CINCINNATI REDS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S GAME
- Is Game 4 (1-2) in a series of 4 night games vs Keith Schram’s Cubs and Game 10 (4-5) of an 11-day, 10-game road trip (1-2 at Mil, 2-1 at LAD, 1-2 at Chc).
- Beginning 9/15/14, the Cubs have won 32 of the last 46 night games vs the Reds at The Friendly Confines.
- Following this series the Reds return to Great American Ball Park for a 6-game homestand vs the Nationals (3g) and Marlins (3g).
SERIES NOTES
- The Reds’ 3-game sweep from 5/26-5/28 was their first series sweep of the Cubs since 7/2-7/4, 2021 (3g at Great American Ball Park) and their first series sweep at Wrigley Field since 8/12-8/14, 2013 (3g).
- Joey Votto leads all active players with 50 HR and 150 RBI vs the Cubs.
- Votto’s 50 HR are the second-most by a Reds batter vs the Cubs (Frank Robinson, 53)…his 228 games vs Cubs are second-most by a Reds player (Pete Rose, 243).
NATIONALS UP NEXT
- Dating back to a 6-3 Reds win on 6/4/16, the Nationals have won 14 of the last 20 games at Great American Ball Park, but the Reds won 8 of the last 11 games there.
- From 7/3-7/6 the Reds produced their first 4-game sweep of the Nationals since 7/3-7/6, 2008 and their first ever 4-game sweep at Nationals Park.
BIG ROAD MACHINE
- Beginning 5/26, the Reds are 24-10 over their last 5 road trips covering 11 road series.
- The Reds won 8 of their previous 10 road series, including a streak of 7 straight road series wins snapped by the Brewers in the last series before the All-Star Game break…also lost at Mil in the first road series of the second half…haven’t lost a road series to a team other than the Brewers since 5/15-5/17 at Col (1-2).
- From 5/26-7/6, the Reds won at least 7 straight road series for only the third time in their history (3-0 at Cubs, 2-1 at Bos, 2-1 at StL, 3-0 at KC, 3-0 at Hou, 2-1 at Bal, 4-0 at Wsh)…won 8 straight road series in 1923 (7/2-8/25) and 1976 (6/25-8/12)…courtesy @EliasSports.
- Went 8-1 on their road trip to StL (2-1), KC (3-0) and Hou (3-0)…for only the second time ever, won 8 games on a road trip of 9 games or fewer (8-0, 9/21-9/27, 1964)…was their first road trip of any length with at least 8 wins since 5/28-6/9, 1999 (9-3)…courtesy @EliasSports.
- The 10-3 loss on 6/26 at Bal snapped the Reds’ 8-game road winning streak, tied for the second-longest streak in the Major Leagues this season.
RUNNING MEN
- The Reds lead the Major Leagues with 122 stolen bases, their highest total since 2016 (139sb)…in 2022, the Reds recorded 58 steals.
- The Reds recorded 50 stolen bases in June, their highest steals total in a calendar month since September 1912 (53sb).
- 5 times this season recorded at least 5 stolen bases in a game (6sb on 6/2 vs Mil, 9sb on 6/3 vs Mil, 5sb on 6/25 at Bal, 6sb on Tue at Wsh, 5sb on 7/8 at Mil)…prior to 6/2, the Reds hadn’t recorded 5 stolen bases in a game since 4/10/17 at Pit.
- Their 9 stolen bases on 6/3 vs Mil (Jake Fraley 3, Spencer Steer 2, Jonathan India 2, Will Benson, Stuart Fairchild) was their highest single-game total since 5/30/1976 vs LAD (9sb)…the Reds’ single-game record since 1900 for stolen bases in a game remains 10 (5/29/1913 at StL).
