The Cincinnati Reds experienced mixed results recently, suffering a 4-0 defeat to the New York Mets on Saturday despite a strong five-inning performance from Jakob Junis. Meanwhile, the Houston Astros faced a series of losses against the Reds, including a 1-0 shutout on Thursday highlighted by Ty France's homer and Rhett Lowder's effective pitching. The Astros also lost 12-5 on Wednesday after the Reds' explosive nine-run first inning. However, the Astros managed a win streak with Jose Altuve and Jeremy Peña homering in an 11-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks, who have been struggling with poor pitching performances. The Diamondbacks’ loss reduced their NL Wild Card lead to half a game over the Mets.