It took him 4 tries to do it, but Rich Harden finally has his 1st win at Wrigley Field.

Harden was at his best on Tuesday evening, as he threw 7 shutout innings & struck out 10 batters to lead the Chicago Cubs to a 5-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds.

Harden also added his 1st career big-league RBI, which i’ll get to later.

The Cubs’ first scoring chance came during the bottom of the 2nd inning after Aramis Ramirez was hit by a pitch from Reds starter Johnny Cueto.

Jim Edmonds then drew a walk to put runners at 1st & 2nd with nobody out for Geovany Soto.

Soto then grounded into a doubleplay, but was able to advance Ramirez to 3rd base with 2 outs for Kosuke Fukudome.

Fukudome grounded out to Brandon Phillips at 2nd base to end the scoring threat.

Chicago had another scoring chance in the bottom of the 3rd inning after Mark DeRosa hit a liner that was missed by a diving Jay Bruce in right field.

DeRosa ended up at 2nd base on the play with a lead-off double.

Rich Harden then struck out trying to bunt foul before Alfonso Soriano was able to reach 1st base safely on a fielder’s choice.

Reds shortstop Jeff Keppinger caught DeRosa napping & was able to gun Mark down as he tried to scamper back to 2nd base.

Alfonso Soriano was then picked off 1st base by Cueto to end the inning.

The Cubs then had yet another scoring chance in the bottom of the 4th inning after Ryan Theriot hit a lead-off double against Cueto.

Derrek Lee then flied out to Corey Patterson in centerfield, but was able to advance Theriot to 3rd base on the play.

Aramis Ramirez & Jim Edmonds then struck out to end the scoring threat.

Chicago finally was able to take the lead in the bottom of the 5th inning after Geovany Soto hit a lead-off triple that got past a diving Corey Patterson in right center field.

Kosuke Fukudome then drew a walk to put runners at 1st & 2nd with nobody out for Mark DeRosa, who struck out swinging.

Rich Harden then laid down a successful sac bunt to 1st base, which scored a hustling Geovany Soto from 3rd base & gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead.

For Harden, it’s his 1st career major-league RBI in his 22nd at-bat.

The Reds threatned to tie the game in the top of the 6th inning after Chris Dickerson hit a 2-out single off Harden.

Dickerson then stole 2nd base during Jeff Keppinger’s at-bat, who struck out to end the scoring threat.

Chicago had a chance to add onto their lead in the bottom of the 6th inning after Derrek Lee hit a 1-out double off Cueto.

2 batters later, Jim Edmonds was hit by a pitch which put runners at 1st & 2nd with 2 outs for Geovany Soto.

Soto grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the scoring threat.

The Cubs were finally able to break the game open in the bottom of the 8th inning, which started with Alfonso Soriano’s lead-off single against Reds reliever Mike Lincoln.

Ryan Theriot was then able to reach safely on a fielder’s choice, putting runners at 1st & 2nd with nobody out for Derrek Lee.

Lee hit an RBI single to score Soriano from 2nd base & give Chicago a 2-0 lead.

Aramis Ramirez followed with an RBI double, scoring Theriot from 2nd base & giving the Cubs a 3-0 lead.

2 batters later, Geovany Soto was intentionally walked by Reds reliever Bill Bray which loaded the bases with just 1 out for Kosuke Fukudome.

Fukudome responded with a 2-run single to score both Lee & Ramirez, giving Chicago a 5-0 lead.

Mark DeRosa & pinch-hitter Daryle Ward then hit outfield flyouts against Reds reliever Gary Majewski to end the inning.

Kerry Wood then pitched a scoreless 9th to end the game & put the Cubs into a tie with Tampa Bay for baseball’s best record at 77-48.

Rich Harden (3-1) gets the win for the Cubs after pitching 7 shutout innings & allowing just 2 hits while striking out 10 batters.

Harden was also able to lower his ERA down to 1.50 after his best start so far to date as a Cub.

Johnny Cueto (8-12) takes the loss for the Reds after allowing 1 run on 4 hits in 7 innings of work.

Chicago will now aim to win their 7th consecutive series on Wednesday evening at 7:05 PM cst from Wrigley Field, as southpaw Ted Lilly (12-6, 4.32) will be opposed by Cincinnati righthander Bronson Arroyo (10-10, 5.51).

The Cubs have won each of Lilly’s last 5 starts, while the lefty is 2-0 in 3 August starts with a 3.20 ERA.

Lilly’s worst outing of the season came against the Reds on July 10th, as he gave up 4 runs on 6 hits in just 2 2/3 innings of work during the Cubs’ 12-7 loss.

He won’t have to face recently traded sluggers Adam Dunn & Ken Griffey Jr. this time around, who combined for 5 RBI’s off Lilly.

Arroyo is 5-4 in 12 road starts with a 7.47 ERA, while the Reds have lost 3 of his last 4 starts.

Arroyo did win his last start against the Cubs on July 10th, as he pitched 5 innings & allowed 5 runs on 7 hits during the Reds’ 12-7 win.

Signing off for now,