CINCINNATI — A blowout win to put the Chicago Cubs on the verge of clinching a playoff spot Sunday was overshadowed by third baseman Alex Bregman taking a foul ball to his face.

Bregman was sent to a local hospital for X-rays and CT scans following the freak accident during the fourth inning of the Cubs’ 9-1 victory against the Cincinnati Reds. As he stood along the edge of the grass near the on-deck circle, steps from the visitors dugout, a foul ball off Michael Busch’s bat ricocheted in the dirt and hit Bregman flush on the left side of his face.

Bregman immediately grabbed his cheek and was given a towel by a trainer as he was ushered down the dugout steps and into the clubhouse. The ball struck Bregman on his left cheekbone under his eye, manager Craig Counsell said, leaving a cut in its wake. Bregman also bled from his nose a little bit. The Cubs evaluated him for a concussion, and though he wasn’t initially determined to be OK, Counsell acknowledged, “That doesn’t mean those symptoms couldn’t be there.”

Counsell anticipated Bregman flying back on the team plane postgame.

“I honestly thought it hit him in the nose, I thought he had a broken nose,” Counsell said. “I knew it hit him somewhere in the face, it was clear. It’s just an unfortunate accident, terrible accident. Hoping and praying he’s OK.

“He’s pretty swollen. … I don’t know anything more than that right now.”

It’s too soon to know how long Bregman could be sidelined. With the Cubs off Monday, any further updates from the team on Bregman’s status are unlikely until Tuesday when they begin their final home regular-season series against the Miami Marlins. But with only six games left and the wild-card series scheduled to begin Sept. 29, there won’t be much wiggle room if Bregman needs more than a minimal recovery window.

“We’ve got to get good results at the hospital, that’s what’s first,” Counsell said. “He got hit in the face so you’re worried about general well-being first. If we get a good report, then we’ll move to the next step. I want to get a good report first.”

The freak nature of the injury left Bregman’s teammates understandably concerned. Nearly 30 minutes after the game, his teammates were still awaiting word on Bregman’s test results. Busch admitted it was tough to focus after he watched Bregman get struck.

“You never want to see that on the ball field,” Busch said. “Just can’t really control any of that and it just happens so fast. He’s throwing the ball hard and it comes off hard. Any time it enters the head area, it’s always a scary thing.

“Going out there and having at-bats and trying to win the game, but also it’s hard. Just making sure that he’s OK, trying to get the updates. We’re still kind of waiting to hear how everything is, but definitely praying for him.”

As the Cubs await news on the severity of Bregman’s injury, they took care of business in Sunday’s series finale with one of the better all-around performances recently to put their magic number to clinch a playoff spot at one. As of Sunday afternoon, the Cubs (87-69) lock in their spot with another win or the Arizona Diamondbacks’ next loss.

Left-hander David Peterson tossed six innings of one-run ball, limiting the Reds to three hits and one walk while striking out seven. The offense put up nine runs and 13 hits and used a four-run third and three-run fifth inning to take control.

Pete Crow-Armstrong broke out of what for him was a mini-slump by collecting three hits, including his 45th home run of the season to move him into a tie with the Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber for the major-league lead. He entered Sunday 0 for 10 with four strikeouts in the series.

“Every player is begging for two-game slumps so it’s really a testament to how good he’s been this year,” Counsell said. “When two games don’t go well, it’s like, ‘Oh, gosh, he hasn’t hit a home run,’ or ‘He hasn’t got a hit.’ That speaks to what he’s accomplished this year and how well he’s performed. It’s coming, that’s how it’s going to be this year. You may get him a day or two, but it’s coming.”

Crow-Armstrong picked up his 38th stolen base of the season in the win, and his leadoff double in the third marked the 30th of his season. He became only the sixth player in MLB history with 30-plus doubles, 35-plus stolen bases and 40-plus home runs in a season, joining Shohei Ohtani (2024), Ronald Acuña Jr. (2023), Alfonso Soriano (2003), Alex Rodriguez (1998) and José Canseco (1988).

“It’s funny, you commit to something and it works and you wonder why you can’t do that every at-bat, but that’s just the nature of the game and that’s what’s hard about baseball,” Crow-Armstrong said. “So today I just really committed to something and felt convicted in that and went out there and reaped the benefits. Just poor intent and poor at-bats the last couple days, so came into today looking to turn that around.

“It sounds corny, but conviction comes from within, and it’s up to me to do that and to feel that way. When I’ve had success this year, it’s been me feeling convicted.”

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