 and Suarez hit the next pitch for his 14th home run.Yasiel Puig hit a two-run homer and an RBI single for the Reds after missing two games with a sprained right shoulder.Anthony Rizzo homered for the third straight game, and Kyle Schwarber and Kris Bryant also went deep to help Chicago take an early 4-0 lead. The NL Central-leading Cubs have lost three of four to the last-place Reds this season.Pinch-hitter Willson Contreras singled home Rizzo in the eighth to put Chicago ahead 5-4. Jesse Winker's double off Brad Brach in the Reds seventh tied it at 4.David Hernandez (1-2) got one out and the win despite giving up Contreras' RBI single. Raisel Iglesias pitched a perfect ninth for his 11th in 13 chances.Kyle Hendricks retired the first 10 Cincinnati batters, then allowed three runs on six hits in a six-inning no-decision. After 99 pitches, the right-hander was replaced by Brach to begin the seventh.Anthony DeSclafani was roughed up for the fourth straight start, yielding four runs on five hits and three walks in 3 2/3 innings.Schwarber hit his first career leadoff homer, a 449-foot drive bounced on the rear aisle of the right-field bleachers and on to Sheffield Avenue.After Schwarber walked with two outs in the third, Bryant lifted his 12th homer to right-center. Rizzo followed with his 14th, striking the right field scoreboard for the second time in three games to make it 4-0.Votto's bloop double to center with one out in the fourth gave Cincinnati its first hit and baserunner. After Hendricks hit Winker with a pitch, Puig lined an RBI single.Puig's two-run shot off Hendricks to left-center in the sixth closed it to 4-3. The Reds tied it 4-all in seventh off Brach on three straight hits, capped by Winker's double, with two outs.10KAmir Garrett entered with one out in the seventh and notched his 10th straight out by strikeout (over four appearances) when he got Schwarber looking. Bryant ended Garrett's string with a comebacker to the 6-foot-5 Reds left-hander to close out the inning.NICE MONTHHendricks was 3-0 in five May starts with a 1.96 ERA. His run started with a four-hit, complete-game shutout of St. Louis on May 3.LEADOFF MANSchwarber batted first for the ninth time this season and 50th time in his career.ROSTER MOVESThe Reds recalled RHP Matt Bowman from and optioned OF Phillip Ervin to Triple-A Louisville. Bowman entered in the sixth and retired all four hitters he faced.The Cubs recalled RHP James Norwood and returned RHP Rowan Wick to Triple-A Iowa. Norwood is 1-0 with a 4.95 ERA and three saves with Iowa. Wick was called up on Wednesday and gave up one run in one inning in Chicago's 9-7 loss to Philadelphia on Thursday.TRAINER'S ROOMReds: Puig played right field and batted fifth. He injured his shoulder making a catch and crashing into the wall in Cincinnati on Sunday. . Manager David Bell said INF Scooter Gennett (60-day IL, severe groin strain) took fielding drills and swung bat this week. There's no timetable for his return.Cubs: RHP Pedro Strop (left hamstring strain) is scheduled for another bullpen session Saturday. Manager Joe Maddon considers Strop's return as key to shoring up the Cubs' inconsistent bullpen. ''The (Cubs') biggest weakness - it's no big secret - the bullpen, we've had different issues with that,'' Maddon said. ''Getting Stropy back is huge.'' UP NEXTReds RHP Tyler Mahle (1-5, 3.51) faces Cubs RHP Yu Darvish (2-3, 5.06) on Saturday. Darvish doesn't have a decision in four previous starts, but in his last two has struck out 18 while trimming his walks to three. Mahle got his first win a week ago against the Dodgers after starting the season with five losses.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Reds, Cubs ready for weekend seriesFLMThe Cincinnati Reds will open a three-game series on the road against the Chicago Cubs on Friday.In the opener Friday afternoon, the Reds' starting pitcher and bullpen will each be looking for redemption.The Reds will hand the ball to Anthony DeSclafani, who has a 2-2 record and a 4.60 earned run average. He has a career record of 2-1 with a 3.19 ERA in five starts at Wrigley Field.However, DeSclafani struggled mightily in his last start, a 6-0 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He gave up three home runs and lasted only four innings for the second consecutive start. DeSclafani allowed six hits and four runs to the Dodgers."Nothing was working," DeSclafani told reporters. "It's pretty embarrassing for myself, to say the least. I've got to be better. I was lucky. They were crushing line drives right at people." DeSclafani has surrendered 14 hits and eight runs, including four homers in eight innings over his previous two starts.Still, the Reds' starters have allowed 46 combined home runs this season, the fewest in the National League.The Reds bullpen had been stellar with a league-leading 3.31 ERA entering Wednesday. But they were knocked around in an 11-9 loss at Milwaukee.The bullpen combined to give up five runs in the sixth inning against the powerful Brewers offense."Our bullpen has been so good all year," Reds manager David Bell told reporters. "But days like this one are going to happen and they're going to bounce back." The Cubs will counter with Kyle Hendricks, who's 4-4 with a 3.21 ERA through nine starts this season.Over Hendricks' last six outings, he's 4-1 with a 2.53 ERA while striking out 35 and walking six in 42 2/3 innings.In Hendricks' last start, a 6-5 win over the Washington Nationals last Sunday, he lasted 5 2/3 innings and allowed four hits and four runs. He retired the first 11 batters and didn't allow a hit until the opening batter of the fifth."I wasn't attacking as well as I have been the last few games and my fastball command kind of suffered from there," Hendricks said. "I was kind of fighting myself, battling myself and couldn't figure out why. I kept trying to be aggressive. I kept trying to attack, but it just wasn't as good." Hendricks did give the Cubs enough innings through a gritty performance."To be able to get through that many innings, it was huge," Hendricks said. "That the lineup kept grinding and extending the lead because I knew I didn't quite have it." Anthony Rizzo had a home run and his first four-hit game on Thursday against the Phillies since September 2018. Rizzo had four hits and three RBIs.Meanwhile, Kris Bryant is likely to be back in the lineup after sitting out Thursday for rest. Bryant walked as a pinch hitter in the sixth.The Cubs fell behind 7-0 Thursday and played sloppy at times, but they battled back in a hard-fought 9-7 defeat."We had a couple of mistakes early, but the intensity of our guys is outstanding," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.--Field Level Media
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