- With Elvis Peguero pitching, Elly De La Cruz on 7/8 at Mil became only the fourth Reds batter ever to steal second, third and home in the same inning (Hans Lobert 9/27/1908, Dode Paskert 5/23/1910, Greasy Neale 8/15/1919)…became the first Major League batter to steal second, third and home in the same inning since Mia’s Jon Berti did it on 8/25/2020 at NYM…became the first Reds batter with a straight steal of home since Brandon Phillips did it on 7/10/2009 at NYM.
RED HOTS
- The Reds are the first team in Major League history to move into first place alone in 9 games or fewer after falling 5 or more games under .500 while facing a deficit of at least 5 games…on 6/9 were 29-35 and trailed the first-place Pirates by 5.0 games…beginning 6/10 won 9 straight games to move into first place alone on 6/19.
- The Reds’ 12-game winning streak from 6/10-6/23 tied their modern club record (5/16-5/27, 1939 & 4/30-5/12, 1957).
- The Reds went 18-9 in June, their highest victory total in any month since June 2014 (18-10).
- From 6/14-7/8 Reds batters established a new franchise record for consecutive games with at least 1 home run (22g, 45hr), a streak snapped in the 1-0 loss at Mil in the final game heading into the All-Star Game break…the 1956 Reds held the team record by homering in 21 consecutive games.
- The Reds have used 53 players…RHP Michael Mariot was on the roster for 1 day (7/8) but did not appear in a game…in 2022, the Reds used a club record 66 players.
Tonight’s Pitcher – #34 Luke Weaver, RHP
- Tonight is making his eighth career appearance and start vs the Cubs…will be his fourth start at Wrigley Field, his first since 2018.
- Allowed 27 runs in the first inning (35-88, .398) and 40 runs after the first inning (75-272, .276).
- In Sat’s 3-2 loss at LAD allowed only 2 hits, both 2-out HR by Max Muncy (2-run in the first inning, solo in the sixth).
- Left his start on 7/18 vs SF after he was hit by a Michael Conforto line drive off the back of his left elbow…x-rays were negative…did not miss his next start, 5 days later vs SF.
- Has been charged with 2 pitch timer violations, on 5/31 at Bos (Masataka Yoshida) and 6/18 at Hou (Cory Julks).
- In the 4-3 loss on 4/20 at Pit, came off the 15-day injured list to make his 2023 season and Reds debuts…in the first inning allowed all 4 runs on 3 hits, including 2-out, back-to-back home runs by Connor Joe (3-run) and Jack Suwinski (solo)…in his last 5.0 innings faced only 16 batters and retired his last 10 batters…Joe’s 3-run HR snapped Weaver’s career-high 29.0-inning homerless streak (24g) dating back to his only start of 2022 (6/18/22 vs Min, Gary Sánchez).
CHICAGO CUBS NOTES:
Cubs vs. Reds
The Cubs and Reds play 13 games spanning four series … the teams played a weather-shortened two-game set in Cincinnati, April 3-4, splitting the series, before the Reds swept a threegame set at Wrigley Field May 26-28 … following this series, the clubs meet four times in three days Sept. 1-3 in Cincinnati for the final time this season … Chicago last season went 11-8 vs. the Reds, its first season series victory over Cincinnati since going 11-8 in 2018.
FIREWORKS AT THE FRIENDLY CONFINES: The Chicago Cubs tonight wrap up a four-game set against the Cincinnati Reds, looking for their fifth-straight series win …
the Cubs have taken the last two games, 20-9 on Tuesday and 16-6 last night, after dropping the series-opener, 6-5, on Monday … last night the Cubs recorded 11 extra-base hits (six doubles, five home runs), while Jeimer Candelario went 4-for-4 in the 16-6 win … Michael Fulmer (2-5) picked up the win, tossing 1.2 perfect innings.
The Cubs are 12-3 in their last 15 games since July 18 … following play on July 20, the Cubs sat 7.0-games out of a wild-card spot and 8.5-games back of the division lead … the club enters today 2.5-games out of a wild card spot and 3.0-games back of division-leading Cincinnati.
