CHICAGO -- The Cubs got a look at just how quickly the high-powered Braves offense can overwhelm a team on Friday afternoon. One day later, the North Siders punched back, showing why they have been one of baseball’s hottest teams in the second half.

As rain fell on Wrigley Field, the Cubs used a five-run first inning -- powered by home runs off the bat of Dansby Swanson and Jeimer Candelario -- to propel the club to an 8-6 win over the cream of the National League’s crop. It swiftly dulled any lingering sting from Friday’s shutout loss.

“I think that’s the sign of a good team,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “These guys know we’re good.”

Even with the 8-0 shutout that the NL East-leading Braves dealt to the Cubs in the opener of this three-game set, Chicago rolled into Saturday with the most runs scored (150) since the All-Star break. That led the second-ranked club, the Dodgers (119), by a wide margin.

That outpouring by the Cubs’ lineup over the past few weeks has helped carry the club to a 15-7 record since the All-Star break. As a result, Chicago has continued to chip away at the deficits in both the NL Central and Wild Card races. The Braves presented the next test for a Cubs club with October aspirations.

Not that anyone in the clubhouse is publicly declaring these “big” games.

“I think you guys asked about this when we played the Rays way back,” said Cubs outfielder Ian Happ, who homered in the seventh inning. “You have to treat every game the same. You have to go out and compete against every single team in this league. This is the best in the world.

“And any night, you can get the guy who is the best pitcher on the planet that day.”

Left-hander Max Fried fit the bill on Friday and guided Atlanta to its shutout win. Earlier in the season, when the Cubs were well below .500 and facing the prospect of a Trade Deadline selloff, such a defeat may have felt devastating. Given the high level of play since mid-June, it was easier to move on to Saturday.

“We’ve been swinging the bat really well. Fried was really good,” Ross said. “It was funny, one of the coaches said, ‘Turn the page.’ I was like, ‘I did that in like the eighth [Friday].’ I was onto today, and I think a lot of the guys were, too. We got beat yesterday and came out today with a fresh mentality.”

Happ kept a sense of humor about the previous loss.

“With all the runs we've put up, we were due for one of those days,” he said with a smirk. “That's the best way to do it, is to give up eight and score none, right? If you score seven there, the stats gods are going to come back and get you.”

The Cubs turned the page with back-to-back walks against Atlanta’s Bryce Elder out of the chute from Mike Tauchman and Nico Hoerner. Cody Bellinger brought them both in with a sharply pulled grounder that Braves first baseman Matt Olson could not corral. That set things up for Chicago to punch the gas.

Swanson delivered a two-run homer against his old team -- the shortstop’s fifth homer in a six-game span -- to put the Cubs ahead, 4-0. Two batters later, Candelario (acquired via trade this week) sent a pitch from Elder towering out to right-center for his first homer in a Cubs uniform since his first career blast in 2017.

“It’s a good club. They have a lot of talent,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “They’re an explosive team.”

That early five-spot went a long way in helping the Cubs navigate through a bullpen day started by righty Javier Assad. Behind him, Chicago’s main quartet of Michael Fulmer, Mark Leiter Jr., Julian Merryweather and Adbert Alzolay held the line for the team’s 14th win in 18 games.

“I think we’re in a great spot to go out there and try to get some wins,” Assad said via team translator Fredy Quevedo. “I know it’s a little tight in the division, but we believe. We all believe as a team.”

That makes it easier to turn the page on what could have been a gut-punch of a loss one day earlier.

“Each guy in our group knows that the only day that matters is today,” Swanson said on Friday. “I think that that’s one thing that we’ve really learned this year. It’s a long year, and you’ve just gotta keep going each and every day, no matter if things are good or bad. You’ve just gotta keep going and ride the waves.”