Reds Tidbits (2006 Season)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

CUBS 4 REDS 0
Cubs rookie pitcher baffles sliding Reds
Hill strikes out 10 on way to his first big-league shutout

Sunday, September 17, 2006


ASSOCIATED PRESS

</IMG> M . SPENCER GREEN ASSOCIATED PRESS Reds right fielder Norris Hopper chases a double by the Cubs? Geovany Soto in the sixth inning.


CHICAGO ? In need of wins, the fading Cincinnati Reds instead ran into Chicago Cubs rookie Rich Hill, who now is dominating big-league hitters after a rough start in the majors.
Hill pitched a two-hitter for his first major-league shutout and Jacque Jones homered, leading the Cubs past the Reds 4-0 yesterday.
Hill (6-6) struck out 10, including Edwin Encarnacion to end the Cubs? first complete game of the season.
Hill became the first Cubs rookie to pitch a shutout since Kyle Farnsworth on Aug. 29, 1999, at Los Angeles.
After starting this season 0-4, Hill was demoted to triple-A Iowa.
"You go through a learning curve, and it just depends on when you go through your ups and downs," Hill said. "Before, it was a lot of downs and I learned a lot. I went down to triple-A, I got it together and came back, and now I?m throwing the ball with a lot more conviction and confidence."
Hill was 7-1 for Iowa with a 1.80 ERA.
He walked one and hit a batter in his third straight win. The 26-year-old lefty has allowed four earned runs in his past five starts for an 0.97 ERA.
Cincinnati lost for the 14 th time in 20 games since moving into a virtual tie with St. Louis for the National League Central lead on Aug. 24. The Reds began the day 3 1 /2 games behind San Diego in the wildcard race.
"You play all season to come down to this last month and be in the race, and we are," catcher David Ross said. "We?re playing ourselves out of it right now, but we?re still in it. This team, if it gets hot, we could be all right, even though there?s only 16 or 17 games left."
The Reds have not won consecutive road games since Aug. 12-13 in Philadelphia.
Chris Michalak (1-3) pitched 4 2 /3 innings in a spot start and allowed two earned runs and seven hits.
Aramis Ramirez drove in two runs. The Cubs won for just the seventh time in 27 games.
Juan Pierre led off the first inning for the Cubs with a single and scored on Ramirez?s double. Shortstop Royce Clayton?s throwing error in the fourth set up Geovany Soto?s RBI grounder.
Ryan Theriot walked and stole second in the fifth. Ramirez followed with a single up the middle for a 3-0 lead.
Reds manager Jerry Narron was pleased with Michalak?s outing.
"He was fine," he said. "He worked out of a jam. They had the bases loaded with no outs and he got out of it, which was great. He did everything he could. There were a couple of plays we didn?t help him with that hurt." Jones homered off Reds reliever Bill Bray in the eighth, his 25 th of the season.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Reds have no answer against Astros? Oswalt
Tuesday, September 19, 2006

