Chicago Cubs at Cincinnati Reds

From Reds starting pitcher Hunter Greene's right arm, the strikes were being pumped out one after another on Friday against the Cubs. Greene struck out 12 batters over seven scoreless innings as the Reds took a 4-0 victory over Chicago in the series opener at Great American Ball Park. Elly De La Cruz and JJ Bleday each provided a home run to support his effort. “He pounded the zone with really good stuff," manager Terry Francona said. Greene gave up three hits and one walk as Cincinnati's rotation has produced seven-inning starts in consecutive games. Brady Singer gave up one run over 7 1/3 innings in a 1-0 loss to the Phillies on Wednesday. With 68 of his 93 pitches (73%) being strikes, Greene threw a first-pitch strike to 19 of his 25 batters, including 11 of 12 on first-pitch fastballs. From his arsenal overall, 82 of the pitches were either a four-seam fastball -- averaging 99.1 mph -- or a slider. "I think we probably hit four balls hard tonight," Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. "Five baserunners in total in the night, so that’s not never going to be enough.” Through the fifth inning, 15 of 17 batters saw a first-pitch strike from Greene. “The foundation is obviously throwing strikes and being able to expand off that. When I’m able to execute that … it tends to lead to success," said Greene, who now has 13 career games with 10 or more strikeouts. It was a reversal from Greene's disappointing season debut last Saturday in a loss to the Orioles, when he allowed eight runs over 3 1/3 innings. He missed most of the first half after he had arthroscopic surgery on March 11 to remove bone chips from his right elbow. “In my first game, the excitement got to me. I didn’t do a good job of staying within myself and I wasn’t at my best," Greene said. “You have to have a short-term memory in this game, whether you’re a pitcher or position player.” Greene retired 12 of his first 13 batters with seven strikeouts. In the second inning after Seiya Suzuki hit a leadoff double, he recovered and struck out the next three batters he faced. "I said in the fourth inning that there’s nobody on this planet that’s better than Hunter Greene when he’s at his best," said closer Emilio Pagán, who struck out the side in the ninth inning to end the night. "There’s guys that are maybe as good as him, but when he’s going, he’s in a groove, his stuff, his command, his competitiveness, he’s up there with the best on the planet. It’s a real joy to watch him pitch.”