THURSDAY’S GAME
Reds at Nationals, 7:05 p.m., FS Ohio, 700, 1410
Chicago Cubs fans invaded Great American Ball Park by the thousands for the third straight day Wednesday.
Things got so bad for the Cincinnati Reds a fan threw back a home run ball hit by National League home run leader Adam Duvall. That happens only to opposing players, and for all intents and purposes, the Reds were road team at home throughout the series.
The Cubs used that edge to sweep the three games. They won the finale 9-2 in front of a crowd of 37,188 in a game that was over almost as soon as it begun. The third batter of the game, Anthony Rizzo, hit a inside-the-park three-home run. The ball hit the face of center fielder Billy Hamilton, who almost collided with the left fielder Duvall, and caromed into the left-field corner.
The Reds never recovered. The struggles of starting pitcher Cody Reed, who allowed seven earned runs on nine hits in four innings in his third career start, didn’t help.
“I guess I’m just a slow learner,” Reed said. “It isn’t like I was trying to give up home runs or trying to walk people. My nerves get to me. I’m excited to get out there. I’m anxious. Things haven’t really been going my way. I’m trying to look past it.”
- PHOTOS: Reds vs. Cubs
The Reds (29-50) fell a season-high 23 games behind the Cubs (51-26) in the Central Division. Chicago swept Cincinnati for the second time this season and improved to 9-1 in the season series. The Cubs have outscored the Reds 87-32.
After rebounding from the first-inning disaster with a scoreless second, Reed gave up two runs in the third and then solo home runs to Addison Russell and Albert Almora Jr. in the third. Reed fell to 0-2, and his ERA grew to 9.00.
“His best pitch today, as far as consistency and quality, was his changeup,” Reds manager Bryan Price said. “It’s a pitch we asked him to spend a lot of time with Ted Power in Triple-A. It’s a better pitch than it was in spring training. He’s making some flat-plane fastball mistakes over the plate and throwing a lot of fastballs and these guys are putting it on the barrel right now. He’ll make his adjustments.”
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