ASSOCIATED PRESS



HOUSTON ? Roy Oswalt doesn?t have an explanation for his domination of the Cincinnati Reds. He just wants to keep it going.
Oswalt pitched 6 2 /3 innings in another strong performance against Cincinnati, leading the Houston Astros to a 5-3 win last night.
Oswalt (14-8) allowed two runs and eight hits to improve his record to 17-1 against the Reds. He struck out eight and didn?t walk a batter before departing because of muscle spasms in his neck.
Oswalt was 15-0 against Cincinnati until April 28, the longest streak without a loss for one pitcher against one team in major-league history. He lost that day but beat the Reds in Cincinnati on Aug. 23.
"I don?t try to figure it out," Oswalt said. "It?s not like it?s the same players. They?ve changed almost all the players since I?ve been here. They?re a whole different team so I don?t know.
"Hopefully, they don?t turn the tables and win 17 in a row over me."
Oswalt, who is 5-0 with a no-decision in his last six starts, gave up a pinch-hit home run to Ray Olmedo and a single to Ryan Freel in the seventh before before leaving the game.
"It?s no big deal," Oswalt said of the injury. "I got a little too far out on a curveball in the third inning when it first happened. I felt better and better after that, but in the sixth I threw another curve and it tightened up again. I don?t think I?ll miss any time with it."
Shortstop Adam Everett saved a run for Oswalt in the second inning. Chris Denorfia hit a grounder up the middle with runners on first and third. Everett made a diving grab of the ball and flipped it from his glove to second baseman Craig Biggio to start an inning-ending double play.
"That turned the game around," Astros manager Phil Garner said. "It turned the momentum our way."
Reds manager Jerry Narron also cited Everett?s big play.
"We had some guys swinging the bats well," Narron said. "Roy Oswalt?s as good as there is, but we got some pretty good swings at him. If Dino?s ball goes through the outfield, we score early off him.
"Dino hits a rocket for a double play and (Brad) Ausmus hits a blooper for a hit, but that?s just baseball. That?s part of it."
In the bottom of the second, the Astros loaded the bases and Ausmus hit a two-run single to center. After Oswalt sacrificed, Biggio and Mike Lamb hit backto-back, run-scoring singles to make it 4-0.
Dan Wheeler allowed pinchhitter Todd Hollandsworth?s solo homer in the ninth before finishing for his sixth save in eight chances.
Kyle Lohse (2-4) went six innings for the Reds and allowed four runs and six hits with three walks. Cincinnati is 2-7 in Lohse?s nine starts.
Adam Dunn and Rich Aurilia had consecutive doubles in the sixth inning for Cincinnati?s first run. Freel dived for Luke Scott?s hit into center field in the seventh and missed it, giving Scott a run-scoring triple and a 5-2 lead.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

ASTROS 7 REDS 2
Clemens gives his fans another memorable win

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Chris Duncan
ASSOCIATED PRESS

</IMG> DAVID J . PHILLIP ASSOCIATED PRESS Roger Clemens makes a curtain call after being removed from the game at the start of the seventh inning.


HOUSTON ? Astros fans gave Roger Clemens a warm send-off after the Rocket delivered one more performance to remember.
Clemens pitched six scoreless innings in his final home start of the season for win No. 348 to lead Houston to a 7-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds yesterday.
Clemens, 44, will have two more scheduled starts this season, Monday in Philadelphia and Sept. 30 in Atlanta.
Clemens won?t say what he?ll do beyond that.
"It?s definitely a challenge physically and mentally every year," he said. "If I commit to come back and play, I want to be able to perform.
"I don?t know what tomorrow brings ? but if this is it, I?ve really enjoyed it."
The seven-time Cy Young winner says he will quit when he starts to feel like he can no longer dominate.
"I can?t handle being average," said Clemens, who lowered his 2006 ERA to 2.37. "I guess there?s a time when you know and I thought that was three years ago. But I had to come back and really challenge myself to get it done."
Luke Scott had a three-run triple and a homer and Craig Biggio hit a three-run homer as the Astros won for just the third time in 10 games.
Clemens (7-5) struck out six and allowed three hits with three walks. He did not yield an earned run for the fourth time this season and allowed fewer than three for the 15 th time in 17 starts.
Before he threw his first pitch, catcher Brad Ausmus met him at the mound and thanked him for a memorable 2 1 /2 seasons with the Astros.
"Catching Roger has been a highlight of my career," Ausmus said.
Clemens walked out for the seventh, but Astros manager Phil Garner came out before he threw a pitch and replaced him with Russ Springer.
The fans stood for a roaring ovation and Clemens tipped his cap as he walked off the field.
"He wasn?t going to pitch anymore," Garner said, "but the way things played out, everything came together for that moment. The fans? reaction was unbelievable and Roger?s reaction to that was just as special."
The cheering continued and Clemens came out for a curtain call, shirt untucked, pumping a fist in the air before disappearing into the dugout.
Reds starter Bronson Arroyo (14-10) lost for the first time in five starts, giving up seven hits in 5 1 /3 innings.
Scott hammered Arroyo?s first pitch of the second inning into the upper deck in right field.
Ausmus led off the fifth with a double and Clemens bunted him to third. With one out, Arroyo walked Mike Lamb and hit Lance Berkman with a pitch to load the bases.
Scott, a 28-year-old rookie, then lined a 3-and-2 pitch into the right-field corner, clearing the bases with his sixth triple. "You look out there and you say, ?How?s this guy still putting up zeros?? " Arroyo said. "You take some of his velocity away and normally a guy starts to slip. But he?s out there throwing cutters and split-fingers. It?s amazing what he can still do."

