For four innings, nothing separated the teams. Then Hunter Greene kept doing what he had been doing all night, and the Reds offense finally gave him something to work with. Cincinnati blanked the Chicago Cubs 4-0 on Friday, a game shaped almost entirely by Greene's arm and a handful of swings that made the most of a tight contest.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| CIN | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | X | 4 | 13 | 0 |
Greene was the story. The right-hander worked 7.0 innings, allowing just 3 hits and 1 walk while striking out 12 on 93 pitches. He did not allow a run. It was his first win of the season, moving him to 1-1 with a 6.97 ERA. In this game, the Cubs had no answer for him — four hits across nine innings for the entire Chicago lineup, with the bullpen covering the final two frames without surrendering a run.
The scoring began in the fifth. Elly De La Cruz sent a home run 400 feet to left center, breaking the 0-0 tie and giving Cincinnati a lead it would not relinquish. De La Cruz went 2-for-5 with a triple and that home run, scoring twice and driving in 1. The Reds extended the margin in the seventh: De La Cruz scored on a sacrifice fly by Sal Stewart, and JJ Bleday followed with a 2-run home run to center, 417 feet, with Spencer Steer scoring ahead of him. Bleday finished 1-for-3 with a walk, 2 RBI, and his 15th home run of the season. Steer contributed 3 hits in 4 at-bats.
Shota Imanaga absorbed the loss for Chicago, falling to 5-8. He allowed 7 hits and 1 run over 5.0 innings, striking out 5 and walking 1 on 102 pitches. The Cubs' bullpen gave up 3 more runs over the final 3 innings, turning a competitive game into a comfortable Reds margin. Chicago managed only 4 hits on the night.
Greene also crossed 500 career innings pitched in this game, reaching the threshold on a night that showcased exactly why the milestone matters. Cincinnati improved to 43-50. Chicago, now 52-42, has dropped two straight.