Reds 9, Astros 3: Jay Bruce belted a three-run homer and Zack Cozart added a two-run shot as Cincinnati improved to 4-0 on its six-game road trip.

Brandon Phillips collected three hits and an RBI while Mike Leake worked six solid innings for the National League Central-leading Reds, who are nine games ahead of St. Louis.

Cozart opened the scoring in the third inning with his 15th homer and Bruce gave Cincinnati a 6-2 lead two frames later with his 28th blast. Chris Heisey, who also drove in a run in the eighth, ignited the Reds' four-run fifth with an RBI single that snapped a 2-2 tie.

Leake (7-8) allowed two runs and seven hits with two walks and six strikeouts. The right-hander, who has won three of his last four starts, improved to 3-1 against the Astros this season.

Making his second major-league start after 81 relief appearances, Fernando Abad (0-2) was tagged for six runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings. The left-hander has lost seven of his eight career decisions.

Fernando Martinez and Matt Dominguez homered for Houston, which has lost six in a row and 15 of 17.

After Cozart's blast put Cincinnati ahead, Martinez led off the fourth with an upper-deck shot to halve the deficit. Dominguez followed with his first homer in 23 career games to forge a tie.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Cincinnati 1B Joey Votto continued his rehab assignment with Single-A Dayton, going 0-for-2 with a walk and a sacrifice fly. Votto has been sidelined since mid-July with a torn medial meniscus in his left knee. ... The Reds are 30-14 without Votto. ... Houston traded OF Ben Francisco to Tampa Bay for a player to be named. Francisco, who was acquired from Toronto in a 10-player deal on July 20, batted .247 (21-for-85) with two home runs and five RBIs in 31 games with the Astros. ... Houston INF Marwin Gonzalez is expected to miss several days with a sprained left ankle suffered in Thursday's loss to San Francisco.