MILWAUKEE — Two words that strike fear into the hearts of Chicago Cubs fans:

Bullpen day.

That was what manager Craig Counsell went with in Milwaukee last October in Game 5 of the National League Division Series after deciding Shota Imanaga wasn’t a viable option for a win-or-go-home matchup.

And it’s what Counsell went with again on Sunday in a 4-3, 10-inning win over the Brewers, after the neck injury to Ben Brown and a rainout without rain in New York that forced the Cubs to play a doubleheader Wednesday against the Mets.

It wasn’t exactly the way Counsell would prefer to manage a game against the division-leading Brewers, but on Sunday it worked.

The Cubs bullpen did just fine, despite a cast of seven relievers that included a few recent cast-offs added to fill the injury void, like waiver claim Bryse Wilson. The offense was kept in check by Brandon Woodruff and the Brewers’ bullpen most of the day, but managed to score two runs on a wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk, and finished the road trip with a 6-1 mark.

“The guys are having fun right now, and we’re playing good baseball,” Counsell said afterward. “We just named five or six pitchers that did some great work today. We did very little offensively today, honestly. But we got enough done because we got great pitching performances.”

The Cubs improved to 12-4 in their last 16 games, following a 7-22 stretch that was the worst in baseball, after starting out 27-12 through May 8. It’s the kind of streakiness that’s been part of this team’s journey, like it or not.

“That’s baseball,” center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong said. “A 6-1 trip on the road against two National League opponents is something to be proud of. We’re excited to go home. That was a long road trip, a long stint in New York it felt like.

“Good streak, bad streak, that has nothing to do with the identity of this team. We know who we are in this clubhouse, and that’s all that matters.”

In a 1-1 game in the 10th, Brewers reliever Joel Kuhnel lost his composure after issuing an intentional walk to Crow-Armstrong to face Alex Bregman with runners on the corners and two outs. After Crow-Armstrong stole second, Kuhnel plunked Bregman before walking Michael Busch on four pitches to force in the go-ahead run. Seiya Suzuki’s two-run single made it 4-1, and Counsell called on Ethan Roberts, who had blown the save in Friday’s loss.

Roberts quickly gave up a run-scoring single to Christian Yelich and was yanked with the bases loaded and no outs. The crowd of 42,056 was poised for another wacky Cubs-Brewers ending, though most of those who stuck around seemed to be road-tripping Cubs fans.

Jordan Wicks came on and walked Garrett Mitchell to force in a run, increasing the anxiety level tenfold. Wicks gave up 11 runs in 6 1/3 innings in his first Cubs stint this season, before going back down to Triple-A Iowa.

But he induced Jake Bauers to pop out and Gary Sanchez to ground into a game-ending double play, as the Cubs escaped with one of their biggest wins of the season.

“Huge confidence boost,” Wicks said, saying the moment was “up there in my career (bests).”

Wicks was just one of many bullpen heroes. Ryan Rolison got the starting nod and allowed a solo home run to Gary Sanchez in two innings of work. He was followed by Wilson, a waiver claim from Philadelphia, who threw 4 1/3 shutout innings and escaped jams in the third and fourth innings. Wilson had previously pitched for Counsell in Milwaukee and was stretched out as a starter in Triple-A, so he knew he was ready for extended work.

Being in a Cubs-Brewers game with a full house in Milwaukee was nothing new.

“In my two years (in Milwaukee), the Brewers and the Cubs were always at the top of the division,” Wilson said. “I don’t know what the standings look like now, but I’m pretty sure they’re probably the same.”

Caleb Thielbar and Tyler Ferguson got the Cubs into the ninth, with Jacob Webb striking out Cooper Pratt and Joey Ortiz with two runners on to send it into extra innings.

The Cubs had relatively few scoring opportunities against Woodruff and the Brewers’ bullpen, and those were quickly squandered. They entered the day hitting .234 with runners in scoring position, and went 1 for 10 on the afternoon. Aaron Ashby’s wild pitch brought Ian Happ home from third with the tying run in the seventh, setting up the wild finish.

The Cubs used 13 different relievers on the six-game road trip, including Vince Velasquez, who was designated for assignment Sunday to make room for Wicks. “Should be fine after today,” Counsell said before the game. “But today is kind of the last piece of what a doubleheader and what the rainouts do to you.”

The only down note Sunday was a sore wrist injury incurred by Matt Shaw, who was pinch-hit for in the ninth. Counsell deemed it a “precautionary” move. Counsell also declined to blame Bregman for not going full speed on a grounder to short in the fifth that Pratt bobbled but still got the out. The Cubs trailed 1-0, and Michael Busch promptly struck out to end a scoring threat.

Either way, it was the bullpen that won Sunday’s game, and it’s the pitching that will have to outperform expectations to keep the Cubs in contention the rest of the way.

“Big ballsy performance today from four, five different guys,” Crow-Armstrong said. “We love rolling out who we roll out. We trust our offense, we trust our defense.”

The Cubs trust that they’re not the streaky team we’ve seen so far in the first half of the season. But if they want Cubs fans to trust them, they’re going to have to continue winning and get back to where they were when they were flying high in early May.

Seeing is believing.

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