NEW YORK, 17 June 2004 — Barry Larkin’s 11th-inning single plated the deciding run as the rallying Cincinnati Reds edged the Texas Rangers 5-4 in Interleague action Tuesday to snap a seven-game losing streak.
Ken Griffey Jr., one homer shy of joining the elite 500 club, singled and doubled in four at-bats to drive in Cincinnati’s first run.
He also thrilled the home crowd in the 10th inning when he tried to score from second on Adam Dunn’s broken-bat single. But a throw from Gary Matthews Jr. comfortably beat him.
Left-hander Kenny Rogers appeared to be on his way to his major league-best 10th win of the season when he sat down after six innings with the Rangers up 4-2.
The Reds, though, picked up a run in the eighth before Jason LaRue singled in the ninth to knot the score at 4-4 and send the game into extra innings.
LaRue singled again in the 11th off Erasmo Ramirez (3-3) to launch the winning rally.
Todd Jones (5-1) tossed a flawless 11th to notch the victory. South Korean-born left-hander Jung Bong went six innings for the Reds, allowing two homers.
Alfonso Soriano had a three-run shot and Herbert Perry followed that with a solo blast.
In New York, the Mets responded to new hitting coach Don Baylor by racking up 14 hits, Mike Piazza getting three of them in a 7-2 rout of the Cleveland Indians.
Karim Garcia had a two-run homer.
In Miami, Miguel Olivo’s bases-loaded walk in the first extra inning plated Carlos Lee with the deciding run as the Chicago White Sox rallied to defeat the Florida Marlins 7-5. Lee doubled earlier in the frame to extend his hit streak to 28 games. Frank Thomas’ three-run homer in the eighth got Chicago started.
In Philadelphia, Jeremy Bonderman (5-5) and three relievers limited the Phillies to two hits, both homers, to help the Detroit Tigers to a lopsided 10-3 victory.
Omar Infante cracked a three-run homer for the Tigers in the second.
In Montreal, Torii Hunter homered and singled to drive in three runs as the Minnesota Twins won 8-2 to hand the Expos their 42nd loss of the season.
Johan Santana (4-4) allowed three hits over eight innings to seize the victory. He also singled for his first career RBI.
In Pittsburgh, Chone Figgins doubled in the ninth to plate two runs and give the Anaheim Angels a 4-2 triumph over the Pirates, who dropped their ninth straight game and 14th out of 15.
In Atlanta, Andruw Jones singled in the eighth to plate the tying run before scampering home on a wild pitch as the Braves edged the Kansas City Royals 3-2.
Chris Reitsma (3-1) recorded the win with an inning in relief. John Smoltz closed out for his 10th save of the season.
In Milwaukee, Victor Santos (5-2) and relievers Luis Vizcaino and Danny Kolb combined on a two-hitter to steer the Brewers to a 3-0 blanking of the Seattle Mariners.
Lyle Overbay’s two-run double, his 28th of the season, was all the Brewers needed.
In St. Louis, Marlon Anderson singled to launch a five-run seventh inning which sent the Cardinals to an 8-4 victory over the Oakland Athletics, who had their eight-game winning streak snapped.
Matt Morris (7-5) was tagged with four runs in seven innings, Damian Miller and Mark Kotsay taking him deep.
In Denver, Vinny Castilla and Todd Helton homered to guide the Rockies to a 6-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox, snapping Colorado’s eight-game losing skid.
In Phoenix, Miguel Cairo’s fifth-inning single plated the deciding runs as the New York Yankees beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-2. Jose Contreras (4-2) worked 6 1/3 innings for the win, Mariano Rivera tossing a perfect ninth for his 27th save of the season.
In San Francisco, Neifi Perez’s sixth-inning single brought home the winning run, the Giants hanging on to down the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3. Jason Schmidt (8-2) tossed six-plus innings of seven-hit ball for his career-best eighth straight victory.
In San Diego, Aubrey Huff’s three-run homer helped the surging Devil Rays to a 5-2 win over the Padres, Tampa Bay’s franchise record-tying sixth successive victory.
Mark Hendrickson (4-5) worked 7 2?3 innings to earn the decision.
In Los Angeles, Juan Encarnacion’s three-run shot led the Dodgers to a 5-1 triumph over the Baltimore Orioles. Jose Lima (5-2) surrendered three hits over seven innings, striking out four.
In the day’s only National League game in Houston, Ramon Martinez’s ninth-inning single plated the deciding runs to give the Chicago Cubs a come-from-behind 4-2 win over the hosts Astros.