The Cubs are 2-1 on this seven-game homestand against the Cincinnai Reds (4 games ending today) and the Atlanta Braves (3 games beginning Friday).
Dating to June 9, the Cubs have scored 291 runs, the most in the major leagues, and their .274 batting average (438-for-1,600) ranks second in the majors.
Today marks the 10th (7-2) of 16-straight gamedays through August 9.
The Cubs (+77) are the only N.L. Central Division club with a positive run differential (Pittsburgh, -71; St. Louis, -24; Cincinnati, -17; Milwaukee, -15).
SINCE JUNE 9…: The Cubs, at 55-53, are 29-17 since June 9 when the team was a season-low 10-games below .500 at 26-36 following a loss at the Angels June 8.
Starting June 9, the Cubs’ 29-17 record (.630 winning percentage) is the third-best in the majors, trailing Atlanta (31-13/.705) and Cincinnati (30-17/.638).
In 46 games since June 9, the Cubs have hit .274, scored 291 runs … the previous time Chicago scored at least 291 runs in a 46-game stretch was from June 24-August 4, 1935 (295 runs).
SINCE THE BREAK…: Entering today, in 19 games since the All-Star break, Chicago has scored 145 runs, the most in the majors, leading second-place Atlanta and San Diego by 43 runs (102).
The Cubs’ .309 team average (208-for-674) since the break is the highest in the majors by 40 points (St. Louis – .269), while the club’s .921 OPS during that span also leads the majors by 47 points (Atlanta – .874).
Chicago’s 13-6 record (.684 winning percentage) since the break is the best in the major leagues.
THE HISTORIC RUN CONTINUES: The Cubs have scored 36 runs in the last two games (20 runs Tuesday, 16 runs yesterday), their most in a two-game span since June 29-30, 1897 (43 runs) … as a part of the 36 runs, Chicago has hit 12 home runs in the last two days, the most in back-to-back games in franchise history.
Team Historian Ed Hartig notes that the Cubs have scored at least 16 runs in back-to-back games for the first time since Aug. 12-13, 1894.
Chicago recorded 11 extra-base hits (four doubles, seven home runs Tuesday; six doubles, five home runs yesterday) each of the last two nights … per ESPN, the Cubs became the first team in MLB history to have at least 10 extra-base hits and five home runs in consecutive games.
Jeimer Candelario has gone 8-for-9 (.889) and reached base safely in nine of 10 plate appearances in two games since Monday’s trade … ESPN also pointed out that he became the first player in the major leagues since at least 1900 to have at least eight hits in the first two games with a team after playing for a different organization earlier in the season.
YOU BETTER BELLI-EVE IT: Cody Bellinger this season is batting .316 (93-for-294) with 16 doubles, one triple, 16 home runs, 50 RBI and 14 stolen bases … entering play today, Bellinger is one of three major leaguers (also Ronald Acuña Jr. and Freddie Freeman) to have at least a .315 average, 15 home runs and 14 stolen bases.
Bellinger was selected yesterday as July’s N.L. Player of the Month presented by Cheverolet … during the month, he led major league hitters in hits (40), average (.400) and total bases (69), ranked third in RBI (24), fifth in slugging (.698), tied for fifth in homers (8) and sixth in OPS (1.122).
Per Elias, he became the seventh Cub (ninth instance) to hit at least .400, with eight-or-more home runs in a calendar month (last Rick Wilkins, June 1993).
In 39 games since being reinstated from the injured list on June 15 (left knee contusion), Bellinger is hitting .360 (54-for-150) with seven doubles, nine homers and 30 RBI … his .360 average is the second-highest in the majors during the run, trailing Luis Arraez (.379).
GOING STREAKING: Dansby Swanson in 11 games since being activated from the IL July 22, Swanson is batting .317 (13-for-41) with a double, six home runs, 15 RBI, a .383 OBP and a 1.163 OPS … Swanson’s 15 RBI since July 22 are the most in the majors.
