GAME THREAD: NL: CINCINNATI (60-72) at PITTSBURGH (59-72)

Harang hurls two-hitter as Reds blank Pirates

<h3>CINCINNATI 8, PITTSBURGH 0</h3>PITTSBURGH (Ticker) -- Aaron Harang has put it all together forthe Cincinnati Reds.


Harang pitched a complete game two-hitter as the Reds shut outthe Pittsburgh Pirates, 8-0, on Wednesday night.


Ken Griffey Jr. hit his 592nd career homer and Brandon Phillipsalso hit a solo homer for Cincinnati, which has won seven ofnine and 11 of 16 to remain on the fringe of the National LeagueCentral race. The Reds are 7 1/2 games behind thedivision-leading Chicago Cubs and play the division frontrunners six more time in the month of September.


Harang (14-3) was brilliant, losing a no-hit bid in the fifth ona one-out double by Jason Bay. The righthander, who retiredthe first nine Pirates he faced before walking Nate McLouth tobegin the fourth, threw 70 of his 94 pitches for strikes,fanning eight Pirates in the process. The only other hit heallowed was a leadoff single to Matt Kata in the sixth inning.

A six-year veteran, Harang hurled his 10th career complete gameand fourth career shutout. He has won four straight decisionssince missing a scheduled start on August 2 with soreness in hislower back. Harang is also off to the best start by a Redspitcher since Tom Seaver finished the 1981 season, 14-2.

Griffey gave Harang all the support he needed when the 12-timeAll-Star, with runners on the corners, belted a 1-0 pitch fromPittsburgh starter Ian Snell into the seats in right field for a3-0 lead. The 1997 American League Most Valuable Player isjust eight homers shy of becoming the sixth player to reach the600 mark.


Leading by the same score in the fifth, Alex Gonzalez lofted asacrifice fly and Phillips blasted a 1-1 fastball from Snellover the center field wall to increase the lead to five.

One frame later, a sacrifice fly by Josh Hamilton and arun-scoring single by Gonzalez made it 7-0. Javier Valentinadded an RBI double in the seventh to finish the scoring.

Snell (8-11) was tagged for seven runs, 10 hits and two walks in5 1/3 innings. The righthander, who struck out four, has lostthree straight games to the Reds.

 

Harang hurls two-hitter as Reds blank Pirates

<h3>CINCINNATI 8, PITTSBURGH 0</h3>PITTSBURGH (Ticker) -- Aaron Harang has put it all together forthe Cincinnati Reds.


Harang pitched a two-hitter as the Reds shut out the PittsburghPirates, 8-0, on Wednesday night.


Ken Griffey Jr. hit his 592nd career home run and BrandonPhillips also belted a solo homer for Cincinnati, which has wonseven of nine and 11 of 16 to remain on the fringe of theNational League Central Division race. The Reds (61-72) areseven games behind division-leading Chicago 67-64) and face theCubs six times in September.


Harang (14-3) was brilliant, keeping Pittsburgh hitless untilJason Bay delivered a one-out double in the fifth.

"I threw one pitch to Bay that drifted in (to the middle of theplate)," Harang said. "I tried to throw a three-quarterfastball to run it away from him, but it ran back to the plate."

"I've said it before and I'll say it again, he's just a pleasureto watch," Reds manager Pete Mackanin said. "He was incomplete control the entire game. He threw everything in hisarsenal for strikes."


The righthander - who retired the first nine Pirates he facedbefore walking Nate McLouth to begin the fourth - threw 70 ofhis 94 pitches for strikes, fanning eight in the process.

"I tried to throw strikes and get ahead early (in the pitchcount)," Harang said. "I wanted to keep them off-balance andmake them swing at my pitches, and the guys were there to backme up with defense and run support early. We got a good amountof runs and I didn't have to stress too much."


The only other hit allowed by Harang was a leadoff single byMatt Kata in the sixth inning.


"The pitch to Matt Kata, it just fell into the middle ofnowhere," Harang said. "You know, it fell into the black holeout there, the Bermuda Triangle, so there's nothing I can doabout that. If you're not on, (the Pirates) can wear you out.They've got great hitters over there."


A six-year veteran, Harang hurled his 10th career complete gameand fourth career shutout.


"This was the case where you just have to give the other guycredit," Pirates manager Jim Tracy said. "Our guys didn't doanything wrong. He just pitched a great game. He put everypitch but one (on Bay's double) where he wanted it."

Harang has won four straight decisions since missing a scheduledstart on August 2 with soreness in his lower back.

"Aaron Harang is an All-Star," Phillips said. "He went outthere and did his job, like he's been doing all year. He throwsstrikes, so you have to be alert (in the field) because younever know when they're going to hit the ball. All we've got todo is get one run for him because he's one of those type ofpitchers."


Harang also is has the best record at this point in a season bya Reds pitcher since Tom Seaver finished the 1981 campaign witha 14-2 mark.


"When I was (a coach and interim manager) with Pittsburgh, wenever liked facing him," Mackanin said. "I knew Harang wascapable of doing things like he did tonight, but to see theconsistency has been impressive for me. It's just a matter ofthe way he goes about his business. He's cool, calm andcollected. He knows that he's good, but he's not cocky."

The only troublesome moment in the game occurred when Harang'sright forearm was hit by a pitch from the Pirates lefthanderShane Youman in the seventh inning.


"I thought (the pitch) hit his finger or his hand. That's whatconcerned me," Mackanin said. "And then when he started runningdown to first base, I felt a little better."


"The ball kept coming in on me and just barely got me, so itwasn't anything," Harang said.


Griffey gave Harang all the support he needed when the 12-timeAll-Star, with runners on the corners, belted a 1-0 pitch fromPittsburgh starter Ian Snell into the seats in right field for a3-0 lead. The 1997 American League Most Valuable Player isjust eight homers shy of becoming the sixth player to reach the600 mark.


With the Reds leading by the same score in the fifth, AlexGonzalez lofted a sacrifice fly and Phillips blasted a 1-1fastball from Snell over the center field wall to increase thelead to five.


One frame later, a sacrifice fly by Josh Hamilton and arun-scoring single by Gonzalez made it 7-0. Javier Valentinadded an RBI double in the seventh to finish the scoring.

"It was a nice situation, everybody was swinging the bats,"Mackanin said. "We have a potent lineup against righthandedpitching."


Snell (8-11) was tagged for seven runs, 10 hits and two walks in5 1/3 innings. The righthander, who struck out four, has lostthree straight games to the Reds.