(Sports Network) – Chris Carpenter has enjoyed pitching against the Cincinnati
Reds in his career and St. Louis’ veteran right-hander gets a chance to add to
that tonight in the opener of a three-game series.

Carpenter is 2-1 in four meetings with the Reds this season and 14-4 with a
2.23 earned run average in 22 career starts. He delivered eight innings of
one-run ball in a 4-1 win at Cincinnati on July 16. Carpenter prevailed in
three of four decisions after that stint at Great American Ball Park, but is
just 0-1 over his previous three outings.

The 2005 NL Cy Young Award winner was roughed up for six runs and nine hits in
five innings of a 7-0 setback versus Pittsburgh on Saturday and fell to 8-9
with a 3.76 ERA in 28 overall starts. Carpenter is 3-3 in 14 trips to the
Busch Stadium mound this season and hitters are batting .274 against him.

St. Louis is 7 1/2 games behind Milwaukee in the NL Central standings and
recorded its fourth straight win with Thursday’s 8-4 victory over the Brewers.
Albert Pujols had a monster day at the plate and helped the Cardinals trim the
division deficit by hitting two homers, one of which was a grand slam, and
finishing with five RBI. He went 4-for-4 with three runs scored, while Matt
Holliday and Rafael Furcal both went deep.

“As many games as we have left, if we keep playing the way we did here, then
we still have a pretty good chance,” said Pujols of the team’s playoff
prospects.

Pujols is now tied with Dave Kingman for 37th on the career home runs list
with 442 after recording his 42nd career multi-home run game. Brandon Dickson
allowed three runs on six hits in his first major-league start, but lasted
just 3 1/3 innings. Octavio Dotel struck out five in 2 2/3 frames of scoreless
relief to secure the win.

Cincinnati was swept in four games by Philadelphia at home for the first time
since 1916 and dropped a 6-4 decision Thursday afternoon.

Reds starter Mike Leake gave up four runs in six innings to take the loss,
while Jared Burton allowed the other two runs.

“I wasn’t attacking them,” Leake said. “I needed to go after them and not
worry about them nickel-and-diming or getting the big hit.”

Chris Heisey hit a pinch-hit three-run homer in the seventh inning for the
Reds, who will begin a nine-game road trip tonight against the Cardinals, Cubs
and Rockies.

Dominican right-hander Johnny Cueto draws the start for the Reds this evening
and he’s 9-5 with a 2.05 earned run average in 21 starts. He is 2-0 in his
last four starts and has posted consecutive no-decisions, including a 5-4 win
over Washington on Sunday. He held the Nationals to a pair of runs on a
season-high nine hits with a career-best 11 strikeouts over seven innings.

Cueto, who is 5-3 in 12 starts away from home this season, is 1-1 with a 1.19
ERA in three starts against St. Louis in 2011. For his career, Cueto owns a
4-4 mark and a 4.64 ERA in 12 career matchups — all starts — with the
Cardinals.

The Reds have won seven of 12 meetings with St. Louis this season.

The Sports Network

CINCINNATI (AP) — Johnny Cueto and two relievers made a pair of first-inning runs stand up and the Cincinnati Reds salvaged a split of their four-game series against the Colorado Rockies with a 2-1 win on Thursday.

Cueto, hampered by an upset stomach while pitching a season-low 3 2-3 innings in his last start at Wrigley Field, bounced back to throw three-hit ball for seven shutout innings. He took over the NL ERA lead, lowering his mark from 2.06 to 1.94.

Cueto (8-5) struck out a season-high nine, including Carlos Gonzalez with the bases loaded to end the fifth inning, walked two and hit a batter. He missed the first month of the season with soreness in his upper right arm, qualified for the ERA lead with this outing.

Aroldis Chapman allowed the first two Rockies to reach in the eighth before getting Gonzalez to ground into a double play and striking out Eliezer Alfonzo. Francisco Cordero allowed Seth Smith‘s 12th home run of the season leading off the ninth, then earned his 22nd save in 27 chances.

Jhoulys Chacin (9-9) was almost as effective for Colorado, tying his season high with nine strikeouts while allowing six hits and two runs in eight innings. He fell to 1-5 over his last 10 starts despite finishing with a flourish, striking out the side in eighth.

The Reds took a 2-0 lead with a two-out, four-hit burst in the first against Chacin, who went into the game limiting opposing batters to a league-low .208 batting average.

Joey Votto lined a double off the left-field wall and scored on Jay Bruce’s single up the middle. Bruce moved up on Ramon Hernandez’s single and took third on Drew Stubbs’ infield single to third baseman Chris Nelson, whose errant throw to first allowed a run to score.