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Reds? Freel out for season

Friday, September 22, 2006




CINCINNATI (AP) ? Reds outfielder Ryan Freel will miss the rest of the season because of a hairline fracture of his left thumb, the team said yesterday.
Freel suffered the injury Tuesday night while diving for Luke Scott?s first-inning triple in Houston.
He finished the game and started Wednesday before leaving in the fourth inning.
Freel hit .271 with 30 doubles and 37 stolen bases this season.
The Reds also said pitcher Eric Milton will have arthroscopic surgery today on his left elbow. He is expected to be ready for spring training. Milton went 8-8 with a 5.19 ERA in 26 starts for the Reds this season.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

REDS 4 CUBS 2, 5 INNINGS
Cincinnati beats rain, Chicago with long balls
Rookie?s first big-league homer highlights victory

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

AL BEHRMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS Cincinnati catcher David Ross tags out Chicago?s Ronny Cedeno, who tried to score on a ground ball by Geovany Soto in the second inning.


CINCINNATI ? A steady rain settled over Great American Ball Park last night and drove the small crowd watching the Reds and Chicago Cubs toward the shelter of umbrellas, hooded jackets and stadium overhangs.
For a pair of noncontending teams, baseball in September is all about doggedness for players and fans alike. So in that regard, the inclement weather more than matched the rain-shortened game.
The Reds received solo home runs from ?07 big-league wannabes Norris Hopper and Brendan Harris, and a decent start from Chris Michalak in stopping the Cubs 4-2 in five innings.
Hopper, the International League batting champion for Louisville, hit his first home run of the season at any level and only the fourth of his nine-year career to start the Reds back from an early 2-0 deficit against Rich Hill. He didn?t watch the ball clear the wall.
"You know what?" Hopper asked. "I don?t hit ?em often, so I really don?t know how the feeling is when it comes off the bat. I just started running as hard as I could. I didn?t know until I heard the fireworks. That?s when I first knew I had it."
As the rain increased, Hopper had to worry whether the game would be postponed before it would come official and cost him the home run.
"They were joking with me in the dugout," he said. " ?Bring the rain, bring the rain. It won?t count, Hop.? But we got through and it did count."
Edwin Encarnacion handed Michalak a 3-2 lead with a tworun homer in the fourth inning against Hill (6-7). The Cubs threatened in the top of the fifth, but Reds manager Jerry Narron looked at the forecast and brought in reliever Todd Coffey.
"Have you seen Todd Coffey come in in the fifth inning this year?" Narron said. "With the rain coming, we went with the best guy we got to get us out of an inning with guys on base. We were told once it started raining, it wasn?t going to stop."
Harris, a part of the July eightplayer trade with the Washington Nationals, then capped the scoring with a pinch-hit homer into the seats in left in the bottom of the fifth to cap the scoring. At the end of the inning, home plate umpire Randy Marsh called for the tarp. The downpour followed.
The Cubs took a 2-0 lead against Michalak (2-3) with an unearned run in the first and a Henry Blanco home run in the second.
Through the first two innings, Hill struck out four of the first seven Reds he faced and appeared ready to match the twohit, 4-0 shutout he pitched last week in Chicago.
Hopper, however, broke up the shutout with his homer to open the third. Hill rebounded to notch two more strikeouts before the Reds finally got to him.
Rich Aurilia led off the fourth with a bunt single to third. An out later, Encarnacion hit his first home run since Aug. 18 to give Cincinnati a 3-2 lead.
Michalak ran into one-out trouble in the fifth when Pierre reached first with a bunt single. After Ryan Theriot worked Michalak for a walk, Narron brought in Coffey. He fanned Aramis Ramirez and retired Matt Murton to end the threat. Because the game was rain-shortened, Michalak still qualified for the win. Coffey picked up the save.
[email protected]

