Cubs blank Bucs, reduce magic number to 3

Never mind what the calendar says. The postseason began Thursday night for the Cubs. The Cubs opened a one-game lead in the National League Central over the idle Brewers, and reduced their magic number to three, by beating the Pirates, 3-0, behind rookie David Bote’s two-run triple and Jon Lester’s six shutout innings. With three regular-season games remaining, the earliest the Cubs can clinch the division is Saturday.