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  Friday, Jul. 21 7:35pm ET
Mantei slams door on Griffey in ninth
 
  RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME LOG

CINCINNATI (AP) -- Two leadoff triples, two empty innings. The Arizona Diamondbacks knew they couldn't let a third scoring chance slip away.

They didn't. Luis Gonzalez doubled with two outs in the eighth inning Friday night, driving in the go-ahead run, and the Diamondbacks held on for a 5-4 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

The Reds lost shortly after captain Barry Larkin revealed a tentative deal that would send him to the New York Mets. Larkin, who has spent his entire career with Cincinnati, has to decide whether to approve it.

Reds
Barry Larkin fans show their support after learning he could be going to the Mets if he OKs a trade. Read one sign: "Our Ship Will Sink Without The Captain."

The game ended with Larkin drawing a two-out walk from Matt Mantei, bringing up Ken Griffey Jr. Mantei threw three 99-mph fastballs past Griffey to end it.

"I think I thrive on those situations, believe it or not," said Mantei, who got his sixth save in eight chances. "I wish I had a dollar for every time I've walked a guy to bring up the big hitter.

"He's a great hitter. He's going to be in the Hall of Fame. Striking out a big hitter like that is fun."

The 46,101 fans on hand for the game and a Beach Boys concert afterward were on their feet, snapping photos, when Griffey came to bat. A hush came over them when Griffey swung through a high fastball for strike three.

"They wanted to see a home run," manager Jack McKeon said. "That's what we wanted. It didn't work out that way."

Nothing worked out right for the Reds in their first home game since the club informed Larkin that it won't meet his request for a three-year, $27.9 million extension. The Reds and Mets worked out a trade that requires Larkin's approval.

The commissioner's office has to give permission for a 72-hour negotiating window, allowing the Mets to talk to Larkin.

Several pro-Larkin banners fluttered around the stadium and he got a louder than usual round of applause in his first at-bat. He went 0-for-3 with a pair of walks.

After wasting leadoff triples in the sixth and seventh -- both set up by Dante Bichette's misplays in right field -- the Diamondbacks finally got a clutch hit and broke a 4-all tie in the eighth.

A walk and Jay Bell's two-out single off Scott Sullivan (1-4) left runners on first and third. Gonzalez hit a ground-rule double off Dennys Reyes for the go-ahead run, leaving him 3-for-3 career off the left-hander.

"When you've done well against a pitcher, you have some confidence against him," Gonzalez said. "You try to go over some old at-bats in your mind, you try to get ahead in the count and you try to get something in the air."

He did all three.

Greg Swindell (2-3) retired both batters he faced in the seventh, getting Griffey on a groundout and Bichette on a strikeout.

Neither starter could hold a lead or keep runners off base for very long. Arizona's Mike Morgan, making his fourth start of the season, gave up 10 hits in five innings and left with the score tied at 4.

Steve Parris wasn't much better, giving up nine hits in six innings while wasting a pair of leads. Sean Casey's two-run double put the Reds ahead in the first and extended his hitting streak to a career-high 14 games.

The Diamondbacks loaded the bases with the help of an intentional two-out walk in the second to bring up Morgan. His soft single to center drove in a run that tied it at 2.

Parris matched Morgan by slapping an RBI single off a fake bunt as the Reds went up 3-2 in the second, but let his self-fashioned lead get away in the fourth. Steve Finley led off with his 27th homer and Erubiel Durazo singled and came around on a pair of wild pitches and Danny Bautista's groundout for a 4-3 lead.

Dmitri Young's two-out single in the bottom of the fifth tied it once again.

Game notes
Morgan extended his hitting streak to four games with his two singles. He's 7-for-14 at the plate this season. ... Morgan remained winless as a starter this season. He's 4-0 with five saves in 31 relief appearances, 0-2 in four starts. ... Cincinnati's Larry Luebbers, scheduled to start Saturday's game, was scratched Friday night because of tightness in his forearm. Ron Villone will start in his place. ... Bichette had a pair of hits, extending his hitting streak to a season-high 15 games. ... 3B Aaron Boone was fitted for a brace for his sprained left knee Friday. He'll start testing the knee in the next 10 days, when the Reds will decide whether to activate him or consider surgery. ... A banner in center read: "Our Ship Will Sink Without The Captain."
 


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Reds to trade Larkin to Mets if he approves deal


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