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

REDS NOTEBOOK
Phillips moves to shortstop for test run

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




CINCINNATI ? Next season muscled its way to the front of the line last night in Great American Ball Park with the announcement that second baseman Brandon Phillips would play shortstop for the Reds in most of the final 10 games of 2006.
Media speculation about the switch of Phillips from second base to short began as soon as Cincinnati traded Felipe Lopez to the Washington Nationals in July.
Reds manager Jerry Narron admitted that those discussions actually started within the organization in April when the team acquired Phillips in a trade with the Cleveland Indians.
"It?s something we?ve talked about," Narron said. "Even when he came over here, it was something we discussed. But he played so well at second that we just kept him over there."
Narron resisted the temptation of moving Phillips while the Reds were in the National League Central and wild-card races. Now that the team is all but mathematically eliminated in both, he pulled the trigger.
"We?ll give him a chance to play some and see what he can do," Narron said. "At worst, we know we?ve got an outstanding second baseman here for a long time."
Phillips, who started his career as a shortstop, was delighted by the news.
"I think I?m going to have fun doing it," he said. "I missed playing it, but I love second. To tell you the truth, I?m getting chill bumps going out there because I know Barry Larkin played shortstop here."
Phillips expects a bump or two as he gets reacquainted with the position.
"I know I?m going to make errors," he said. "I know I?m not going to be smooth or be very comfortable at the beginning. But the more games I play, the more comfortable I?ll get."
Opening day ? 07

The Reds open next season April 2 with a game against the Chicago Cubs in Great American Ball Park.
The tentative schedule also includes six games with the Cleveland Indians, and interleague matchups against the Los Angeles Angels, Oakland A?s, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers.
Belisle to start

Narron is turning to reliever Matt Belisle to start the series opener Tuesday against the Florida Marlins. Belisle, 26, views the start as a possible audition for the rotation next spring.
"They?ve known all along, last year and this year, that I?m willing to do that," he said. "They know I can start. Them doing it now, the only thing I can think of is they want to see about the options for spring."
[email protected]

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

CUBS 11 REDS 4
Lohse?s struggles, six errors net an ugly loss
Nice comeback from early deficit wasted

