Reds 5, Cubs 4
Jay Bruce hit a three-run homer and Cincinnati's bullpen held firm to preserve the Reds’ 5-4 win over the Cubs in Chicago on Friday afternoon.
Edinson Volquez (3-1) got the win for the Reds despite allowing four runs – three earned – on six hits and four walks in his five innings.
The Reds took a 3-1 lead in the fourth inning when Bruce hit a one-out blast to right field off Matt Garza (1-4), who scored Chicago's first run on a passed ball in the third.
Geovany Soto's bases-loaded groundout in the fourth got the Cubs back within a run, but Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips each singled home a run in the fifth to give Cincinnati a 5-2 cushion.
RBI singles from Aramis Ramirez and Soto in the fifth and sixth innings helped pull Chicago back within one, but Cincinnati relievers Sam LeCure, Nick Masset and Francisco Cordero shut the Cubs down from there, allowing just one walk to the final 12 batters and erasing that lone baserunner on a double play.
Garza lasted six innings, giving up five runs on six hits and striking out seven.