GAME THREAD: NL: CINCINNATI (20-33) at HOUSTON (21-30)

NL: CINCINNATI at HOUSTON

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CINCINNATI 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 8 1
HOUSTON 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 3 6 3 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CIN - AARON HARANG AND DAVID ROSS

HOU - WANDY RODRIGUEZ, DAVE BORKOWSKI (6TH), CHAD
QUALLS (8TH), BRAD LIDGE (9TH) AND BRAD AUSMUS, HUMBERTO
QUINTERO (8TH)

HOME RUNS: CIN - NONE

HOU - NONE</div>

 

NL: CINCINNATI at HOUSTON

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
CINCINNATI 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 8 1
HOUSTON 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 3 6 3 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: CIN - AARON HARANG AND DAVID ROSS

HOU - WANDY RODRIGUEZ, DAVE BORKOWSKI (6TH), CHAD
QUALLS (8TH), BRAD LIDGE (9TH) AND BRAD AUSMUS, HUMBERTO
QUINTERO (8TH)


WP - AARON HARANG (6-2)
LP - WANDY RODRIGUEZ (2-5)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: CIN - NONE

HOU - NONE


TIME: 2:31 ATT: 31,904

PROBABLES: CIN - BRONSON ARROYO (2-5, 4.01)
HOU - WOODY WILLIAMS (1-7, 5.65)</div>

 

NL: CINCINNATI at HOUSTON

<div class="pre">CINCINNATI (4) VS HOUSTON (3) - FINAL

CINCINNATI ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
N Hopper cf-lf 4 2 3 0 1 1 0 .321
A Gonzalez ss 5 1 3 2 0 2 1 .277
K Griffey Jr rf 4 1 1 1 1 1 2 .285
J Conine 1b 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 .275
A Dunn lf 4 0 1 1 0 0 2 .258
D Wise cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
E Encarnacion 3b 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 .228
J Castro 2b 4 0 0 0 0 1 5 .148
D Ross c 4 0 0 0 0 1 4 .211
A Harang p 4 0 0 0 0 2 1 .154

Totals 36 4 8 4 3 8 18

BATTING: 2B - N Hopper 2 (5, W Rodriguez 2); K Griffey Jr (7, W Rodriguez); A
Gonzalez (12, D Borkowski). RBI - A Gonzalez 2 (24), K Griffey Jr (31), A Dunn
(34). 2-out RBI - A Gonzalez. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - D Ross
2, J Conine 1, J Castro 1, A Gonzalez 1. Team LOB - 8.

BASERUNNING: CS - A Dunn (1, 2nd base by W Rodriguez).

FIELDING: E - J Castro (2, throw).


HOUSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
C Biggio 2b 4 1 1 0 0 1 0 .230
M Ensberg 3b 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 .233
L Berkman 1b 4 0 0 1 0 1 1 .244
C Lee lf 4 1 2 1 0 0 0 .313
H Pence cf 4 0 0 0 0 2 1 .342
L Scott rf 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 .226
A Everett ss 4 0 2 1 0 1 0 .213
B Ausmus c 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .235
b-M Lamb ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .271
C Qualls p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
B Lidge p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
W Rodriguez p 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .211
a-J Lane ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .167
D Borkowski p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
c-O Palmeiro ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .158
H Quintero c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .237

Totals 34 3 6 3 0 7 9

a-struck out swinging for W Rodriguez in the 5th; b-popped out to shortstop
for B Ausmus in the 7th; c-lined out to shortstop for D Borkowski in the
7th.

BATTING: 2B - C Lee (15, A Harang); C Biggio (15, A Harang). RBI - C Lee (46),
A Everett (10), L Berkman (25). 2-out RBI - C Lee. Runners left in scoring
position, 2 out - O Palmeiro 1, W Rodriguez 1, H Pence 1. Team LOB - 4.

FIELDING: E - L Berkman (4, catch); C Biggio 2 (4, ground ball 2). Outfield
assists - H Pence (A Gonzalez at 3rd base).


----------------------------------------------------
CINCINNATI - 300 001 000 -- 4
HOUSTON - 100 000 110 -- 3
----------------------------------------------------

CINCINNATI ip h r er bb so hr era
A Harang (W, 6-2) 9 6 3 2 0 7 0 4.22

HOUSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
W Rodriguez (L, 2-5) 5 7 3 3 2 4 0 4.53
D Borkowski 2 1 1 1 1 0 0 3.68
C Qualls 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 3.86
B Lidge 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 2.92

Pitches-strikes: A Harang 105-75; W Rodriguez 91-58; D Borkowski 32-21; C
Qualls 17-12; B Lidge 14-9. Ground balls-fly balls: A Harang 10-10; W Rodriguez
2-9; D Borkowski 3-2; C Qualls 0-1; B Lidge 1-0. Batters faced: A Harang 34; W
Rodriguez 25; D Borkowski 7; C Qualls 4; B Lidge 3.