Sunday, September 24, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




CINCINNATI ? Reds manager Jerry Narron checked the weather radar and offered his view of the rainy forecast yesterday afternoon in Great American Ball Park.
"There?s a window over El Paso," he deadpanned.
Once Cincinnati and the Chicago Cubs started to play after a nine-minute delay about 3 1 /2 hours later, Narron had every reason to wish that the break in the clouds had remained as far away as Texas.
Simply put, the Reds turned in one of their worst performances of the season while losing 11-4 to the Cubs and Carlos Zambrano.
Cincinnati committed six errors ? five in the first four innings ? to help boost the Chicago cause. Along the ugly brick road, Kyle Lohse surrendered a home run to Zambrano, reliever Bill Bray issued a basesloaded walk and Brandon Phillips got picked off second base with his team behind by six runs.
The Reds trailed 3-0 in less time than it takes to fill out one side of a scorecard. Juan Pierre led off the game with a double and scored when catcher Javier Valentin threw away Ryan Theriot?s sacrifice bunt for the first Cincinnati error.
Aramis Ramirez followed with a two-run home run and Chicago was off to the races.
"Anytime you face Zambrano or any of the better pitchers, you?ve got to play well in all areas of the game," Narron said. "It?s pretty obvious we didn?t do that."
The Reds did rebound in the second inning to score four times and take the lead. Phillips hit a three-run homer in the inning and Dewayne Wise had an RBI double. But Lohse (2-4), with the help of an error by Wise in center field, let the Cubs come right back with two runs in the third.
"To give it right back up, that?s disappointing," Narron said. "It?s all about location. Lohse has good stuff. I didn?t see him changing speeds as much tonight. I?d like to see him change speeds a little more. But it comes back to locating pitches."
Lohse had a 1-0 record with a 1.39 ERA after his first four starts with Cincinnati. He is 1-5 with a 7.39 ERA over his past six outings.
"No excuses," he said. "I didn?t get it done tonight. It went from being a 7 o?clock start to 6:15 pretty quick. The next thing you know I was out there and just didn?t get it going. I?ve still got to be ready."
The Cubs scored five runs in the fourth. Zambrano (16-6) finished the night for Lohse with a leadoff homer, his sixth of the season. The shortstop Phillips and second baseman Ray Olmedo each booted a ground ball to keep the rally going. Bray walked Angel Pagan with the bases loaded, and John Mabry followed with a two-run single.
"It was just ugly all around," Lohse said. "On a night like that, as a pitcher you?ve got to pick your team up. I wasn?t able to do it."
Third baseman Edwin Encarnacion uncorked a wild throw in the seventh inning to give the Reds six errors in a game for the first time since an April 5, 1971, against the Atlanta Braves. No word on what the weather was like 35 years ago.
"I?d like to say we got a break that we played," Narron said. "I don?t feel that way now. We were all wanting to play and to start the game on time. So that wasn?t the problem." [email protected]

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

REDS NOTEBOOK
First-round pick enjoys clubhouse tour

Sunday, September 24, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




CINCINNATI ? Drew Stubbs made the rounds in the Reds? clubhouse yesterday afternoon shaking hands with players such as Ken Griffey Jr. and dreaming.
As Cincinnati?s first-round pick in the June draft, the former University of Texas center fielder is a cornerstone of the future for the rebuilding Reds.
Stubbs, 21, finished his first season in the Pioneer League for Billings, Mont., where he was named seventh-best prospect in the rookie league by Baseball America. The magazine previously listed him as the best collegiate athlete and defensive player in the draft. He toured the stadium with his father and mother, Rick and Kathrine, and his grandfather, Bob Allday.
"It?s a beautiful park," Stubbs said. "State-of-the-art facilities and everything is very impressive. It?s something to definitely look forward to as a player when they get here."
Stubbs was not among the best hitters statistically for Billings this season. He batted .252 with six home runs, 24 steals and 19 stolen bases. The Mustangs hit .288 as a team.
"It was a time of adjustments for me," Stubbs said. "That is what I tried to take from the season more than anything, just adapting to pro ball. You?re not down there to make the big leagues in your first summer."
Stubbs isn?t done yet.
"(Today) I?ll head down to Instructional League in Sarasota," he said. "I?ll spend the next month there and get ready for the offseason. I?ll probably just get more at-bats. I think we?re going to work more on my hitting than probably on my defense. It?ll just be a time for me and the other guys to get more experience."
Slowing down

Reds manager Jerry Narron said he planned to use rookie relief pitcher Bill Bray lightly in the final games of the season. Bray, 23, was a key part of the eight-player trade between the Reds and Washington Nationals in July.
Narron cited Bray?s workload in stops with triple-A New Orleans, Washington and Cincinnati as the reason. Overall, the left-hander has appeared in 66 games and pitched 80 1 /3 innings.
"I?m not worried about if he gets into any of these last games or not," said Narron, who sees Bray and Todd Coffey as cornerstones of the bullpen in 2007. "I see (Bray) as getting better and better, and hopefully at the back end of games." [email protected]

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

It's hard to believe, but the Reds still haven't been mathematically eliminated. Only 3.5 games out of first place right now, if the Reds could somehow win out (3 @ FLA, 3 @ PIT), the Cards would have to win 4 of their last 6 (2 SD, 4 MIL) games to finish with a better record. If they were to only win 3, they would have to make up their postponed game against the Giants. The Astro's would have to win all 6 (3 @ ATL, 3 @ PIT) of their games to finish with a better record.

