Monday, May 17, 1999

Cameron bashes slump with 2 HR's

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Outfielder hits .480 in last six

BY JOHN FAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Mike Cameron is greeted by Barry Larkin. (Saed Hindash photo) | ZOOM |

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        When Mike Cameron comes out of slump, he really comes out of it.

        Cameron closed the Reds' homestand with two home runs in a 3-0 victory over the San Diego Padres at Cinergy Field.

        Cameron extended his hitting streak to six games. Over that span, he is 12-for-25 (.480). He reached base in 25 of his last 29 games and scored 24 runs in those games.

        “I'm just trying to hit the ball hard somewhere,” Cameron said. “When the pitch is outside, I try to take it to right.”

        His home run in the third inning was to right. The home run in the sixth was to left.

        “I was just happy to get the hits,” he said. “But the ball travels in (Cinergy) during day games.”

        Cameron has five homers and 15 RBI to go with his 14 stolen bases.

        Not bad for a guy who was in an awful slump a week ago. Cameron went 4-for-36 and had struck out 18 times over that nine-game span. Cameron's slump dropped his average from .311 to .245. The six-game hot streak has him back up to .288.

        “He's been outstanding,” Reds manager Jack McKeon said. “Every time he slips a little bit people start to saying, "Here we go.' He's going to have his ups and downs. But he'll rebound.”

        Cameron can live with the ups and downs and the talk.

        “That doesn't bother me,” he said. “I went through too much of that last year. When you're playing every day, it's totally different.”

        Cameron also made an outstanding running catch to take an extra-base hit away from Tony Gwynn in the sixth. (He also dropped a ball for a two-base error.) “I just took my eye off it. It fell out of my glove.”

        After the catch in the sixth, Cameron led off with his second home run.

       

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