GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NL: MILWAUKEE (55-43) at CINCINNATI (41-58)

Valentin hits walk-off single as Reds halt three-game skid

<h3>CINCINNATI 2, MILWAUKEE 1 (12 INNINGS)</h3>CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- Javier Valentin hit a walk-off pinch-hitsingle in the 12th inning to help the Cincinnati Reds snap athree-game skid in a 2-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers onMonday.


Valentin drove a ball into right field to score pinch runnerNorris Hopper after the beleagured Cincinnati bullpen camethrough with a solid performance.


Jeff Conine led off the inning by drawing a walk off Balfour(0-2) and Pedro Lopez also walked. David Ross then sacrificedthe runners setting the stage for Valentin, who hit the firstpitch he saw into right, scoring Hopper with the winning run.

Jared Burton (1-1) picked up the win by gettting the final twoouts of the 12th as the Cincinnati bullpen, which entered thegame with a National-League worst 5.11 ERA performed admirably.

After watching Balfour walk the first two hitters Valentin had agame plan and it worked.


"In that situation he has to throw a strike. I'm going to gowith a first-pitch fastball," Valentin said.


Balfour spent all of last season on the Cincinnati disabled listand worked two years to get back to the major leagues.

"I'd better do something quick, I guess," Balfour said. "I'dbeen throwing strikes all year and I come up here and I need toget back to doing that, quick."


After Aaron Harang threw 10 dominating innings, closer DavidWeathers worked out of a none out bases-loaded jam in the 11thto keep the game tied at 1-1.


Weather's jammed Estrada and got a huge 3-2-3 double play, buthit Geoff Jenkins to re-load the bases. Weathers then got KevinMench to escape unscathed.


"You've got to score a run there," Milwaukee manager Ned Yostsaid. "Nobody has been doing anything offensively. We're juststruggling to find holes right now."


Meanwhile Harang, who just came off the bereavement list, becamejust the second pitcher in the majors to throw more than nineinnings, joining Toronto Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay, whoaccomplished the feat when he beat Detroit on April 13 byhurling a 10-inning complete game.


Harang, who has won nine of his last 12 starts, allowed just onerun and seven hits with a a season-high tying 10 strikeoutswithout a walk. He became the first Cincinnati pitcher to throw10 innings since Rick Mahler in 1989.


"What a masterful job," interim manager Pete Mackanin said."What a horse. I love watching him pitch. He's special. Hehasn't gotten the credit he deserves."


The reigning National League strikeout king left to an ovationin the 10th after striking out Corey Hart with runners on firstand second.


"I was getting ahead early and made the pitches I wanted to,"Harang said. "I only went 3-2 to one guy. There were a lot oftimes that I got guys on two pitches. They asked me after theninth if I was OK. I told them I felt great."


Harang allowed only two runs in 7 2/3 in his last start inAtlanta before leaving for the funeral of his grandfather, Dustyin San Diego.


"I found out before that game on Wednesday but I knew he waswith me," Harang said. "He wouldn't have wanted me to miss astart." One of Harang's only mistakes was a 2-0 pitch thatrookie Ryan Braun deposited over the left field wall in thefourth to tie the game at 1-1. For Braun, it was the secondhomer in three days and tied him with Ryan Howard for the mostin July at eight.


However, after the homer Harang was nearly unhittable, retiring16 straight before allowing a pair of hits in the ninth.

Harang threw a season-high tying 121 pitches - 87 for strikes -but the Reds failed to muster much support against ChrisCapuano, who was nearly as impressive.


Capuano was 0-6 with a 9.58 ERA in his last 10 starts andMilwaukee had lost each of those starts, but in this one heresembled the pitcher that started the season 5-0 with a 2.31ERA.


The 28-year-old lefthander allowed one run and seven hits ineight innings with seven strikeouts. Capuano fell behind 1-0when Ross hit a solo homer to left for his 15th homer of theseason in the third.


"He's not pitching with much luck right now," Yost said. "Hegave us eight strong innings, really good innings. He tried togo with a fastball up to Ross, and he got a hold of it,dadgummit. Besides that, he was really, really good."

Prince Fielder had a pair of hits for Milwaukee, which has lostthree of its last four games.