Oakland, CA (Sports Network) - Ramon Hernandez, Joey Votto and Scott Rolen belted homers in the 10th inning, boosting Cincinnati to a 6-4 win over Oakland in the opener of a three-game series.
Three Tenth Inning Homers Blast Reds Past Sinking A’s
Votto ended with three RBI for the Reds, who won for just the second time in eight contests.
Cincinnati scored one total run in a three-game sweep at Seattle over the weekend, but on Monday rapped out nine hits in just its second-ever regular season win over the Athletics.
Kevin Kouzmanoff tied the game with a solo homer off Francisco Cordero on the first pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning, but the A's suffered their eighth defeat in 10 games. Oakland loaded the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the 10th, but managed just two runs on groundouts.
The teams combined for eight runs over a wild final two innings. Andrew Bailey walked Drew Stubbs with two outs in the top of the ninth. Stubbs stole second and scored on a line single to right by pinch-hitter Jay Bruce, giving the Reds a 2-1 edge.
Kouzmanoff, though, homered tight to the line in right on Cordero's (3-3) initial offering in the last of the ninth. Cliff Pennington walked with two outs and stole second, but Rajai Davis fouled out behind the plate.
Hernandez led off the 10th and tagged the first pitch from Michael Wuertz (2-1) off the pole in left field to give the Reds a 3-2 lead. Brandon Phillips singled, and one out later Votto homered to left-center off Cedrick Bowers. Rolen followed with his 15th homer of the year, tying Votto for the team lead.
It was nearly three straight homers for the Reds, but center fielder Davis dropped Laynce Nix's long fly ball. Nix went to third, but was stranded there.
Cordero walked Daric Barton and Conor Jackson to begin the bottom of the 10th. Danny Herrera entered from the bullpen, but yielded a single to Kurt Suzuki. Ryan Sweeney then grounded out to second base for one run.
The Reds then went to rookie Jordan Smith, who was appearing in his fourth major league game. He induced a groundout from Kouzmanoff for another run. Jack Cust swung through a 3-2 pitch to end the game, resulting in the first save for Smith.
Reds starting pitcher Mike Leake lasted six innings, giving up five hits and a run. Oakland's Gio Gonzalez surrendered four hits and an unearned run over seven frames while logging nine strikeouts.
The Reds put a run on the board in the first inning after Phillips reached on a fielding error by Pennington. Phillips scored two batters later, on a double to left by Votto.
Oakland evened the game in the fifth when Jackson singled in Davis. Barton, though, was thrown out at third base to end the inning.
The A's are 8-2 all-time against the Reds in interleague play. The two franchises have met twice in the World Series with the A's winning in seven games in 1972 and the Reds sweeping in 1990...Arthur Rhodes faced one batter, fanning Sweeney to end the eighth inning. Rhodes has a streak of 29 straight scoreless innings, the longest by a reliever in the majors this season and the longest by a Reds reliever since Ted Abernathy threw 30.0 scoreless frames during the 1967 season...Cordero suffered his fifth blown save of the season...Reds manager Dusty Baker has 1,352 career wins, tying Chuck Tanner for 26th all-time. Wilbert Robinson is 25th with 1,399.
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