Maybe it was the home white jerseys hanging in the clubhouse. Maybe it was sitting their hottest hitter. Whatever the cause, the Cubs (63-52) decided to exorcise both their night and road demons in a big way in the Queen City on Thursday night, handing the Reds (54-59) a 12-5 beatdown in the process.
Neither starter was very good in this one, as Cole Hamels and Alex Wood each gave up five runs over just three innings. The Cubs won the battle of bullpens from that point on, scoring in bunches against the Reds while holding the home team scoreless over the remainder of the game.