UMPIRES: HP--Bill Welke. 1B--Laz Diaz. 2B--Wally Bell. 3B--Rob Drake.
EJECTIONS: CINCINNATI's Narron by Welke (1st).
T--2:31. Att--31,904.
Weather: INDOORS</div>

 

NL: CINCINNATI at HOUSTON

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NL
CINCINNATI 4
HOUSTON 3 FINAL</div>

 

NL: CINCINNATI at HOUSTON

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CINCINNATI (4) AT HOUSTON (3) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CINCINNATI 1ST: N Hopper doubled to deep left center. Cincinnati's Manager
J Narron ejected by B Welke. A Gonzalez singled to right, N Hopper scored.
K Griffey Jr doubled to left, A Gonzalez scored. J Conine flied out to center,
K Griffey Jr to third. A Dunn singled to shallow center, K Griffey Jr scored.
E Encarnacion popped out to second. A Dunn caught stealing second, A Dunn safe
at second on error by L Berkman. J Castro grounded out to second.
(3 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 0.

HOUSTON 1ST: C Biggio popped out to first. M Ensberg singled to center.
L Berkman struck out swinging. C Lee doubled to deep left center, M Ensberg
scored. H Pence struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3,
HOUSTON 1.

CINCINNATI 6TH: D Borkowski relieved W Rodriguez. D Ross grounded out to
third. A Harang grounded out to shortstop. N Hopper walked. A Gonzalez
doubled to center, N Hopper scored, A Gonzalez out at third attempting to advance
on play. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 1.

HOUSTON 7TH: C Lee singled to right. H Pence safe at first on throwing
error by second baseman J Castro, C Lee to second. L Scott popped out to
third. A Everett singled to center, C Lee scored, H Pence to second. M Lamb
hit for B Ausmus. M Lamb popped out to shortstop. M Loretta hit for
D Borkowski. O Palmeiro hit for M Loretta. O Palmeiro lined out to shortstop.
(1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Error) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 2.

HOUSTON 8TH: C Biggio doubled to right. M Ensberg flied out to center,
C Biggio to third. L Berkman grounded out to third, C Biggio scored. C Lee
fouled out to first. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 3.</div>

 

NL: CINCINNATI at HOUSTON

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CINCINNATI (4) AT HOUSTON (3) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cincinnati Starting Lineups -- N Hopper CF, A Gonzalez SS, K Griffey Jr RF,
J Conine 1B, A Dunn LF, E Encarnacion 3B, J Castro 2B, D Ross C, A Harang RHP.

Houston Starting Lineups -- C Biggio 2B, M Ensberg 3B, L Berkman 1B, C Lee LF,
H Pence CF, L Scott RF, A Everett SS, B Ausmus C, W Rodriguez LHP.

Umpires -- Bill Welke (HP), Laz Diaz (1B), Wally Bell (2B), Rob Drake (3B).


Gametime Weather: INDOORS.


CINCINNATI 1ST: N Hopper doubled to deep left center. Cincinnati's Manager
J Narron ejected by B Welke. A Gonzalez singled to right, N Hopper scored.
K Griffey Jr doubled to left, A Gonzalez scored. J Conine flied out to center,
K Griffey Jr to third. A Dunn singled to shallow center, K Griffey Jr scored.
E Encarnacion popped out to second. A Dunn caught stealing second, A Dunn safe
at second on error by L Berkman. J Castro grounded out to second.
(3 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 0.

HOUSTON 1ST: C Biggio popped out to first. M Ensberg singled to center.
L Berkman struck out swinging. C Lee doubled to deep left center, M Ensberg
scored. H Pence struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3,
HOUSTON 1.

CINCINNATI 2ND: D Ross flied out to center. A Harang lined out to right.
N Hopper doubled to left. A Gonzalez struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 1.

HOUSTON 2ND: L Scott flied out to center. A Everett singled to right
center. B Ausmus grounded out to pitcher, A Everett to second. W Rodriguez
grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 1.

CINCINNATI 3RD: K Griffey Jr walked. J Conine walked, K Griffey Jr to
second. A Dunn flied out to right. E Encarnacion safe at first on error by
second baseman C Biggio, K Griffey Jr to third, J Conine to second. J Castro
popped out to shortstop. D Ross struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error)
CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 1.

