Cincinnati got home runs from two of its best hitters on Saturday, but Chicago's offense was too much to handle in a lopsided loss at Wrigley Field.
Cincinnati came into Saturday hoping to keep the good feeling going after a wild comeback win the night before, but the Cubs had other ideas at Wrigley Field.
Pete Crow-Armstrong hit three home runs and Chicago's lineup piled up six as a team, turning what was a tight game early into a 17-5 rout.
Sal Stewart and Eugenio Suárez both went deep for the Reds, but neither swing did much to slow down a game that got away from Cincinnati in a hurry.
Cubs Pull Away Early And Late
Chicago grabbed the lead in the first inning on a Crow-Armstrong solo shot and a two-run Alex Bregman homer, and the Reds answered right back.
Suárez hit a two-run homer in the second, and Stewart followed with a two-run shot of his own in the third that pulled Cincinnati within two runs.
That was the closest it got.
Crow-Armstrong hit two more home runs, Carson Kelly added one, and Seiya Suzuki capped it with a two-run blast in the eighth.
Chicago scored four runs in the seventh inning alone.
Cincinnati even turned to catcher Jose Trevino to pitch the eighth, always a sign of how far a game has slipped away, and he allowed three runs before it was over.
Andrew Abbott took the loss after allowing seven runs in three innings, while Kevin Gausman picked up the win for Chicago despite allowing five runs over five innings.
Stewart And Suárez
Stewart's blast in the third was his 30th home run of the season.
He came into the day with 29 home runs and a .263 average, and hitting one more only added to a season that already has him among the most talked about players in Cincinnati.
He'd already passed 100 RBI as a rookie this season, a feat no first-year player had managed since 2019, and Saturday's homer only built on all of it.
Suárez has had a much rougher year at the plate.
He came into the day hitting just .205 this season, but his second-inning homer showed he still has some thunder left when he connects.
It wasn't enough to change much. Stewart also went deep in a loss to the Giants earlier this week, and Saturday looked a lot like that game, just with a much bigger final score.
What Comes Next For Cincinnati
Games like this are part of why Cincinnati sits ninth in the National League wild card race, eight and a half games out with roughly a month left to play.
The math is not realistic anymore, and a loss this lopsided is a blunt reminder of how far the roster still has to go.
A night like this is nothing new for manager Terry Francona this season, and he has been straightforward about it before.
Cincinnati also placed Ke'Bryan Hayes on the injured list this week with a groin strain and called up Edwin Arroyo.
The Reds get a chance to salvage the series Sunday night in the finale at Wrigley Field, before heading home to open a three-game set against San Diego on Monday.
Nights like Saturday sting, but they also make it easier to see which players are worth building around once the offseason questions start.
