Joey Votto homers again in Reds’ 7-4 win over Cubs

Joey Votto set a Reds franchise record by homering in his sixth consecutive game as Cincinnati beat the Cubs 7-4 on Thursday at Wrigley Field.

The 37-year-old Votto homered six times in the four-game series at Wrigley Field, and the big first baseman has eight home runs in the six-game streak for a record that dated back to 1900.

Votto’s 20th homer of the season was a two-run shot in the first, when he hit a fastball from Alec Mills (4-4) into the center field bleachers.

The Cubs went ahead 3-2 lead before the Reds roughed up Mills in the sixth to go ahead to stay. After loading the bases with no outs, Tucker Barnhart drove in two runs on a soft ground ball that went through the middle of the infield for a 4-3 lead.

The Reds have won five of their last seven games to stay in second place in the NL Central behind the Milwaukee Brewers.

Cincinnati added three runs off the Cubs bullpen in the seventh, with Kyle Farmer and Aristides Aquino each driving in a run and a Chicago error allowing a third to score.

The Cubs scored three runs off Luis Castillo (5-10), who had only given up three runs total in his first four starts. Patrick Wisdom hit his 16th home run in the fourth, and Wilson Contreras belted a two-run shot in the fifth.

Castillo finished with eight strikeouts in six innings, allowing seven hits.

Ian Happ hit a home run in the ninth off Reds reliever Heath Hembree.