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Wednesday, Apr. 5 7:05pm ET
Barker, Houston, Jenkins go deep | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Ken Griffey Jr. is still 0-for-2000, just like his new team. Give the Milwaukee Brewers' pitching staff credit for both. The Brewers, not Junior, hit the homers and Milwaukee's pitchers did another impressive job of avoiding disaster Wednesday night, setting up an 8-5 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. Kevin Barker, Tyler Houston and Geoff Jenkins each homered and seven different Brewers scored as Milwaukee improved to 2-0 under first-year manager Davey Lopes. "Being on the road with all the Griffey hype and all that's going on here, that's awesome," Barker said. "It's a tough situation when everything's zoned in on him." It's been a lot tougher on the center of attention. Griffey once again saw flashbulbs go off every time he came to bat. Once again, there was a lot of wasted film. Griffey walked, grounded out three times against Milwaukee's infield shift, struck out and stranded two runners on third. He's 0-for-10 in three games and has yet to get a ball out of the infield in his hometown. "You don't see that too often," Lopes said. "They (Milwaukee's pitchers) have accepted the challenge. "He's a great hitter. He's going to get his hits. We hope we can get out of here and then he can get as hot as a firecracker. Another 0-fer tomorrow and he can get on a 20-game hitting streak, I don't care. You think I can coax him into that?" Junior's not alone in his struggles. The Reds were 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position, leaving them 3-for-26 this season when a clutch hit is needed. Aaron Boone epitomized the frustration when he took a called third strike from Bob Wickman to end the game. Boone threw his bat away, stretched his arms in disbelief and argued briefly with home plate umpire Marty Foster. Pokey Reese and Eddie Taubensee had four hits apiece, but the rest of their teammates combined for five. It was the first time since 1991 that two Reds got four hits apiece in a game and lost. "It's only two games. It would be different if it was 16," said Dmitri Young, who was 1-for-4. "You've got to tip caps to their bullpen. They shut us down. We're playing well, but they're playing better." The game was a mix of good and bad for the Reds and for Dante Bichette in particular. He misplayed a hit to right into a triple for the second straight night, but got a solo homer for his first hit as a Red and threw Marquis Grissom out at home as he tried to score on a fly in the seventh. After getting a 3-3 tie and a 5-1 loss while wearing red sleeves, the Reds went back to the black ones that they had success with at home last year. Their last game in black was the 5-0 loss to the Mets in the tiebreaker for the NL wild card in October. Steve Parris started that game and lost. Same sleeves, same starter, same result Wednesday. Parris (0-1) gave up a solo homer in the third to Barker, beginning a streak of Brewers runs in four consecutive innings. Houston hit a two-run shot in the sixth off Gabe White, stretching the lead to 7-2. Jenkins led off the eighth with another homer off Danny Graves and became the only Brewer to score more than once in the game. Jimmy Haynes (1-0) got the win in his first National League start and also had his first major league hit, an RBI double in the fifth. Griffey got polite applause when his soft roller to first drove in Cincinnati's first run in the fifth, his first RBI in Cincinnati. Bichette got booed as he dug in next, fresh off his misplay of Ron Belliard's triple in the top of the inning. He hit the first pitch for a homer to right to break an 0-for-8 slump and get a standing ovation. The Reds closed the gap to 7-5 in the sixth, when D.T. Cromer had a pinch RBI single in his first big-league at-bat and Barry Larkin doubled home two runs off Juan Acevedo. Griffey struck out to end that threat. David Weathers came on with Reds on second and third and one out in the seventh and pitched out of the threat. Wickman pitched the ninth for his first save. Game notesGeorge Bamberger won his first five games in 1978, the best debut by a Brewers manager. Lopes was the seventh Brewers manager to win his first decision... Belliard missed 19 spring training games with a dislocated thumb, but has gone 5-for-10 in the first three games. ... The Reds changed their pitching plans for a weekend series with Chicago. Pete Harnisch, who threw only 81 pitches in the rain-shortened opener Monday, will come back a day early and start the series Friday. ... Griffey is 3-for-19 career off Haynes. ... Boone is 0-for-10 this season, just like Griffey. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Milwaukee Clubhouse Cincinnati Clubhouse RECAPS Chi. White Sox 12 Texas 8
Milwaukee 8
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