Wednesday, July 1, 1998

BY SCOTT MacGREGOR
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Brett Tomko improved his interleague record to 6-0. (Saed Hindash photo) | ZOOM |

Mike Frank and Sean Casey haven't been hitting the cover off the ball, but they've been contributing nonetheless since being called up more than a week ago. A walk here scores the winning run, a great catch there saves a game, with the big hitting left to the promise of their future and, in the meantime, the savvy of the Reds' veterans.

Reds manager Jack McKeon has been mentioning this as much as possible lately, perhaps the best hope a skipper has when the two prized, unpolished youngsters of the organization are being called on to be major contributors in their debut seasons.

But McKeon's mantra took a different twist Tuesday: the rooks did have a hand in the Reds' 6-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins, but this time they did it with strong hitting as Cincinnati won its season-high fifth straight game, the longest .

Frank, the 23-year-old rookie center fielder, was 2-for-4, scoring in the first inning, then driving in a run with a single in the fourth. Casey, the 23-year-old first baseman, was also 2-for-4, smacking what turned out to be the game-winning run with a hard single to left in the first.

It was a welcome night of success for both. Even after the game, Casey was still hitting .181 and Frank .189.

"It's been frustrating," Frank said. "They said I'm probably going to have some failure up here, but I don't come up here expecting to fail. Hopefully, each day I'll just get better and learn a little more. It's nice to have something to do with a win."

Said McKeon: "It's going to take some time. They're making progress. Casey's definitely swinging the bat better."

Willie Greene, who hit a three-run homer in the first inning, cracks a smile as he bats in the fifth. (Saed Hindash photo) | ZOOM |

The rookies got some help from those wily veterans. Shortstop Barry Larkin was 3-for-3 with two singles, a triple and two runs, while Willie Greene hit a three-run homer and Eddie Taubensee had an RBI single.

"We're getting some guys on and getting some hits. It's a different ball club when you do that," McKeon said.

Reds starter Brett Tomko, meanwhile, continued his comeback from a June swoon and won his second straight start, going 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on six hits and striking out five.

Maybe Tomko just likes to face the American League Central. He's 6-0 the last two years in interleague play, allowing only 12 runs in 39 innings (2.77 ERA).

"I forgot about that," Tomko said. "I'm not pitching any differently. They say the American League is more of an off-speed league and I go after people. Maybe that takes people by surprise, but I don't have any logical explanation."

Bret Boone fields Todd Walker's grounder in the fifth. (Saed Hindash photo) | ZOOM |

The Reds' offense continued the renaissance it began in sweeping a weekend series in Detroit, getting five hits in the first to get a big jump on Twins starter LaTroy Hawkins.

Frank and Casey played key roles in the first-inning barrage. With one out, Frank began things with a single to right, and Larkin followed with a single to center. Greene then drove them home by crushing a long blast off the metal facade in straight-away center, his 10th homer, for a 3-0 lead.

But the Reds weren't done pounding Hawkins. Bret Boone roped a double to the right-center field gap, and Casey nailed a single to left for a four-run lead.

Frank drove in Tomko with a single to right-center in the fourth for a six-run lead.

Sean Casey backs away as Brett Tomko beats Otis Nixon to first base. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

On the mound, Tomko (7-6) wasn't spectacular, but he was good enough, holding the Twins scoreless until the fifth before he ran out of gas and allowed three runs in the sixth and seventh.

After not winning for seven straight starts, a string that included five losses and 35 earned runs in 35 innings, Tomko has allowed only four earned runs in his last two starts and appears to be back on the track that had McKeon talking of his 20-win potential earlier this season.

"I felt good," he said, adding that he has changed some things mechanically, including getting his left arm out of the way when he throws.

"I've been in a good mood. I'm hoping it was just a bad stretch, and hopefully, I'm stronger because of it. I learned some things about myself and how to handle myself in tough situations. . . . It made me tougher as a person and as a player."