HOUSTON 3RD: C Biggio struck out swinging. M Ensberg popped out to second.
L Berkman grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3,
HOUSTON 1.

CINCINNATI 4TH: A Harang struck out swinging. N Hopper reached on infield
single to shortstop. A Gonzalez singled to left, N Hopper to second.
K Griffey Jr struck out swinging. J Conine lined out to left. (0 Runs, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 1.

HOUSTON 4TH: C Lee grounded out to second. H Pence struck out swinging.
L Scott grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3,
HOUSTON 1.

CINCINNATI 5TH: A Dunn flied out to left. E Encarnacion flied out to
right. J Castro grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 1.

HOUSTON 5TH: A Everett struck out swinging. B Ausmus struck out swinging.
J Lane hit for W Rodriguez. J Lane struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 3, HOUSTON 1.

CINCINNATI 6TH: D Borkowski relieved W Rodriguez. D Ross grounded out to
third. A Harang grounded out to shortstop. N Hopper walked. A Gonzalez
doubled to center, N Hopper scored, A Gonzalez out at third attempting to advance
on play. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 1.

HOUSTON 6TH: C Biggio grounded out to third. M Ensberg lined out to third.
L Berkman grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4,
HOUSTON 1.

CINCINNATI 7TH: K Griffey Jr grounded out to second. J Conine flied out to
center. A Dunn popped out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4,
HOUSTON 1.

HOUSTON 7TH: C Lee singled to right. H Pence safe at first on throwing
error by second baseman J Castro, C Lee to second. L Scott popped out to
third. A Everett singled to center, C Lee scored, H Pence to second. M Lamb
hit for B Ausmus. M Lamb popped out to shortstop. M Loretta hit for
D Borkowski. O Palmeiro hit for M Loretta. O Palmeiro lined out to shortstop.
(1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Error) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 2.

CINCINNATI 8TH: C Qualls relieved D Borkowski. H Quintero catching.
E Encarnacion safe at first on error by second baseman C Biggio. J Castro struck
out swinging. D Ross flied out to right. A Harang struck out swinging.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 2.

HOUSTON 8TH: C Biggio doubled to right. M Ensberg flied out to center,
C Biggio to third. L Berkman grounded out to third, C Biggio scored. C Lee
fouled out to first. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 3.

CINCINNATI 9TH: B Lidge relieved C Qualls. N Hopper struck out swinging.
A Gonzalez struck out swinging. K Griffey Jr grounded out to second. (0 Runs,
0 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 3.

HOUSTON 9TH: N Hopper in left field. D Wise in center field. H Pence lined
out to first. L Scott grounded out to third. A Everett grounded out to
shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 3.</div>

 

Harang, Reds extend Astros' skid to 10 games

<h3>CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 3</h3>HOUSTON (Ticker) -- The Houston Astros are closing in on adubious franchise record.

Aaron Harang pitched his first complete game of the season andAlex Gonzalez continued his hot hitting to carry the CincinnatiReds to a 4-3 victory over the Astros, who have lost 10 straightgames.

The Astros have not lost 10 games in a row since August 1995,when they set a club mark by dropping 11 straight decisions.

Harang (6-2) allowed single runs in the first, seventh andeighth innings to Houston, which has been outscored, 72-20,during its skid.

The 29-year-old righthander was charged with three runs - twoearned - and six hits. He struck out seven and did not walk abatter. Harang, who threw 105 pitches, has beaten the Astrossix straight times.

The Reds made Harang's job easier by scoring three runs in theirfirst at-bat against Astros lefthander Wandy Rodriguez.

Norris Hopper, who had three hits and reached base four times,led off with a double and scored on a single by Gonzalez. KenGriffey Jr. followed with an RBI double for a 2-0 lead andeventually scored on Adam Dunn's single that made it 3-0.

Gonzalez finished 3-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to eightgames, during which he is batting .412 (14-of-34).

The Astros got a run back in the bottom of the first when CarlosLee doubled home Morgan Ensberg, who had singled off Harang.

Rodriguez (2-5) settled into a groove after the troublesomestart, tossing four scoreless innings before he was removed infavor of reliever Dave Borkowski. The lefthander was chargedwith three runs and seven hits. He struck out four, walked twoand threw 91 pitches in his five innings.

Cincinnati added a lead off Borkowski in the sixth. Hopper drewa two-out walk and scored his second run on a double byGonzalez to widen the advantage to 4-1.

The Astros threatened in the seventh against Harang, helped byan error. Lee led off with a single and moved to third whenrookie Hunter Pence reached on second baseman Juan Castro'sthrowing error.

