Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (7/10/26): Reds 4, Cubs 0 – Greene Great in Shutout
The Cubs began their series against the Reds on a losing note Friday night with a shutout defeat. Newly returned ace Hunter Greene dominated the road team from the opening pitch and it was never much of a game.
Shōta Imanaga worked in and out of trouble throughout the evening, but the talented Elly De La Cruz finally got to him with a solo homer in the bottom of the 5th to give Cincinnati a 1-0 lead. Chicago hitters were overwhelmed by Greene, who struck out 12 in seven scoreless frames.
Jake Woodford made his first and probably last relief appearance for the North Siders in the 7th inning, and it did not go well. De La Cruz tripled and came home on a sacrifice fly by Sal Stewart, followed two hitters later by a JJ Bleday two-run homer that made it 4-0 Reds.
The Cubs went quietly against the Cincy bullpen and lost by the same 4-0 margin. (Box score)
Key Moment
Chicago got runners on first and second with one out in the top of the 7th, trailing 1-0. A tiring Greene got Nico Hoerner to line out and then struck out Michael Conforto to escape the jam.
Why the Cubs Lost
They ran into a great pitcher who was on his game and they could do nothing, striking out 16 times.
Stats That Matter
- Imanaga was effective but not very efficient, throwing 100 pitches in five innings: 5 IP, 1 R, 7 H, 5 K, and 1 BB.
- Seiya Suzuki had two of the four hits with a double and a single.
Bottom Line
Not much to say about this game, as the Cubs got handcuffed by a very talented pitcher. Just a situation where you have to tip your hat to someone who was locked in.
On Deck
The second matchup in the series is Saturday night at 6:10pm CT. Javier Assad takes the hill against Nick Lodolo in a contest airing on Marquee with a radio feed on The Score.
