CINCINNATI — As Cincinnati Reds starter Hunter Greene took the mound in the ninth inning at Great American Ball Park on Thursday, holding a 1-0 lead over the Chicago Cubs, he couldn’t help but think back to his April 7 start in San Francisco when he’d come one out from his first career nine-inning shutout.

ATLANTA - There is no question that throughout the second half of the season, Matt Shaw has been the Chicago Cubs' (82-63) best player. Considering where he was

Great American Ball Park is where the Cincinnati Reds (77-76) will take on the Chicago Cubs (88-65) on Sunday. The line on this contest has the Cubs at -122 and the Reds are priced at +102. The total is set at 8.5. The starting pitchers will be Javier Assad and Zack Littell.

With the win, the Cubs whittled their magic number down to one — unable to clinch a playoff berth regardless of other results the rest of the night. They would have needed the Giants, Diamondbacks and Reds to all lose in order to cross out every elimination scenario. The Giants and Diamondbacks, how-ever, were playing each other.

A similar timeline would knock Palencia out for, at minimum, the remainder of the regular season and would likely result in him returning this year only if the Cubs make a relatively deep run into the postseason.

Another win. The Cubs inch closer to clinching a postseason berth. They could do so before they leave Pittsburgh.

The Chicago Cubs today recalled left-handed pitcher Jordan Wicks from Triple-A Iowa. In a corresponding move, right-handed pitcher Porter Hod

The Chicago Cubs enter Friday’s game with the Tampa Bay Rays with a magic number of eight to clinch a playoff berth. Chicago (83-63) has been chipping away at

Michael Soroka threw a scoreless eighth, keeping the game close and saving the rest of the bullpen. But the Cubs couldn’t do anything with Greene in the ninth and he threw a complete-game shutout, allowing just the one hit. The Reds lead MLB with four CG shutouts this year.

Anderson took down Live Oak on Friday night thanks to a late-game touchdown to give the Cubs the lead. Read about the game.

Find best bets and props for the biggest games in sports on Thursday from the SportsLine Projection Model and top CBS Sports experts