with the tying run on second in the seventh inning and got out of it with the lead intact. Worked around the Rajai Davis single that he created by not covering first base, and Davis’ two steals, to preserve Chicago’s one-run lead through the eighth. Got through the ninth with ease.