CINCINNATI — Showing all the makings of a full-time starter, Alec Mills pitched a gem for the Chicago Cubs (4-1) on Tuesday while filling in for the injured Jose Quintana. Mills gave up only two hits in his six innings of work against the Cincinnati Reds (1-4), and the Cubs racked up 12 hits in total.
The Cubs won 8-5 at Great American Ball Park, scoring one run apiece in innings three through eight and two runs in the ninth. The North Siders have now tallied eight or more runs in three consecutive contests. Like Mills, Reds pitcher Tyler Mahle filled in for an injured pitcher, Anthony DeSclafani, but he lasted just four innings on the bump.
Shortstop Javier Baez showed out for the Cubs, producing highlights on offense and defense. "El Mago" homered in consecutive plate appearances late in the game, helping the Cubs to pull away from the Reds and win their third straight.
Inning-by-Inning Breakdown:
T1: Mahle got off to a solid start, sitting the Cubs down in order in the first.
Score: Cubs 0, Reds 0
B1: Mills threw several wicked breaking balls in the early innings. His first time out, he drew three straight groundouts.
Score: Cubs 0, Reds 0
T2: Kyle Schwarber drew a leadoff walk but did not score.
Score: Cubs 0, Reds 0
B2: Former Cub Nicholas Castellanos swatted a double to left-center. Castellanos led the majors in doubles last season.
Score: Cubs 0, Reds 0
T3: Jason Kipnis served as the starting designated hitter for the Cubs. He benefited by way of blinding sunlight preventing Reds center fielder Shogo Akiyama from making a play on what turned into a leadoff triple for Kipnis. Nico Hoerner drove Kipnis home via a base knock to right.
Score: Cubs 1, Reds 0
B3: Mills remained practically unblemished in the third frame. Schwarber helped Mills' cause by laying out for an impressive diving catch.
Score: Cubs 1, Reds 0
T4: After back-to-back singles by Jason Heyward and David Bote, Kipnis plated Heyward with a single of his own. Kipnis hit a liner just foul down the right field line earlier in the at-bat.
Score: Cubs 2, Reds 0
B4: Castellanos evened up his former club with a two-run blast off Mills. The two-out jack carried 380 feet to the opposite field. Jesse Winker, who walked in the previous plate appearance, scored as a result.
Score: Cubs 2, Reds 2
T5: With two outs, Baez drilled a double to the wall in center field, and Schwarber then scored Baez with a single to left field. Baez slid in ahead of the tag at the plate.
Score: Cubs 3, Reds 2
B5: Baez proceeded to show out on defense, too, making an incredible throw across his body after fielding a chopper on the outfield grass. The web gem ended the fifth inning.
Score: Cubs 3, Reds 2
T6: The first two batters of the sixth were walked, and Heyward eventually scored on a sacrifice fly hit by Hoerner. Former Cubs reliever Pedro Strop toed the rubber for the Reds in the sixth.
Score: Cubs 4, Reds 2
B6: Mills finished off his solid outing with a scoreless sixth.
Score: Cubs 4, Reds 2
T7: Baez went yard for the first time on the season, hammering a 371-footer out to right.
Score: Cubs 5, Reds 2
B7: Casey Sadler pitched the seventh inning for the Cubs. With two outs, Aristides Aquino reached first base after swinging and missing at a pitch in the dirt for strike three. However, Sadler followed that up with an inning-ending strikeout, in which strike three landed in the catcher's mitt.
Score: Cubs 5, Reds 2
T8: Bote channeled Baez by going yard for the first time in 2020. His 400-foot solo bomb sailed over the wall in right-center field.
Score: Cubs 6, Reds 2
B8: Curt Casali led off the bottom of the eighth with a 385-foot home run to left. Sadler gave up the round-tripper. Kyle Ryan entered the game soon after that. He issued a two-out ground rule double to Eugenio Suarez, but Suarez was left stranded.
Score: Cubs 6, Reds 3
T9: Anthony Rizzo led off with a single against Reds reliever Michael Lorenzen. Lorenzen proceeded to balk, moving Rizzo to second base. The balk was made moot when Baez walloped his second dinger of the night. Ogling his masterpiece as it left the bat, Baez skied a 420-foot no-doubter out to center field.
Score: Cubs 8, Reds 3
B9: Reliever Ryan Tepera finished off the Cubs' five-run victory. He struck out Castellanos but went on to give up a two-run jack to Freddy Galvis. Tepera regained his composure and tabbed a game-ending strikeout.
Final Score: Cubs 8, Reds 5
Statistical Breakdown:
Chicago Cubs: Batting: 1 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 1 2-Out RBI, 1 SF, 1 GIDP, 4-11 RISP, 6 LOB; Fielding: 1 DP; Pitching: 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 10 K, 3 HR, 0 HBP, 0 IBB, 1 WP
Cincinnati Reds: Batting: 2 2B, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 4 2-Out RBI, 1 GIDP, 0-3 RISP, 4 LOB; Fielding: 1 DP; Pitching: 12 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 3 BB, 10 K, 3 HR, 0 HBP, 0 IBB, 0 WP
Studs of the Game:
Chicago Cubs: Javier Baez (SS): 3-5, 3 R, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K, 1 2B, 2 HR, 1-2 RISP, 1 assisted DP (defensive); Alec Mills (SP): 6.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 HR, 0 HBP, 0 IBB, 0 WP
Cincinnati Reds: Nicholas Castellanos (RF): 2-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 2-Out RBI
Duds of the Game:
Chicago Cubs: Ian Happ (CF-LF): 0-5, 0 R, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 3 K, 0-1 RISP
Cincinnati Reds: Tyler Mahle (SP): 4.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 0 IBB, 0 WP
Up Next: The third installment of the four-game series at Great American Ball Park will start at 5:40 p.m. CDT on Wednesday, July 29. Cubs ace Kyle Hendricks (1-0, 0.00) will look to follow up his Opening Day shutout with another gem. Hendricks is set to face off against Reds hurler Sonny Gray (1-0, 1.50).
Box Score:
| Chicago Cubs at Cincinnati Reds |
| Jul 28, 2020 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
| Chicago (4-1) |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
8 |
12 |
1 |
| Cincinnati (1-4) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
5 |
6 |
0 |
| W: Alec Mills (1-0) L: Cody Reed (0-1) |
Highlights:
