PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - The Cincinnati Reds aren't hitting and aren't scoring. They are worrying.
Manager Jack McKeon shuffled his lineup for a game against the Texas Rangers on Thursday, but it didn't fare much better. The Reds got eight hits - all singles - in a 2-0 victory.
Cincinnati has scored two or fewer runs in eight of its last 13 games, losing six of them.
''You've got to be concerned,'' General Manager Jim Bowden said.
With shortstop Barry Larkin sidelined for a few more weeks by neck surgery, the Reds have to depend upon their young players to carry a bigger load.
The best solution is beyond the Reds' means.
''The problem is we can't get a bopper to fix it becaues they cost money,'' he said.
McKeon's lineup changes worked . . . sort of.
Pokey Reese was dropped to ninth and got a pair of hits, breaking an 0-for-13 slump. Jon Nunnally, who had been batting second, was dropped to seventh and had a hit to snap an 0-for-14 slide. And Reggie Sanders, hitting in Nunnally's spot in the seventh inning, had two singles to snap an 0-for-10 slump.
The problem: The guys who replaced them at the top of the order didn't hit. The top four spots in the order were a combined 0-for-15.
Trade completed
The Reds got minor-league pitcher Jesus Martinez from the Florida Marlins on Thursday, completing the March 21 trade for Eric Owens. Martinez, 24, is the brother of Pedro and Ramon Martinez.
The left-hander went from the Marlins' farm system to the Reds' farm system.
''He's got a good arm. He's left-handed. He doesn't have command (of his pitches) right now,'' Bowden said.
He was 7-1 with a 6.21 ERA in 12 starts and 14 relief appearances for Triple-A Albuquerque last season. Arizona took him from Los Angeles in the expansion draft, then sent him to the Marlins in the trade for Devon White.
The Marlins sold Owens' contract to the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday.
Roster set
The Reds made their last roster move to get down to 25 players Thursday by assigning non-roster pitcher Ricardo Jordan to the minor-league camp. Reliever Mark Hutton has a moderate groin pull but will not go on the disabled list, Bowden said.
Injury update
Larkin, who had a disc removed from his neck on March 13, is scheduled to resume swinging a bat on Saturday.
Pitcher Jose Rijo, who will start the season on the disabled list at Triple-A Indianapolis, will not throw again until the weekend because of tenderness in his right elbow.
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