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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
PHOENIX (AP) – With a swing he wasn't supposed to take, David
Dellucci gave the Arizona Diamondbacks a 5-2 victory over the
Cincinnati Reds.
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| Dellucci |
Dellucci, who just a few days ago thought he was headed for the
disabled list with torn knee cartilage, missed a take sign on a 3-0
pitch and hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning to break a 2-2
tie.
"I was looking right down there and I just didn't see it,"
Dellucci said of third-base coach Chris Speier's sign. "I had a
little more on my mind than what he was doing with his hands, and I
flat-out missed it."
It was Dellucci's second pinch-hit homer and Arizona's seventh
pinch-hit homer of the season.
Manager Bob Brenly said there would be no fine.
"If you hit in the seats, it's a freebie," he said.
Mark Grace homered and doubled as Arizona took a home series
from the Reds for the first time in the Diamondbacks' four-year
history. Reggie Sanders doubled twice and drove in a run for the
Diamondbacks, who handed Cincinnati its second loss in the
three-game series and its seventh in eight games overall.
With the game tied 2-2, Luis Gonzalez led off the eighth with a
single that center fielder Alex Ochoa couldn't quite catch, then
Sanders hit a hard liner to left field, just over the head of a
startled Deion Sanders for a double, putting runners at first and
third with no outs.
"It was huge," Reds manager Bob Boone said of Sanders'
misplay. "That set it all up. And Och, he took a bad route to the
ball. I thought both of them were catchable."
Sanders said he should have caught it.
"I didn't think it was hit as good as it was," he said. "The
ball just kept going, then when I looked up, I lost it in the
lights. I couldn't even see the ball and it just got away. But I
can't make those types of mistakes in any part of the game. Not at
all. That's not acceptable for me or this team."
John Riedling relieved Hector Mercado (1-2), and Dellucci hit
the 3-0 pitch 424 feet over the swimming pool beyond the
right-field fence.
"All I was focused on was trying to drive the ball in the air
somewhere to get that run in," Dellucci said, still trying to
explain the missed sign. "That's all I had on my mind."
Dellucci, sidelined with injuries much of the last two seasons,
experienced pain in his left knee and believed he had torn
cartilage. But when the Diamondbacks came home from their road
trip, he discovered the injury wasn't nearly that serious.
"It seems like once I got good news, I had a good feeling that
my luck is turning around," Dellucci said.
Miguel Batista (1-1) pitched a perfect eighth to get the
victory. Bret Prinz pitched the ninth for his third save in three
opportunities.
One night after Randy Johnson struck out 20 in nine innings in
Arizona's 4-3 victory in 11 innings, starters Robert Ellis of
Arizona and the Reds' Elmer Dessens had strong outings without a
decision.
Ellis, a 30-year-old right-hander who spent 10 seasons in the
minors, allowed two runs on four hits in seven innings. Dessens
gave up two runs on eight hits.
Grace broke a 1-1 tie with a solo homer with one out in the
sixth for the Diamondbacks.
Alex Ochoa was 3-for-4 and scored twice for the Reds. He reached
first on an infield single with one out in the seventh, then scored
to tie it at 2 on Aaron Boone's double.
Sanders' RBI double after singles by Steve Finley and Jay Bell
put Arizona up 1-0 in the third. Bell was thrown out at home trying
to score from first.
Bell was the second Arizona runner thrown out at home. Grace led
off the second with a double and advanced to third on Damian
Miller's groundout, but was thrown out at home trying to score on
Tony Womack's soft grounder that was nabbed by Dessens.
Ellis didn't allow a hit until Ochoa doubled to lead off the
fifth. He moved to third on Boone's flyout to right field, then
scored on Pokey Reese's sacrifice fly.
Game notes
The Reds play their next six at home, where they are 5-10.
... Cincinnati has gone 196 games without being shut out, tied for
third all-time with the 1886-88 Philadelphia Athletics. The New
York Yankees hold the record of 308 consecutive games without being
shut out from 1931 to 1933. ... 2B Bell made a lunging stab of
Kelly Stinnett's line drive to lead off the eighth.
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OTHER GAMES
Baseball Scoreboard
Cincinnati Clubhouse
Arizona Clubhouse
RECAPS
Seattle 10
Boston 5
Cleveland 5
Kansas City 1
Detroit 3
Texas 2
NY Yankees 2
Minnesota 0
Oakland 8
Toronto 5
Baltimore 8
Tampa Bay 6
Chi. White Sox 6
Anaheim 5
Houston 7
Philadelphia 6
Chicago Cubs 6
Milwaukee 3
St. Louis 6
Pittsburgh 2
Colorado 6
NY Mets 0
Arizona 5
Cincinnati 2
Atlanta 3
San Diego 0
Los Angeles 3
Florida 2
Montreal 8
San Francisco 0
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