The Cincinnati Reds' recent hot streak in extra innings came to a painful halt Tuesday night at Wrigley Field, as they fell to the Chicago Cubs in the 10th inning. But the 3-2 loss was just part of the story—the bigger concern is the team's growing injury crisis.
Closer Emilio Pagán, still smarting from a blown save the night before, managed just one pitch in the ninth inning before collapsing to the grass, clutching his left hamstring. The same hamstring had sidelined him for a few games in mid-April, and this time, it was serious enough to require a cart ride off the field. Pagán now joins four other key Reds pitchers on the injured list, turning what was already a tough road trip into a full-blown crisis for a team that entered Friday in first place.
Rookie José Franco was thrust into the fire, taking over with a 2-2 tie and a 1-0 count on Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner. After walking Hoerner on three more balls, Franco faced a bases-loaded threat but showed remarkable composure, retiring Alex Bregman, Seiya Suzuki, and Dansby Swanson—a trio worth a combined $435 million—to push the game into extras.
The Reds' luck ran out in the 10th, however, when Michael Busch's single up the middle slipped past shortstop Elly De La Cruz, scoring the winning run. It was Cincinnati's third straight one-run loss, dropping them to 12-3 in games decided by two runs or fewer—a testament to how competitive they've been, but also how thin the margin for error has become.
Before the bullpen drama, starter Andrew Abbott turned in another solid outing. After a rough start to the season that saw his ERA peak at 6.59, Abbott has lowered it by nearly a run and a half over his last two starts. He retired the first six Cubs, eight of the first nine, and carried a 2-0 lead into the sixth before a two-out walk, single, and another walk ended his night. Connor Phillips kept the game scoreless by getting Moises Ballesteros to ground out.
The Cubs chipped away in the seventh when Pete Crow-Armstrong singled, stole second, and scored on Bregman's single. Then, with one out in the eighth, Busch launched a solo home run off Tony Santillan to tie the game.
The Reds' offense came via solo home runs from JJ Bleday, but they couldn't muster enough support for a pitching staff that's now stretched thinner than ever. For a team that prides itself on depth and resilience, this loss—and this injury—stings a little more than most.