News
Big inning propels Reds past Pirates
Offense comes through with five runs on five hits in fifth
By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com
09/23/09 12:33 AM ET
PITTSBURGH -- Military helicopters hummed overhead. Gunboats patrolled the mighty three rivers like a scene from "Apocalypse Now." There was a buzz on Tuesday about the upcoming lockdown of downtown Pittsburgh as world leaders, including President Obama, arrive in a couple of days. As security forces maneuvered in preparation for this week's G-20 economic summit outside, none of that mattered to Reds manager Dusty Baker inside the comparatively quiet PNC Park. Even though his team was out of contention, Baker plotted and schemed while digesting the notes on his desk about the Pirates. "Tonight could be our 70th win," Baker said before the game. "They all count." A few hours later, the Reds dispatched the Pirates with a 10-4 victory that featured a combined 30 hits and 80 total batters. A five-run rally in the fifth inning, and three more runs in the seventh, helped lock the win. For at least another day, 70-81 Cincinnati avoided the 82nd loss that assures a ninth-straight losing season. It came against a spiraling Pittsburgh club that has lost 21 of its last 24 games. Meanwhile, the Reds have improved to 12-8 this month and moved into a tie for fourth-place with the Astros in the National League Central. They hadn't been higher than fifth place since July 10. "We've got [11] games left in the season, and I think we're doing our best to finish out strong," said first baseman Joey Votto, who was 3-for-4 with three doubles and one RBI. "I feel, like a lot of people on the team, the front office, Dusty, that all the injuries during the year were the reason why we played so poorly. Finishing strong and having a reasonably close record to .500 will give us confidence going into next year." The Reds' momentum started slowing in this game, and they trailed 2-0 through four innings. Starter Johnny Cueto allowed two earned runs and two hits without a walk while striking out two in five innings of work. Cueto (10-10) began his night by giving up leadoff batter Andrew McCutchen's homer to left field. In the fourth inning, Ronny Cedeno hit a two-out RBI double. After five innings, Cueto was at 101 pitches. He missed his last turn in the rotation because of the flu, but improved to 2-0 with a 2.95 ERA over his last four starts since returning from the disabled list. "I was a little wild at first and settled down. I concentrated more," Cueto said. "I was happy because for three or four days, I was sick and not throwing a baseball. I came back today, and in the fifth inning, I threw a lot of pitches, and I was getting tired." The decisive rally in the fifth started slowly as the Reds chipped away at Pirates starter Zach Duke (10-15). The first of nine to bat in the inning, Darnell McDonald led off with a single to right field. Ramon Hernandez hit a sharp grounder to second base that went for an infield single when Delwyn Young couldn't glove the ball. After a Cueto sacrifice moved the runners, Drew Stubbs walked and loaded the bases. Paul Janish nearly ended the rally when he hit a squib roller in front of the plate. Catcher Ryan Doumit touched home for the force but made an error on the throw to first base that scored Hernandez. "It unraveled from that point on," Duke said. "There were some interesting plays, but I really shouldn't have let things get out of control." Votto followed with a seemingly innocuous grounder past third base that slowed enough on the grass to give him an RBI double. The hits got more robust when Brandon Phillips lined a two-run single to center field and Scott Rolen stroked a RBI ground-rule double to left field for a three-run lead. "We got a lot of two-out RBI knocks in the fifth, and that was big because Duke was sailing along pretty good," Baker said. "When you get five runs in the middle part of the game, you can hopefully add on from there and stop the opposition from scoring, which we did." Another nine Reds batted in the top of the seventh and scored three more runs on RBI singles by Rolen, Jonny Gomes and pinch-hitter Juan Francisco. Rolen had three hits and three RBIs in the game. "Our offense came through tonight, big time," Baker said.Mark Sheldon is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
