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Sunday, Aug. 20 1:15pm ET
Giles powers Pirates past Reds | |||||
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GAME LOG
CINCINNATI (AP) -- In the midst of his 0-for-12 slump, Brian Giles figured better times were ahead because he was starting to hit the ball hard. In the past seven games, he's let the good times roll. Giles extended his extra-base tear by driving in four runs with a pair of doubles and a homer as the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-3 for a rare Sunday win. Giles' two-run double in the fifth off Elmer Dessens (5-4) put the Pirates ahead to stay. He also doubled home a run in the third as Pittsburgh overcame a 3-1 deficit and hit a solo homer in the ninth, his 29th. The outfielder is in a 14-for-28 spurt that includes 10 extra-base hits -- three doubles, three triples and four homers. "Two weeks ago when we were in San Francisco, I was lining out all the time," Giles said. "When you start going good, the ball starts finding the holes for you." Nothing good ever seems to happen for the Pirates on a Sunday. They'd lost their last nine Sunday games since winning on June 11. The 7-3 victory left them 4-15 on Sunday, their worst day overall. "I don't know what we are, but for some reason we haven't played well in Sunday day games," Giles said. "Maybe next year we can get some ESPN Sunday night games." Cincinnati lost for the fifth time in six games because it couldn't take advantage of another slow start by Jose Silva (8-7). The right-hander was rocked in his last three games, failing to make it out of the third inning in two of them. Bronson Arroyo started warming up in the bullpen after Dante Bichette singled home a run and Sean Casey followed with a two-run double in the first. That was it as the Reds settled back into their hitting slump. They've score more than three runs only one time in the last eight games, a surprising problem for a team featuring Bichette and Ken Griffey Jr. "I thought the easiest thing for us would be scoring runs -- and in bunches, not just three or four early and then shut it down," manager Jack McKeon said. "I thought we might have a romp today. I thought we might score six or seven runs easy." Silva, who had a 17.36 ERA in his last three starts, settled down and gave up just four more hits. He went 5 2/3 innings overall for his first win since July 26. "Early in the game he was up, then he got better control of his fastball," manager Gene Lamont said. "His breaking ball seemed to get better as the game went on. Sometimes he battles himself, gets in a situation and makes it worse." Scott Sauerbeck got Griffey to hit into a double play, scuttling a threat in the seventh, when the Pirates were holding a 5-3 lead. Mike Williams pitched a perfect ninth as the bullpen retired the last eight in a row. "I thought this was going to be a high-scoring year," Reds shortstop Barry Larkin said. "That's why baseball is such a tough game. The things you thought were supposed to happen don't." Both starters had lost their last three games, and neither got off to a good start in this one, either. The Pirates put together a walk and three hits in the first, including Kevin Young's run-scoring single, but Giles hit into a double play to undercut the threat. The Reds went up 3-1 in the bottom of the inning. Dessens, who hasn't won since July 28, walked the leadoff batter in three of his five innings. He walked five batters overall, and four of them scored. Jason Kendall walked and scored on Giles' double in the third, and Dessens opened the fifth by walking Emil Brown and Kendall. He then fell behind in the count to Giles, who doubled to left for a 4-3 lead. Enrique Wilson's hit-and-run single drove in Giles with two outs. Pat Meares added a sacrifice fly in the eighth off Mark Wohlers and Giles homered in the ninth, giving him 101 RBI for the season. Giles drove in 115 last season, when he led the Pirates in average, runs, homers and RBI. "I think the good players in this game are consistent," Giles said. "Not every year are you going to have identical numbers as the year before but if you're in the same area and pretty consistent, I think that's when people think of you as a good player." Griffey had a single and a double in four at-bats, extending his hitting streak to six games and raising his average to a season-high .255. Game notesThe Pirates are 2-4 on their nine-game trip. They've had just one winning road trip out of their previous 10 this season. ... Giles went 2-for-3 against Dessens, leaving him 4-for-5 career off the right-hander. ... Warren Morris was 1-for-3, leaving him in a 3-for-25 slump. ... Reds 2B Pokey Reese missed his third consecutive game with a tight hamstring. ... Bichette hasn't homered since July 23, a span of 93 at-bats that is his longest of the season. ... The Reds are the only major league team with a losing record at home (29-32) and a winning road record (31-30). | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Pittsburgh Clubhouse Cincinnati Clubhouse RECAPS Cleveland 12 Seattle 4
Pittsburgh 7
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