Playing in the first game of a scheduled doubleheader, the Brewers responded from their first loss in 15 games with another victory, and the crowd of 38,971 featured an awful lot of Milwaukee faithful cheering on the hottest team in baseball (79-45).

Freddy Peralta allowed one hit and struck out six batters and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Chicago Cubs 7-0 in the first half of a Monday doubleheader.

Brewers coaches and front office officials have spent hours in meetings and Zoom sessions over recent days discussing how to get through this particularly burdensome stretch of the schedule without blowing out the pitching on the cusp of a pennant push.

Right-hander Cade Horton left Game 1 of Monday’s doubleheader against the Milwaukee Brewers in the third inning.

The Milwaukee Brewers once trailed the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central by 6 1/2 games. That is no longer the case.

The Cubs had been waiting weeks for the Brewers to lose a ballgame. In fact, the last time Milwaukee slipped was back on July 30, when Chicago picked up a win over the Brewers in the teams’ final game of the month at American Family Field.

The Cubs have dropped seven of their last 10 games while the Brewers have reeled off 12 straight victories. The Brewers have a 76-44 record, and that's the best mark in either league. The Cubs have fallen to 68-53 and they are tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers for the top spot in the National League Wild Card race.

The Chicago Cubs once had a strong lead in the National League Central. However, the Milwaukee Brewers entered Sunday with a nine-game lead.