Christopher Morel extended his hitting streak to 10 games last night (14- for-40/.350), his second 10-plus game hitting streak of the season … Morel yesterday hit his 17th home run of the season in his 65th game (241 AB), surpassing his 2022 total (16 in 113 games/379 AB).
Yan Gomes yesterday also extended his hitting streak to 10 games (15-for39/.385), his longest since Aug. 10-30, 2020 (also 10).
GOLDEN DEFENSE: Per Fangraphs, entering play today, the Cubs have recorded 23 defensive runs saved in 2023, the fourth-best mark in the N.L. and seventh in the major leagues … Chicago finished 2022 with four DRS, which ranked 21st in the majors.
Dansby Swanson’s 12 DRS are the second-most among MLB shortstops, trailing Wander Franco (16), and are tied for the seventh-most among all MLB players.
Swanson is one of four major leaguers (also Ryan McMahon, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Matt Chapman) to have at least a .795 OPS and 12 defensive runs saved this season.
Starting Pitcher – #50 RHP Jameson Taillon (5-6, 5.46)
Last Time Out
Jameson won his third-straight decision and earned his fifth win of the year July 29 at St. Louis … is 3-0 with a 1.78 ERA (5 ER/25.1 IP) in his last four starts and is 5-3 with a 4.06 ERA (26 ER/57.2 IP) in his last 10 starts since June 2 … has allowed three earned runs or fewer in four-straight starts for the first time since Aug. 8-Sept. 1, 2022 … had his season-high streak of walking two or fewer batters in seven-straight starts snapped … has walked two or fewer in 15 of his 18 outings this season.
Date Opp. Result IP H R ER BB SO PC-S Left
7/29 @STL W, 5-1 6.0 2 1 1 4 4 84-52 4-1
2023 Splits and Season Notes
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
Home 2-4 6.43 10 10 49.0 65 38 35 12 48
Road 3-2 4.28 8 8 40.0 29 21 19 16 29
AVG vs. LHB: .280 (49-for-175) / AVG vs. RHB: .259 (45-for-174)
Jameson will make his 19th start of the season, his 11th at Wrigley Field and his second against Cincinnati … is 3-0 with a 1.78 ERA (5 ER/25.1 IP) in his last four starts since July 7 … since July 7, his 1.78 ERA is the fifth-lowest in the N.L. … has pitched to a 6.43 ERA (35 ER/49.0 IP) in 10 starts at Wrigley Field, compared to a 4.76 ERA (18 ER/34.0 IP) in eight starts on the road … has walked 28 batters, tied for the seventh-lowest mark among N.L. starters (min. 18 GS).
Tossed 8.0, one-hit, scoreless innings in a 3-0 win July 7 at Yankee Stadium … was the first pitcher with at least 8.0 innings and one or fewer hits allowed on the road at Yankee Stadium since Baltimore’s Daniel Cabrera did so in 2006 … was also the first former Yankee to go a least 8.0 frames and allow no more than one hit in a game at Yankee Stadium (old or new).
Made his first quality start as a Cub June 13 vs. Pittsburgh (3 ER/6.0 IP).
Earned his first win as a Cub June 2 in San Diego (1 ER/5.2 IP) … had previously gone eight-straight starts without a win, the third time in his career that he had failed to win in at least eight-straight starts in the same season (last 9 G, April 14-May 27, 2018).
Walked two or fewer batters in 16-straight starts from Aug. 14, 2022-May 9, 2023 … at the time, marked the fifth-longest active streak among major league starting pitchers.
Began his stint on the 15-day injured list April 20 (retroactive to April 17) with a left groin strain … was activated on May 4.
Went 2-0 with a 3.93 ERA (8 ER/18.1 IP) with 23 strikeouts, compared to no walks, during Spring Training … was the only pitcher in the Cactus League with at least 10.0 IP to not walk a batter.
