GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Jose Peraza had two hits and two RBIs as the Reds won their first Cactus League game of 2017 with a 6-2 victory over the Cubs on Thursday at Goodyear Ballpark. Cincinnati snapped a six-game losing streak to begin the spring.
Cubs starter Rob Zastryzny took a comebacker off his right calf from Hernan Iribarren to open the third, but stayed in the game. The lefty gave up singles to two of the next three batters, and was then pulled. Peraza greeted Miguel Mejia with a triple to left to drive in both runs.
Zastryzny's calf began to tighten up, and the Cubs lifted him as a precautionary measure.
"It hit me, and it didn't feel too bad," Zastryzny said. "I walked it off. Two pitches later, I could feel it tighten up. I was trying to discreetly stretch, but our trainers are too smart for that, and they caught that."
Reds starting pitching prospect and rotation candidate Amir Garrett provided three scoreless innings with one hit and two strikeouts.
"It's always good when there are zeroes on the board," Garrett said. "I felt really good today. My tempo was really good for me. The nerves weren't there today. It was just like another game. It went really well."
Reds reliever Tony Cingrani replaced Garrett and issued two walks in the fourth inning but escaped with a scoreless outing. Michael Lorenzen followed with two scoreless innings and one walk.
The Cubs got on the scoreboard in the top of the seventh after loading the bases with no outs against Reds prospect Luis Castillo. Eloy Jimenez's sacrifice fly to left field scored a run. Ian Happ added a two-out RBI single to center field before the inning ended when David Bote was thrown out by Phillip Ervin trying to advance to third base.
Up Next
Cubs:Mike Montgomery will make his second spring start on Friday when the Cubs play host to the Reds at Sloan Park. First pitch is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. CT, and the game will air on Gameday Audio and an exclusive audio webcast on cubs.com. Montgomery, who went one inning in his Cactus League debut, is a candidate for the fifth starter spot.
Reds: Second baseman Jose Peraza has gotten a hit in each of his first four games and will be back in the lineup Friday when the Reds play the Cubs against at 3:05 p.m. ET in Mesa, Ariz. Zack Cozart, who hit a homer on Wednesday in his spring debut, will also make the trip. Rotation contender Tim Adleman is scheduled to start. Listen on Gameday Audio.
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