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Cincinnati
Reds’ Joey Votto hits a single off St. Louis Cardinals
pitcher Jaime Garcia during the fifth inning of
an MLB baseball game,
Wednesday in Cincinnati. The Reds won 4-3. Photo courtesy of yahoo
sports
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Reds win in
walk-off fashion
reds.com
CINCINNATI -- No one on the Reds was equating a mid-April tilt vs. the
Cardinals to a possible tense mid-August showdown with the National
League Central hanging in the balance.
But once the Reds dropped the first two games of the series, looking
anemic at the plate in doing so, Wednesday’s finale still took on some
added meaning. No way did Cincinnati want to be swept by a hot division
rival.
Although they left a baker’s dozen of runners on base, the Reds finally
found some hits. And when it counted most, they finally got the runs
in. It was Chris Heisey’s pinch-hit single in the bottom of the ninth
that delivered a 4-3 walk-off victory.
“Getaway days are huge,” Heisey said. “To not get swept and salvage at
least a game in this series was huge. Yes it’s early, but being 2-4 is
a lot different than being 3-3. Hopefully, we’ll get hot and get the
offense going on the road trip, and pick up seven or eight wins.”
The 3-3 homestand was earned with two walk-off victories. Scott Rolen
hit a pinch-hit RBI single to win Sunday’s game against the Marlins.
Now the Reds embark on a 10-game road trip to Washington, St. Louis and
Chicago.
Before Wednesday, the Reds were hitting .201 as a team over their first
five games, and they logged only seven hits over the first two games of
this series.
“We’re trying to find some momentum and win as many as we can,” said
Joey Votto, who was 4-for-5, matching a career best for hits in a game.
“I think we would have been pretty frustrated going on the road losing
this game. The Cardinals played very well this series and are a very
good team. They won the World Series last year, so we’ve got a lot of
work ahead of us. They’re certainly going to be in the way.”
Leading off the bottom of the ninth of a 3-3 game against Cardinals
lefty reliever Marc Rzepczynski, Votto lifted a double to the
left-field corner for hit No. 4, in a game that raised his average from
.188 to .333. Ryan Ludwick was intentionally walked before Jay Bruce
struck out.
After the right-handed Heisey’s name was announced, the Cardinals
countered with right-handed reliever Fernando Salas. Heisey drove a 0-1
fastball through the gap in left-center field and stopped at first base
after Votto scored the winning run.
“That’s a good offense over there,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny
said. “If you make mistakes, they can make you pay.”
Heisey’s hit was the team’s 14th of the game, but the Reds were still
3-for-11 with runners in scoring position on the day.
“We just left a lot of guys on base, but we kept putting them out
there,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. “That’s the key. Finally, we
came through.”
Cincinnati notched 11 of its hits over the first 4 2/3 innings off
Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia, who took a 3-0 lead against Reds
starter Johnny Cueto in the third inning. But the Reds finally got two
runs to tie the game in the fifth, with the tying run coming around on
Wilson Valdez’s two-out push bunt past the mound that scored Votto.
The St. Louis bullpen held the Reds without another hit until the
eighth. Still, the Reds’ bullpen won the battle of the late innings. It
was Aroldis Chapman who emerged with the winning decision after he
struck out five over scoreless eighth and ninth innings. Chapman, who
won Sunday’s game with two scoreless innings of relief, allowed one hit
to the Cardinals.
“That was the job -- hold the other team to give my team a chance to
come back and win the game,” Chapman said. “That’s what I had to do
today.”
The Cardinals, leading the NL Central with a 5-2 start, still have a 1
1/2-game lead over the Reds.
“It sure is nice to come away with one and end the homestand well to
stay within reach,” Baker said. “You don’t want to get too far behind
too early. We’ve got a lot of time, but you’d rather not get too far
behind.”
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