So, here's to winning out!

 

[coastalbuck]

I've still got hope, let's hope the team does too.

 

[crazybuckfan40]

Man you guys have more hope than I do. But there is still a chance if and only if we win out and with our overall pitching staff I just don't see that happening.

Edit: The pitching matchups just don't matchup for us well to win out either.

Belisle vs. Dontrelle (Advantage: Dontrelle)
Michalak vs. Sanchez (Advantage: Sanchez)
Lohse vs. Nolasco (Advantage: Push)

Then we have the Pirates, with Harang and Arroyo going, so we might have the advantage there, but these games against the Marlins the O is going to have to show up big time.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

REDS 5 MARLINS 3
Ross hits two home runs, bolsters pennant hopes

Wednesday, September 27, 2006


FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS




MIAMI ? The Cincinnati Reds are still playing meaningful games thanks to their threegame winning streak and the St. Louis Cardinals? swoon.
David Ross hit two home runs into the upper deck and the Reds stayed within striking distance in the National League Central with a 5-3 victory over the Florida Marlins last night.
Third-place Cincinnati is 2 1 /2 games behind division-leading St. Louis, which has lost seven straight. The Cardinals, who lost 7-5 to San Diego, are 1 1 /2 games in front of Houston, which beat Pittsburgh 7-4.
"We?re right in the thick of the race," Ross said. "A lot of people counted us out when we had our lull, but we still have high expectations. This has been fun, and we?re still right there."
The loss eliminated Florida, which has lost four straight, from a wild-card berth.
"Even with the odds, I still believed we had a chance," firstyear Marlins manager Joe Girardi said. "It hurts."
The Reds have revived their playoff hopes thanks to the Cardinals? losing streak.
"We?re battling and trying to stay alive," Reds manager Jerry Narron said. "We?re doing everything we can, playing everybody we have."
Ross? second home run of the game, and 21 st of the season, was a two-run shot which bounced off the seats in the upper deck in left and gave the Reds a 4-0 lead in the third.
His homer to open the second inning landed in the first row of the upper deck in left. Norris Hopper followed with an infield hit and eventually scored on Chris Denorfia?s RBI-single.
"I didn?t see the first one land, but I saw where the second one wound up," Ross said.
Denorfia finished with four hits and Hopper had three.
"I don?t know how I did that, but it just happened to be one of those games where everything worked out," Denorfia said.
Matt Belisle, making his first start of the season after 28 relief appearances, pitched 3 2 /3 innings for the Reds and gave up one run and three hits.
"Matt gave us everything he had," Narron said. "He hadn?t started a game all year, and he took it to the very limit."
Belisle was lifted after allowing Dontrelle Willis? two-out RBIsingle in the fourth that made it 4-1.
"It felt good just to get a start," Belisle said. "It was disappointing not to go further into the game, but that?s a result of throwing too many balls and too many pitches."
Ryan Franklin (6-7) relieved Belisle and worked 1 1 /3 scoreless innings for the win. Scott Schoeneweis pitched one inning for his third save.
Notes
Three Reds farmhands ? pitcher Homer Bailey, first baseman Joey Votto and outfielder Jay Bruce ? landed on the first team of Baseball America?s 2006 Minor League All-Star team yesterday, the most of any organization. Bailey had an overall record of 10-6 with a 2.47 ERA in 26 starts between Class A Sarasota and double-A Chattanooga. Votto, the Southern League most valuable player, batted .319 with 22 homers and 77 RBI. Kouzmanoff hit .389 with 15 homers and 55 RBI for double-A Akron. Bruce, who batted .291 with 16 homers and 81 RBI for Dayton, was the low Class A player of the year. ? Florida?s loss ensures the end of three consecutive winning seasons. The Marlins (76-81) can finish no better than .500 by winning their final five games.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

1 down, 5 to go. Just keep winning, fellas!!!