NOTES: A pitcher needs one inning for each of his team’s games to qualify for the ERA title. This was the Reds’ 118th game, and Cueto reached that threshold on Jonathan Herrera’s groundout in the fifth. It’s the third time in Cueto’s last three starts that he’s qualified for the lead, only to later become a non-qualifier. … Despite his eight-game hitting streak, Colorado SS Troy Tulowitzki did not start. “He came to me (Tuesday) and said his legs were starting to feel a little heavy,” manager Jim Tracy said. “We wanted to be proactive. If not, you risk pushing the guy.” Tulowitzki later pinch-hit. … Alfonzo batted higher than sixth for the first time this season in nine starts. … Reds RHP Bronson Arroyo will be looking for his first win in eight starts since beating the Orioles at Baltimore on June 25 when he starts Friday night at home against San Diego. … Colorado RHP Aaron Cook is 1-4 in his career against the Cardinals going into his start Friday at St. Louis. … Red 2B Brandon Phillips missed his second consecutive start with a left elbow still sore and swollen from being hit by a pitch on Tuesday. He refused to take a cortisone shot, he said before the game. “If they have to stick me to play, it’s just more reason I shouldn’t be playing,” he said.

Pittsburgh (KDKA)- The Pirates will look to win their 50th game of the season tonight when they open up a 3-game series vs. the Cincinnati Reds.

Pitching matchup will be James McDonald (5-4, 4.42 ERA) vs. Dontrelle Willis (0-0, 3.00 ERA).

The Pirates are currently tied for 2nd place with St. Louis and trail 1st place Milwaukee by just a half-game.

The Pirates will now play 12 straight games against teams with a combined record of 212-167..So far this year, the Pirates are 5-1 against the Reds, 2-1 against the Cardinals, 2-1 against the Phillies and 0-2 against Atlanta.

Overall in 2011, the Bucs are 23-18 in games against teams with a winning record.

Check out how impressive the Pirates have been since the end of May.

*Have posted a 25-16 record since May 27 and have gone 27-18 in their last 45 games.

*The Bucs have not lost back-back games since losing 4 straight June 17-20.

Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips was still energized over his game-ending homer when he got home, turned on the television and got to see his ecstatic trot again.

He savored it all over again.

Phillips’ two-out, two-run homer sent the Cincinnati Reds to a 6-5 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night and provided one of his best moments in the majors.

“It was with me until I went to sleep,” Phillips said Saturday, before the second game of the series. “All I could see was myself on SportsCenter acting like a fool, clowning. It was good reason to really clown like that. I still think about it, but it’s in the past right now.”

The dramatic win was significant — a loss would have dropped the Reds five games behind the Cardinals. The fact that Phillips pulled it off was significant, too.

Last year, the second baseman angered the Cardinals by calling them whiners, using a demeaning term. His comments ignited a brawl the next game. Since then, Phillips has been careful when talking about opponents, especially St. Louis.

After he hit the second pitch from Fernando Salas for the game-winning homer, Phillips leaped in celebration and waved his arms before reaching first base. He rounded second and third, making a celebratory gesture toward third base coach Mark Berry. Then, he paused before wading into the scrum of teammates at home plate.

Phillips considered making a bigger show of the moment, perhaps carrying his bat all the way around the bases. He decided against it.

His manager was glad. Dusty Baker didn’t see Phillips’ entire round-the-bases celebration until he caught it on television later that night.

His reaction? He thought it was acceptable.

“I’ve seen a couple worse antics against us,” Baker said.

Baker thinks celebrations should be respectful.

“You’ve already accomplished the goal and beat the opposition,” Baker said. “The goal’s not to show ‘em up. The goal’s the beat them.”

Regardless what they felt about it, the Cardinals weren’t in position to say much about Phillips’ joyful trot. Manager Tony La Russa said on Saturday that he didn’t object to Phillips’ celebration as he rounded the bases.

“It’s a release of pressure,” La Russa said. “It’s a happy time — a real happy time. You have to do something really extravagant to cross the line.”

Baker counsels his players to be careful about rubbing it in.

“I’m old school,” Baker said. “I’m from the Hank Aaron school, which I think is one of the best schools around. He’d beat you and they’d ask him what did you hit, and he’d say, ‘I was just lucky.’ Then the next time — boom — he’d do it again.”

By Dan Moore

– Managing Editor

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Jul 7, 2011 – After roaring back from an eight-run deficit the St. Louis Cardinals couldn’t quite complete the comeback or the sweep, falling 9-8 to the Cincinnati Reds in extra innings. Matt Holliday homered in the seventh inning to key a five-run rally, Daniel Descalso had four hits, and Jon Jay homered off of Francisco Cordero in the ninth inning to tie a game that began with Jake Westbrook allowing five runs in a brutal first inning. Albert Pujols went 1-6 with a single and an RBI in his incredibly swift return to the lineup following a wrist fracture.

The Reds got on top early with a first-pitch home run from leadoff hitter Chris Heisey, and it looked like the game was over when Scott Rolen hit his fifth home run of the year off Trever Miller to extend the lead to 8-0. But the Cardinals picked up two in the sixth off a Descalso double and five more in the seventh to get within a run, whereupon Jay pulled his seventh home run of the season deep to right field.

But after seven scoreless innings the Cardinals’ stretched bullpen finally broke; Ramon Hernandez’s ground-rule double drove in a run and Aroldis Chapman sealed the deal for his first career save.

Read More: Jake Westbrook (P – STL), Matt Holliday (LF – STL), Francisco Cordero (P – CIN), Jon Jay (RF – STL), Daniel Descalso (2B – STL), St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds