Jason Heyward kept his approach simple with the winning run on third base in the bottom of the 10th inning: Look for a pitch in the zone and hit it hard.
The Cincinnati Reds utilized a five-man infield, but the alignment was moot. Heyward slugged a walk-off three-run homer to give the Chicago Cubs a 4-1 win Wednesday at Wrigley Field.
Heyward’s blast and Ian Happ’s 444-foot homer in the first that nearly landed on Sheffield Avenue provided the Cubs offense. The Cubs have homered in 15 consecutive games, their longest stretch since homering in 15 straight from April 23 to May 9, 2019. It’s the longest active streak in the National League and two games shy of the franchise record set in 1998.
The Cubs have won eight of their last nine games and took the series against the Reds, who are fighting for a wild-card spot.
“It’s the first time in my career being in that position to play spoiler,” Heyward said. “It’s a lot of fun playing good baseball, of course, but having some incentive to do it and go out there together, it’s really nice to see some results.”
Alec Mills continued to deliver, holding the Reds to one run on a Joey Votto homer over six innings. The quality start lowered his ERA to 3.53 in 16 starts.
Acting manager Andy Green credited Mills for stabilizing the Cubs with his predictability in consistently giving them good starts.
“I wish I knew the difference that I’ve had between starting and being in the bullpen,” Mills said. “Obviously I’ve been a little more consistent out of the rotation, and I think it’s just knowing what I need to do every day in between — arm care and working out — to be ready to go every fifth day.
“As far as mindset, I don’t know really a whole lot has changed, but I’m just going to keep rolling with it. I’m throwing well, so let’s keep doing it.”
