GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NL: HOUSTON (69-88) at CINCINNATI (71-86)

Berkman, Pence help Astros edge Reds

<h3>HOUSTON 7, CINCINNATI 6</h3>CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- Lance Berkman used his big bat to helpknock off the Cincinnati Reds.


Berkman hit two home runs and rookie Hunter Pence drove in thedecisive run as the Houston Astros posted a 7-6 victory over theReds on Wednesday night.


Carlos Lee homered and scored the game-winning run and Pencealso hit a solo shot for Houston, which is 10-4 vs. Cincinnatithis season, including 7-1 here.


The loss is the fourth straight for the Reds, who are just agame ahead of the Astros for fourth place in the National LeagueCentral with only four games remaining.


With the score tied at 6-6 in the top of the eighth, Lee hit atwo-out double off rookie Jared Burton (4-2), the sixth of sevenpitchers used by Cincinnati. Pence then slapped a base hit upthe middle, allowing the burly Lee to just beat the throw ofcenter fielder Norris Hopper at home plate to give Houston aone-run lead.


"We had to go for it," Astros interim manager Cecil Cooper said."We had to get that run home with two outs. Lee did what hehad to do. He slid away from the tag and reached back with hishand.


"Carlos also hustled his hit into a double. People say hedoesn't hustle but he plays hard. He may not always get downthe first base line, but when the games are on the line hehustles. He's been a very, very good camper since I've beenhere."


Astros rookie Dennis Sarfate (1-0) earned his first major leaguevictory by pitching two innings of one-hit relief. Chad Quallsworked around a leadoff walk in the ninth to collect his fifthsave of the season.


"(The win) feels good," Sarfate said. "I've been a starter mywhole life, I'm just trying to get my foot in the door. ChadQualls gave me the ball. I guess we'd have had to fight over itif it was his first career save."


Berkman, who was 4-for-4 with four RBI, continued to make GreatAmerican Ballpark look like a Little League field.

The four-time All-Star has blasted 17 homers here - the most ofany opponent - since the stadium opened in 2003.


Berkman put the Astros out front early when, with runners onsecond and third and no outs in the first, the nine-year veteranbelted a 3-0 pitch from rookie Tom Shearn over the center fieldwall to give Houston a 3-0 lead.


"When you've had success in a ballpark, you feel comfortable,"Berkman said. "I can't explain the home runs, but I do like ithere. I see the ball well."


Lee immediately followed with a solo shot to left to increasethe lead to four.


Shearn, who didn't finish the inning, was replaced by KirkSaarloos with two outs in the frame.


The Reds halved their deficit in the bottom half of the inningwhen rookie Joey Votto hit a two-out double and scored onBrandon Phillips' 30th homer of the season. The two-run shotoff Houston rookie Juan Gutierrez helped Phillips become justthe third player in club history to hit 30 homers and steal 30bases in one season.


Eric Davis (1987) and Barry Larkin (1990) are the other two Redsplayers to reach that feat.


"It hasn't really settled in," Phillips said. "I can believe Iachieved my goals. It is a great feeling to be in the samecategory as my favorite player (Larkin) growing up."

He also joins Alfonso Soriano as the only second basemen to bemembers of 30-30 club.


"Larkin and Soriano," Phillips added. "I've always liked theway (Soriano, who has done it three times) swings. I feel likeI've lost five pounds. I finally got the monkey off my back."

"Everybody is happy for him, he's a great kid," Reds interimmanager Pete Mackanin said. "We're glad he got it for a numberof reasons, one of which is that he can stop going for it."

Saarloos put Cincinnati out front in the bottom of the secondwhen he hit a two-run double and scored on a double-playgroundout to give the Reds a 5-4 advantage.


Pence led off the third with his 17th homer to knot the game at5-5, and Berkman untied it one inning later by drilling atwo-out homer off Saarloos to make it 6-5.


It was the 33rd homer of the season for Berkman, who is oneahead of Lee for the team lead. It was also his 100th RBI, thefifth time he's reach the century mark for runs driven in.

"It's a team game but there's an individual component," Berkmansaid. "Reaching 100 RBI makes me feel like I've done a goodjob."


Cincinnati tied it in the sixth when Edwin Encarnacion led offwith a double off reliever Mark McLemore and scored on a doubleby rookie Buck Coats.