Hunter Greene delivered a masterclass on Thursday night against the Chicago Cubs, recording his first career shutout in dominant fashion. The Cincinnati Reds ace sealed the win by striking out Ian Happ on his 109th pitch of the night. Greene went the distance, striking out nine batters and giving up only one hit — a seventh-inning double by Seiya Suzuki.
The Reds edged out the Cubs 1-0, with Greene’s gem keeping Cincinnati’s playoff push alive as they remain just two games back of the New York Mets for the final NL Wild Card spot.
After the game, Greene turned his attention to the fans, urging more support at the ballpark. “I wish there were a little more fans in the stands, but for the ones who showed up, I’m glad I could put on a show and help get us a win tonight,” Greene said.
Hunter Greene follows Cubs shutout with message to Reds fans — get out to the ballpark
Only 18,532 fans showed up for Thursday’s game against the Cubs — and with at least a third of them cheering for Chicago, it felt more like a road crowd than a playoff chase atmosphere. For a team fighting to stay alive in the Wild Card race, that kind of turnout is flat-out embarrassing.
Those numbers look more like what you’d expect from a club playing out the string after being eliminated, not one sitting just two games behind the Mets with a legitimate shot to leapfrog them this weekend.
To be fair, Reds fans still carry the sting of Phil Castellini’s comments back in 2022, so some of the frustration is understandable. But if Cincinnati wants to truly embrace the “baseball town” label, the fans have to show up and fill the park for these final six games of the season.
“The more support we can get, obviously the better,” Hunter Greene said. “We’re already motivated to win, but when you look at the best teams, they’ve got that energy from their fans. That’s what we want here. Hopefully we can bring that back.”
The Reds are in the thick of it, folks. Now’s the time to pack Great American Ball Park and give this team the push they need to bring October baseball back to Cincinnati.
