HOUSTON (AP) -- The Cincinnati Reds came to Houston unbeaten and

hopeful about their chances to turn around a suddenly lopsided

rivalry with the Astros.

Three straight losses proved that little has changed for the

Reds, at least in this NL Central matchup.

Jeff Bagwell hit a tiebreaking two-run homer and Roy Oswalt

pitched seven strong innings to lead the Astros to their fourth

straight win, 5-2 over Cincinnati on Sunday.

"We would have liked to have had a better showing here," said

Reds slugger Adam Dunn, who went 1-for-4. "But it's not the end of

the world. We just couldn't get the big hit at the right time, like

we did the series before."

Bagwell homered in the fifth to give Houston a 4-2 lead and

Morgan Ensberg followed with a solo shot for the Astros, who won

their series-record 11th consecutive game -- eight last season --

against Cincinnati. Houston won 10 straight against their longtime

division rival in 2003.

"I don't know what happens," Astros manager Phil Garner said

of his club's streak against the Reds. "It's just a strange

thing."

Russ Springer pitched a hitless eighth and Brad Lidge got the

three outs for his third save in the last four games.

After a poor start in an opening day loss to St. Louis, Oswalt

(1-1) rebounded with another dominating effort against the Reds.

Oswalt limited Cincinnati to two runs on five hits, but walked five

and struck out only two.

"I was a little wild ... but I felt I made some good pitches

when I had to," Oswalt said. "Call it effectively wild. I was

just wild enough that they couldn't concentrate. Sometimes when

you're wild it helps you."

He improved to 12-0 in 16 career appearances -- 14 starts --

against the Reds. Only Pedro Martinez (13-0 against Seattle) has

won more games against one team without a loss.

"I hope it's not a fluke," Oswalt said. "I hope it keeps

going."

Pitching on three days' rest and battling the flu, Eric Milton

couldn't prevent the Reds' third straight loss following a

season-opening three-game sweep of the New York Mets.

Milton, who led the NL with 43 homers allowed in 2004, gave up

three Sunday, including a solo shot to Craig Biggio in the first.

Cincinnati's new lefty lasted only 4 1-3 innings, allowing five

runs on eight hits with two strikeouts and one walk. Milton dropped

to 0-3 in four career starts on short rest.

"I was weak, but my arm felt fine," Milton said. "I may have

just hit a wall there in the fifth. I didn't have a lot of gas left

... it just wasn't there today."

The Reds couldn't hold an early lead against Houston -- same as

Saturday when the Astros rallied from a 3-0 deficit.

Wily Mo Pena tied the game at 1-all in the second, sending an

Oswalt fastball into deep left, a 408-foot shot that bounced off

the replica 1860 railroad tracks atop a 58-foot wall.

Dunn added a run-scoring triple off the right-field wall in the

fourth, giving the Reds a 2-1 lead.

But Astros rookie Chris Burke scored on Willy Taveras' sacrifice

fly to center in the bottom of the inning, and Houston went ahead

for good in the fifth on homers by Bagwell and Ensberg.

"They came up with the big hits and we didn't," Reds manager

Dave Miley said. "We just couldn't get over the hump."

Biggio went 3-for-4 with a double and the homer. He also stole

third base in the seventh, making him the sixth player in league

history with 100 career steals of third.

Burke, making his first start in the majors, also finished

3-for-4.

Cincinnati continues its grueling road trip Tuesday with two

games against NL defending champ St. Louis. The Astros, meanwhile,

head to New York for a three-game series against the 1-5 Mets,

starting Monday.

It will be Houston's first time facing Carlos Beltran since he

left for the Mets in free agency this offseason.Game notes
Houston swept a series against the Reds for the third

straight time. ... Bagwell hit his 448th career homer. ... With

three hits Sunday, Biggio passed Jimmie Foxx for 65th place in

league history with a total of 2,649. He needs five more hits to

tie Ted Williams for 64th. ... The Astros are one of only three

clubs to not allow a stolen base this season. ... Biggio's youngest

son, Cavan, threw out the first pitch. Cavan turns 10 on Monday.