 

[coastalbuck]

1 down, 5 to go. Just keep winning, fellas!!!

I'm with ya Buddy, pressure could be on the Cards about tomorrow. No way they want to have to play that make up game... LET'S GO REDS!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Rookie?s 10 th victory stops Reds? streak

Thursday, September 28, 2006


ASSOCIATED PRESS




MIAMI ? There?s no arguing the Florida Marlins have plenty of good young pitching.
Anibal Sanchez became the fourth Marlins rookie to win at least 10 games and Hanley Ramirez hit two home runs, one inside the park, in leading the Marlins to a 7-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds last night.
The Reds dropped 3 1 /2 games behind firstplace St. Louis in the National League Central and had a three-game winning streak snapped. The Reds have one game left at Florida and three in Pittsburgh.
"If there was ever a ?must-win? situation, we have that for tomorrow," Reds shortstop Royce Clayton said. "We need a little help and we need to run the table."
The Marlins are the first team in majorleague history to have four rookie pitchers with 10 wins ? Sanchez (10-3), Scott Olsen (12-9), Josh Johnson (12-7) and Ricky Nolasco (11-10). Dontrelle Willis (12-12) gives the Marlins five 10-game winners for the first time in franchise history.
"It?s hard to believe," Marlins manager Joe Girardi said. "No one has ever done it before and they have been playing baseball for a long time. It?s amazing to be a part of."
Sanchez, who pitched the majors? only no-hitter this season on Sept. 6 against Arizona, allowed two runs and six hits and walked four in five innings.
"It wasn?t my best start, but it was my best win," said Sanchez, who started 18 games since joining the Marlins on June 25. "I started counting my starts about a month ago. I?m happy I made my goal."
Reds starter Chris Michalak (2-4) gave up three runs and five hits in three innings. Michalak, 35. was called up from triple-A Louisville on Aug. 12, and has made six starts.
"We kept scrapping, doing everything we could to get back in the game," Reds manager Jerry Narron said. "We just couldn?t get a hit."
Ramirez hit his seventh leadoff homer of the season, tying him for the major-league record for a rookie with Nomar Garciaparra, who hit seven with Boston in 1997.
His inside-the-park homer in the eighth hit the wall in leftcenter field and caromed away from center fielder Chris Denorfia toward right field. Ramirez easily beat the throw home.
"I saw the ball hit off the wall and I was going all the way," Ramirez said.
Wes Helms had four hits and two RBI and Miguel Cabrera had three hits for the Marlins.
Cincinnati, which left 15 runners on base, loaded the bases twice with two outs and could not score.
In the sixth, Renyel Pinto struck out Rich Aurilia to end the inning. In the seventh, Taylor Tankersley got pinch-hitter Ken Griffey Jr. to fly out to center.
"We didn?t come up big with guys on base and they did," Aurilia said. "When opportunities are handed to you, you need to take advantage of it. Tonight, we didn?t."
Notes

A much ballyhooed switch to shortstop for the Reds? Brandon Phillips appears to be on hold ? for now.
Phillips started on the left side of the infield Friday and Saturday against the Chicago Cubs. But he has started the past four games at his usual second base position. The Reds had wanted to get a look at Phillips? play at shortstop to help determine a possible permanent switch next season.
"We saw him for two days. He looked fine," Narron said. But with the club still mathematically in contention for the the playoffs, Cincinnati has resumed focus on this year.