Reds Use Three Home Runs to Beat Cubs 6-3, Move Just One Game Back of Playoff Spot

CINCINNATI -- Don't look now, but the Reds are playing long ball and are gaining ground in the National League Wild Card race.

With three more home runs on Saturday night, the Reds beat the Chicago Cubs 6-3 to move to 79-76 and within a single game of the New York Mets and the third NL Wild Card. The Mets lost 5-3 to the Washington Nationals earlier on Saturday.

Let's look at the key takeaways from Saturday's 6-3 Reds win over the Cubs.

Reds Play More Longball

One night after the Reds hit five home runs on Friday, the Reds came back for three home runs on Saturday night.

Spencer Steer's solo home run was his fourth in the Reds' last four games, and it gave the Reds a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth.

In the bottom of the 7th, TJ Friedl got a ball just fair inside the right field foul pole to extend the Reds' lead to 4-2.

Then in the bottom of the eighth, Tyler Stephenson put the Cubs away with a two-run home-run to right center that gave the Reds a 6-3 lead.

This is now eight home runs in the last two games for the Reds against the Cubs.

Chase Burns's Huge Effort Out Of the Bullpen

After a stint on the injury list and approaching his innings limit this season, the Reds moved their No. 1 prospect to the bullpen. Saturday night, we saw Burns come on in relief in an incredibly high-leverage situation.

Burns pitched 1 1/3 innings for four large outs. He was throwing gas, with 24 of his 36 pitches for strikes.

Throwing hard is what Burns does best. That's why he can be an ex-factor for this Reds team if they get in the postseason. If games are close, Burns can come in and overpower hitters in high-leverage situations.

Notes And Observations

• The Reds out-hit the Cubs 9-6.
• Cincinnati was 3-12 with runners in scoring position.
• The Reds are now 7-5 against the Cubs, and they have won the season series.
• TJ Friedl has two hits, the only Reds hitter with multiple hits.
• Eight different Reds hitters had a hit.

On Deck

Just keep winning games. If the Reds win Sunday, they will sweep the four-game series against the Cubs. Combined with a Mets loss, the Reds would move into the third NL Wild Card spot.

Sunday afternoon, the Reds have ace and All-Star left-hander Andrew Abbott (9-7, 2.88 ERA) against Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon (10-6, 3.93 ERA).

First pitch is at 1:40 E.T. on FanDuel Sports Network Cincinnati and 700WLW.