Sunday closed out the Reds’ 2026 home schedule the same way a lot of this season has gone in Cincinnati: with a lopsided loss and not much to feel good about.
The Chicago Cubs left Great American Ball Park with a 9-1 win, dropping the Reds to 72-84 and leaving just two road series on the schedule before the season wraps up.
Rhett Lowder took the ball for his 25th start of the year, and it didn’t take long for the Cubs to knock him out of the game. Lowder lasted just three innings, allowing six hits and five runs as Chicago kept itself in the middle of a playoff race. He also walked three and struck out three on 60 pitches.
Once Lowder was gone, the Reds’ bullpen couldn’t stop the bleeding. The Cubs kept piling on and turned the afternoon into a runaway.
Cincinnati didn’t get on the board until the bottom of the fourth, when JJ Bleday hit a solo home run to cut the deficit to 5-1. That was as close as the Reds got. The offense finished with only four hits and one run while Chicago kept control from start to finish.
The Reds now head into the final week of the regular season with road series against the Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays still ahead. A travel day comes Monday before Cincinnati opens in Atlanta on Tuesday night.
Brandon Williamson is set to start the series opener for the Reds, with right-hander JR Ritchie going for the Braves. First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET.
In Other News...
Barry Larkin Just Said What Frustrated Reds Fans Keep Feeling
Barry Larkin did not sugarcoat where the Reds stand right now. The Hall of Famer said Cincinnati is well behind the better teams headed toward the postseason, a blunt assessment that lands with extra weight for a fan base that has spent most of the last three decades waiting for meaningful October baseball. The Reds have missed the postseason in 26 of the last 31 seasons, and the drought has stretched so long that their last postseason win came in 2012.
For a club that has been trying to climb back into relevance, that kind of gap only sharpens the pressure on the people running it. There is already speculation that Nick Krall could return in an executive role, even though the teams postseason results under his tenure have been limited, and Larkins remarks only add to the sense that something has to give before the franchise can finally move from hopeful to dependable. [Read more 🡒]
Reds Roster Shakeup Just Put Two Cincinnati Futures In Doubt
Chase Burns breakout rookie season hit an abrupt stop when the Reds placed the All-Star pitcher on the 15-day injured list with a right groin strain, officially ending his year. In the same roster move, Cincinnati brought up Carson Spiers from Triple-A Louisville and cleared a place for him on the 40-man roster by designating outfielder TJ Friedl for assignment, a procedural step that can carry major consequences even when it is done to solve an immediate pitching need.
For the Reds, the timing makes the whole transaction feel bigger than a simple injury replacement. Burns was part of the clubs present and future on the mound, and Spiers now gets a chance to step into that opening, but Friedls status is the one to watch next because the assignment gives other clubs a chance to claim him off waivers. What looked like a straightforward answer to one roster problem may end up creating another question about how much of Cincinnatis future core is actually staying put. [Read more 🡒]
Reds May Have Chosen Who Pays For This Disappointing Season
The Reds have made their first significant call of the winter, and it points toward continuity at the top of the baseball operation. Nick Krall is staying on as president of baseball operations despite a season that left plenty of fans frustrated, with the club struggling badly on both sides of the ball and again coming up short in the kinds of spots that decide games.
Now the focus shifts to where the changes might actually land. Cincinnatis offensive issues were not limited to a cold stretch or two, and the pitching group never fully solved its development problems, which puts Chris Valaika and Derek Johnson squarely in the conversation as the organization looks for answers. If the Reds are going to turn this around, the next move may be less about who remains in charge and more about which coaches are asked to carry the blame. [Read more 🡒]