Reds On a Roll 

 Red Overwhelm D-Backs and Cardinals to Stretch Winning Streak to Four

Team Averaging 13 Hits Per Game During Stretch

After a particularly disappointing performance against the Diamondbacks five games ago, the Reds have been on a tear, winning four straight, and - for the last three games - averaging over 15 runs per game.  Saturday's surprisingly easy win over the Diamondbacks was followed by a Memorial Day victory over the Cardinals, pushing the Reds to 8-2 on the season as they chase the White Sox for the regular season championship and the number one seed in the post-season tournament.

Coupled with the White Sox' 10-3 loss to the Giants, the Reds now trail the Sox by the slimmest of margins in the standings... 

 Monday, May 30th - With Zach Whiteman keeping the youthful Cardinals at bay over the first three innings, the Big Red Machine offense kept pounding out the hits - 13 in all, over just four innings - and the Reds had a 12-1 lead after three innings and cruised from there to a 15-7 win. 

Nathan Huston (3 for 3 with a walk), Max Sander (2 for 2 with two walks, a double, and a home run), and Will Kueshner (2 for 2 with a double and two walks) led the way at the plate, but 7 of 11 Reds collected at least one hit...

The win pulls the Reds almost even with the White Sox in the race for the regular season crown.

Saturday, May 28th - The Reds got their third straight win, blowing open a close game against the Diamondbacks, and running away to a 15-1 win.

The Reds, who had lost their previous game against the D-backs, 8-1 - their worst defeat of the season - got their revenge on the mound and at the plate. 

Max Sander pitched arguably the most impressive game of the year for the Reds, retiring 12 of the 15 batters he faced via strikeout.  He allowed just one unearned run on one hit and one walk.   Max probably could have easily finished out the game, but was removed when his pitch count reached 64 to keep him eligible for Wednesday's matchup with the Phillies. 

Zach Whiteman came in to get the save; he took just two pitches to retire the final two batters.

With the game tied at 1 after two innings, the Reds' bats exploded - the team finished with a season-high 20 hits, including two doubles and three home runs - two by Presley Dean and one by Max.  Eight of nine Reds got at least one hit, with Max, Presley, and Will Kusehner each going four for four... Nathan Huston went three for four, and Tyler Singleton had a breakout game at the plate, also going three for four.  Tyson Singleton got his first hit of the year, a single in the fifth inning.  Even the one player who did not have an official hit - Stephen Mitchell - hit the ball hard.  As a result, Stephen reached base three times in four plate appearances, twice as a result of a D-back error and once on a fielder's choice play.

The Reds improve to 7-2 and remain in sole possession of second place in the league, just behind the 6-0 White Sox.

The Reds next game is Monday, 5/30/11, at 4:30 pm against the Cardinals.

                    Go the SCHEDULES page for a full recap of each contest and the game statistics.

NOTE:
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