Recap: Colorado vs. Cincinnati
Sports Network | August 23, 2008
Denver, CO (Sports Network) - Aaron Harang got his first win since June 13 and the Reds outlasted the Colorado Rockies, 8-5, in the opening game of a weekend series at Coors Field.
Harang (4-13) had a stellar outing after giving up 16 runs in 7 1/3 innings in his last two starts, throwing six shutout innings, giving up six hits while fanning four and walking three.
Joey Votto went 3-for-4 with two runs batted in and a walk and Brandon Phillips batted 2-for-5 with two-run homer. Jeff Keppinger added three hits and two runs scored for the Reds, who have won two of three.
Livan Hernandez (1-2) didn't last long, going only 3 2/3 innings and allowing six runs on eight hits while striking out two in his start for Colorado.
Ian Stewart had four hits and an RBI and Clint Barmes went 3-for-4 for the Rockies, who have lost two straight on the heels of a five-game winning streak.
Phillips got the Reds on the board in the first with a two-run homer, his 21st of the season.
Cincinnati extended its lead in the fourth. Votto, Edwin Encarnacion and Jay Bruce started the inning with three consecutive singles off Hernandez, scoring one run for a 2-0 lead.
Two batters later Ryan Hanigan singled to load the bases for Harang, who helped his own cause with an RBI groundout to shortstop. Chris Dickerson extended the Reds' lead to 6-0 with a two-run single.
Votto hit an RBI double in the fifth, driving in Phillips for a 7-0 advantage.
Harang got out of a jam in the fifth. Glendon Rusch, Barmes and Willy Taveras loaded the bases on consecutive singles to start the inning. But Matt Holliday popped up while Brad Hawpe and Garrett Atkins struck out to end the threat.
The Reds took an 8-0 lead in the seventh on Votto's second RBI of the night, a single to score Keppinger, who had doubled.
Colorado finally got a few runs, off Gary Majewski, in the home seventh. Taveras hit a one-out single, stole second and Holliday drove him home with a single. After a strike out, Atkins hit a double to plate one and Stewart got the Rox within five with an RBI single.
The Rockies made it interesting, adding two more runs in the eighth off David Weathers. Troy Tulowitzki and pinch-hitter Scott Podsednik singled to lead off, and Barmes followed with an infield single that plated one on Encarnacion's errant throw. With runners on second and third, Taveras hit an RBI groundout to bring Colorado within three.
In the ninth, Francisco Cordero had a tough time earning his 25th save of the year. After getting a flyout, Cordero allowed a single to Stewart and a double to Chris Iannetta. With the tying run at the plate, the Reds closer struck out pinch-hitter Seth Smith and induced a groundout from Podsednik to end the game.
Colorado leads season series 3-1...Earlier Friday the Rockies activated Podsednik, who had been sidelined since July 29 with a non-displaced fracture of his left pinky finger. In a related move, the team optioned catcher Adam Melhuse to Triple-A Colorado Springs...The Rockies have 117 stolen bases, most in the NL.
