Perez continued his remarkable resurgence by clubbing a pair of home runs Monday night as the Royals crushed the Cubs 12-4 at Wrigley Field. Perez had four RBIs. That continued his sensational run of play since the start of June.

Salvador Perez homered twice and drove in four runs, Jac Caglianone and John Rave added solo shots and the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago Cubs 12-4.

The Chicago Cubs’ run in first place, dating to April 4, was dethroned during a sizzling stretch by the Brewers to set up a huge series next week in Milwaukee.

The Chicago Cubs quietly climbed to the top of the National League ahead of the All-Star break thanks to a long losing streak by the defending champions Los Angeles Dodgers, but the Milwaukee Brewers have closed the gap in the NL Central thanks to a 10-game winning streak.