After Luke Scott popped out, Adam Everett plated Lee with asingle to center to half the deficit, 4-2. Harang avertedfurther damage by inducing pinch hitters Mike Lamb and OrlandoPalmeiro to pop out.

Houston got within 4-3 in the eighth when Craig Biggio led offwith a double, moved to third on a sacrifice fly by Ensberg andscored on Lance Berkman's infield groundout.

 

Harang, Reds extend Astros' skid to 10 games

<h3>CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 3</h3>HOUSTON (Ticker) -- The Houston Astros are closing in on adubious franchise record.

Aaron Harang pitched his first complete game of the season andAlex Gonzalez continued his hot hitting to carry the CincinnatiReds to a 4-3 victory over the Astros, who have lost 10 straightgames.

The Astros have not lost 10 games in a row since August 1995,when they set a club mark by dropping 11 straight decisions.

Harang (6-2) allowed single runs in the first, seventh andeighth innings to Houston, which has been outscored, 72-20,during its skid.

"Harang was outstanding. We had some chances there in themiddle innings," said Reds manager Jerry Narron, who was ejectedin the first inning for arguing balls and strikes. "We didn'tcapitalize on them. He's given us good outings, it seems like,every time out.

"He's the No. 1 guy and that's what you're looking for. It'snice to see us play good defense, because that's something weexpected from the beginning of the season."

The 29-year-old righthander was charged with three runs - twoearned - and six hits. He struck out seven and did not walk abatter. Harang, who threw 105 pitches, has beaten the Astrossix straight times.

"A couple years ago, I couldn't get a ball by 'em," Harang saidof his recent success against the Astros. "They just lit me up.I don't know what it is. I don't know if it's just a matterof mixing pitches up a little better or what. You just try togo out there and execute your pitches and good things are goingto happen."

The Reds made Harang's job easier by scoring three runs in theirfirst at-bat against Astros lefthander Wandy Rodriguez.

Norris Hopper, who had three hits and reached base four times,led off with a double and scored on a single by Gonzalez. KenGriffey Jr. followed with an RBI double for a 2-0 lead andeventually scored on Adam Dunn's single that made it 3-0.

"It's always nice to get an early advantage," Harang said. "Youdon't have to go out and press so much and keep it scoreless.

Gonzalez finished 3-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to eightgames, during which he is batting .412 (14-of-34).

The Astros got a run back in the bottom of the first when CarlosLee doubled home Morgan Ensberg, who had singled off Harang.

Rodriguez (2-5) settled into a groove after the troublesomestart, tossing four scoreless innings before he was removed infavor of reliever Dave Borkowski.

"I started off pretty rough, but I really fought hard the restof the way to keep the game close," Rodriguez said. "I had togive us a chance to at least come back and tie the game. In thefirst inning, I made a few bad pitches, but I came back, madethe adjustments that I needed to make."

The lefthander was charged with three runs and seven hits. Hestruck out four, walked two and threw 91 pitches in his fiveinnings.

"Wandy got in a bit of a hole, but he picked himself right upand did a nice job with the rest of his game," Astros managerPhil Garner said. "He kept us in it and that is all you can askfor."

Cincinnati added a lead off Borkowski in the sixth. Hopper drewa two-out walk and scored his second run on a double byGonzalez to widen the advantage to 4-1.

"Hop's a guy who puts the bat on the ball and he's got theability to beat out some infield hits," Narron said. "It'sgreat to see someone step in and do the job for us. I'm happyfor the guy, he's put in a lot of time in the minor leagues.He's getting a chance to play and he's making the most of it."

The Astros threatened in the seventh against Harang, helped byan error. Lee led off with a single and moved to third whenrookie Hunter Pence reached on second baseman Juan Castro'sthrowing error.

After Luke Scott popped out, Adam Everett plated Lee with asingle to center to half the deficit, 4-2. Harang avertedfurther damage by inducing pinch hitters Mike Lamb and OrlandoPalmeiro to pop out.

Houston got within 4-3 in the eighth when Craig Biggio led offwith a double, moved to third on a sacrifice fly by Ensberg andscored on Lance Berkman's infield groundout.

"This has just been a pretty frustrating time for us. I haveseen a few guys struggle in the past, but not as many as we haveright now and that is frustrating," Biggio said. "We're losinggames and we just need to get this monkey off our back and geta W. It's frustrating and I don't think we have seen thesetimes in a long time."

 

Harang, Reds extend Astros' skid to 10 games*
==============================================

CINCINNATI 4, HOUSTON 3
-----------------------
HOUSTON (Ticker) -- The Houston Astros are closing in on a
dubious franchise record.

Aaron Harang pitched