Dunn found power outage situation fun

[CincyRedsFan30]

Park loses power; Reds don't
Dunn's two-HR game leads four-shot blitz

By John Fay

Enquirer staff writer

The problem with the Reds this season never has been their offense.

Sure, they go into periodic funks and they strike out more than any team on earth. But they are second in the National League in runs, first in home runs and first in RBI.

If they get decent pitching, more often than not they're going to win.

Case in point Friday night: Ramon Ortiz rebounded from a rough start to pitch seven solid innings, and the Reds cruised to an 11-6 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at Great American Ball Park.

"We're clicking on all cylinders," Joe Randa said. "We really have been since the road trip to San Francisco and Arizona. If we can keep it going, it's going to be fun."

The victory, coupled with Pittsburgh's 5-3 loss to Colorado, got the Reds out of last place in the National League Central after 40 straight days there.

"We've got to pass one team at a time," Adam Dunn said. "Maybe we can get to third and play spoiler."

The Reds had a season-high 10 extra-base hits. Dunn hit two home runs for his fifth multihomer game of the season, and Felipe Lopez and Randa each hit one. Randa, in the No. 2 spot for the fifth time since June 16, finished 3-for-5 with three RBI.

"I think you can use almost any lineup you want," Reds manager Jerry Narron said. "If these guys are hitting, we're going to score some runs."

The Reds have scored 29 runs over the last three days.

"We're getting outstanding defense, everybody's hitting and we're getting good pitching," Ortiz said. "You put those three together and you're going to win a lot of games."

The Reds have won six of their eight games since the All-Star break and eight of their last 11 overall.

Friday's game had a little of everything.

It had an odd interruption. The game was stopped for 25 minutes after lights went out due to a power failure caused by a blown transformer.

It had the aforementioned offense.

It had Ken Griffey Jr. and Randa making sparkling defensive plays.

And it had a group of energetic, young fans chanting the night away. Among there highlights: "Don't trade Dunn!" and "Let's go, light bulbs!"

Said Dunn: "It was pretty funny stuff. That's entertaining."

Ortiz allowed three runs on seven hits. He did not walk a batter and struck out five.

Ortiz has won three straight games to even his record at 6-6.

He had his usual first-inning woes, giving up a two-out, two-run double to Geoff Jenkins.

In his last four starts, Ortiz's ERA in the first inning is 13.50. After the first, his ERA is 3.00.

"He pitched well," Narron said. "He gave us a chance to score some runs."

The Reds got a run back in the bottom of the first. Randa doubled to straightaway center. An out later, Griffey lined a single into right to score Randa.

It was the 1,509th RBI for Griffey, tying him for 42nd on the all- time list with Mickey Mantle. It also extended Griffey's streak of reaching base to 25 games.

The Reds took the lead in the second inning on Randa's two-run double. Randa lofted the ball down the right-field line, and it fell between three Brewers and took a big bounce into the stands for a ground-rule double.

The Brewers tied the score in the third inning on Lee's RBI two-out single.

But Dunn got the lead back for the Reds in the bottom of the third with an absolute tracer into the right-field seats for his 26th home run of the year.

The Reds' hottest hitter, Javier Valentin, opened it up a bit in the fifth with a two-run double that gave him 13 RBI over his last four starts.

Ortiz was rolling by then, retiring 12 of the last 14 batters he faced.

Lopez gave the Reds a 7-3 advantage by leading off the sixth inning with his 16th home run of the year.

In the seventh inning, Dunn hit his second homer of the game, way up into the seats in right field. It traveled an estimated 464 feet, the seventh-longest home run in GABP history.

Randa's homer came in the eighth. It was his 13th of the year but his first since June 24.

"Everybody knew coming out of spring training we had a chance to do something," Narron said. "For whatever reason, we struggled early."

It's beginning to look as if the struggles might be over.

E-mail jfay@enquirer.com

[Jr's Boy]

Nice to hear that that everyone seems upbeat and determined to win.