Baseball Guru
04-05-2002, 05:05 AM
By JOE KAY
AP Sports Writer
April 4, 2002, 10:43 PM EST
CINCINNATI -- Sammy Sosa hit his second homer, but Fred McGriff's error set up two Cincinnati runs and the Reds held on for a 3-1 victory Thursday night over the Chicago Cubs.
The Reds took two of three in the opening series, a turnaround for the majors' worst home team of 2001. The Reds lost two of their first three at Cinergy Field last season, on their way to a franchise-record 54 home losses.
Ken Griffey Jr. hit an RBI single. He also had a fastball by Juan Cruz (0-1) glance off his batting helmet in the third -- the sixth batter plunked in the series. Griffey went to first without complaint, and didn't even look at Cruz when they crossed paths after the inning.
The benches and bullpens cleared on Wednesday night after Reds reliever Luis Pineda hit two Cubs in the ninth inning and was ejected.
The Reds won despite getting only three hits. McGriff's error at first base set up two unearned runs in the second.
Jose Acevedo (1-0) limited the Cubs to five hits in six innings, becoming the first Cincinnati starter to make it past the fifth inning this season.
Danny Graves pitched out of a two-on, one-out threat in the eighth as he got his first save in two chances. The Cubs put two on with no outs in the ninth before Graves retired them.
Acevedo retired 10 in a row before Sosa reached out for a down-and-away pitch and hit it into the Cubs' bullpen in right field in the fourth inning, his second homer of the series. Both have gone to right field as the Reds tried to carefully pitch him away.
Sosa's 452nd career homer moved him into a tie with Carl Yastrzemski for 24th place. Griffey is next with 460.
Griffey went 3-for-10 with two RBIs and four strikeouts in the series.
Acevedo got the better of a matchup between two young starters who got their first big league promotions last season. Both threw hard on a cold night -- it was 43 degrees at the first pitch, and players could see their breath.
Sean Casey doubled off Cruz to start the Reds' second and McGriff let Aaron Boone's grounder skitter through his legs, sending Casey home. Boone scored on Jason LaRue's two-out double off the wall in left-center.
Manager Don Baylor and the trainer came out to the mound to look at Cruz's pitching hand after he walked Boone on four pitches to open the fourth. The trainer used a nail file on Cruz's right index finger in the dugout between innings.
Todd Walker walked in the fifth, advanced on Barry Larkin's groundout and scored on Griffey's single to right off Cruz, who gave up three hits and three runs -- only one earned -- in 4 2-3 innings.
Notes:@ The Cubs claimed Mario Encarnacion off waivers from the Colorado Rockies, giving them a backup outfielder. Infielder Julio Zuleta was designated for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Encarnacion, who failed to win a spot as the Rockies' fifth outfielder during spring training. ... LF Moises Alou sat out his third game with a strained right calf. ... The Cubs will play their 87th Wrigley Field opener on Friday. They're 48-37-1 in home openers. ... Acevedo's wild pitch in the first inning was the fourth by Reds starters in three games. ... When Acevedo retired the side in order in the second, it marked the first 1-2-3 inning by a Reds starter in three games. The Reds' rotation pitched the fewest innings in the majors last season.
AP Sports Writer
April 4, 2002, 10:43 PM EST
CINCINNATI -- Sammy Sosa hit his second homer, but Fred McGriff's error set up two Cincinnati runs and the Reds held on for a 3-1 victory Thursday night over the Chicago Cubs.
The Reds took two of three in the opening series, a turnaround for the majors' worst home team of 2001. The Reds lost two of their first three at Cinergy Field last season, on their way to a franchise-record 54 home losses.
Ken Griffey Jr. hit an RBI single. He also had a fastball by Juan Cruz (0-1) glance off his batting helmet in the third -- the sixth batter plunked in the series. Griffey went to first without complaint, and didn't even look at Cruz when they crossed paths after the inning.
The benches and bullpens cleared on Wednesday night after Reds reliever Luis Pineda hit two Cubs in the ninth inning and was ejected.
The Reds won despite getting only three hits. McGriff's error at first base set up two unearned runs in the second.
Jose Acevedo (1-0) limited the Cubs to five hits in six innings, becoming the first Cincinnati starter to make it past the fifth inning this season.
Danny Graves pitched out of a two-on, one-out threat in the eighth as he got his first save in two chances. The Cubs put two on with no outs in the ninth before Graves retired them.
Acevedo retired 10 in a row before Sosa reached out for a down-and-away pitch and hit it into the Cubs' bullpen in right field in the fourth inning, his second homer of the series. Both have gone to right field as the Reds tried to carefully pitch him away.
Sosa's 452nd career homer moved him into a tie with Carl Yastrzemski for 24th place. Griffey is next with 460.
Griffey went 3-for-10 with two RBIs and four strikeouts in the series.
Acevedo got the better of a matchup between two young starters who got their first big league promotions last season. Both threw hard on a cold night -- it was 43 degrees at the first pitch, and players could see their breath.
Sean Casey doubled off Cruz to start the Reds' second and McGriff let Aaron Boone's grounder skitter through his legs, sending Casey home. Boone scored on Jason LaRue's two-out double off the wall in left-center.
Manager Don Baylor and the trainer came out to the mound to look at Cruz's pitching hand after he walked Boone on four pitches to open the fourth. The trainer used a nail file on Cruz's right index finger in the dugout between innings.
Todd Walker walked in the fifth, advanced on Barry Larkin's groundout and scored on Griffey's single to right off Cruz, who gave up three hits and three runs -- only one earned -- in 4 2-3 innings.
Notes:@ The Cubs claimed Mario Encarnacion off waivers from the Colorado Rockies, giving them a backup outfielder. Infielder Julio Zuleta was designated for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Encarnacion, who failed to win a spot as the Rockies' fifth outfielder during spring training. ... LF Moises Alou sat out his third game with a strained right calf. ... The Cubs will play their 87th Wrigley Field opener on Friday. They're 48-37-1 in home openers. ... Acevedo's wild pitch in the first inning was the fourth by Reds starters in three games. ... When Acevedo retired the side in order in the second, it marked the first 1-2-3 inning by a Reds starter in three games. The Reds' rotation pitched the fewest innings in the majors last season.