By Salem Chicago News Staff
CINCINNATI — Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong came a triple shy of the cycle and belted his 45th home run of the season as Chicago routed the Cincinnati Reds 9-1 Sunday at Great American Ball Park.
The victory moved the Cubs closer to clinching a postseason berth with the regular season winding down. Chicago owns head-to-head tiebreakers over the Padres and Phillies, the two teams below them in the National League Wild Card race.
Crow-Armstrong went 3-for-5 with two RBIs after an 0-for-10 start to the weekend series. He singled to right field in the first inning and stole second base, pulling within two steals of the first 40-40 season in Cubs franchise history. He scored on a single by Alex Bregman, who later left the game in the fourth inning after being hit in the head by a foul ball from teammate Michael Busch.
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The 25-year-old outfielder led off the third inning with a double and scored on a single by Ian Happ as the Cubs plated four runs in the frame against Reds right-hander Rhett Lowder. The double was Crow-Armstrong’s 30th of the season, making him the 10th player in Major League Baseball history to record 40-plus homers, 30-plus doubles and 30-plus stolen bases in a single season.
The exclusive list includes Ronald Acuña Jr., Jeff Bagwell, Ryan Braun, Ellis Burks, Jose Canseco, Shohei Ohtani, Alex Rodriguez, Alfonso Soriano and Larry Walker.
Crow-Armstrong added a solo home run in the fifth inning, his 45th blast of the season, tying him with Kyle Schwarber for the major league lead.
He had one last chance at the triple needed to complete the cycle in the eighth inning against Carson Spiers but popped up to shortstop Elly De La Cruz.
Cubs Close In on Postseason
The Cubs scored four runs off Lowder in the third, with Happ, Nico Hoerner and Pedro Ramírez each driving in runs during the rally. Chicago added insurance runs to turn the game into a rout.
The Wild Card Series is scheduled to begin Sept. 29. Chicago needs the Yankees to beat the Diamondbacks to officially clinch October baseball, though the Cubs’ tiebreaker advantages give them the upper hand to earn home-field advantage.
Source: Chicago Cubs / MLB.com
