Thursday, September 16, 1999

REDS 5, CUBS 4

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Neagle struggles but perseveres

BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Greg Vaughn catches a fly ball at the wall. (AP photos) | ZOOM |

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        Nothing will come easily for the Reds if they expect to stay in contention for a postseason berth. So it was fitting that they endured a rigorous yet ultimately satisfying nine innings Wednesday night against the Chicago Cubs, who fell 5-4 at Cinergy Field.

        Houston's 8-6 loss to Philly rewarded the Reds, who gained ground on the first-place Astros for the first time since Aug.30 and trailed by three games in the National League Central. New York still leads Cincinnati by 2¹/₂ games in the wild-card race.

        The Reds labored for this modest achievement.

        Denny Neagle won his fourth consecutive start but had to escape a bases-loaded jam in the second inning and three times found himself with the tying run either at the plate or on base.

        Scott Williamson needed one strike to end the seventh inning when he suddenly left the game with a small cut on the middle finger of his right hand.

Vaughn is greeted by Eddie Taubensee after his sixth-inning HR. | ZOOM |

        With two outs in the ninth, Danny Graves walked Mark Grace to prolong the game for Sammy Sosa, the major leagues' home-run leader. After the Reds allowed Grace to take second base uncontested, Sosa grounded an RBI single to cut the Reds' lead to 5-4.Graves escaped with his 24th save by retiring Glenallen Hill on a medium-deep fly ball.

        Before the game, second baseman Pokey Reese (back) and right fielder Michael Tucker (flu-like symptoms) were scratched from the starting lineup.

        All this adversity made victory sweeter.

        “This is probably the most fun year I've had in baseball,” said Neagle (7-5), who allowed two runs and nine hits in six innings. “The first time I was in a pennant race, I was a middle reliever in Pittsburgh and didn't know what to expect. With Atlanta, we were always 12 or 13 games up, it seemed. To be with these guys on a team that wasn't supposed to be here at this time of the season — it's been a lot of fun.

        “I'm treating every start like's the last game of the season and we're one game back.”

A single drops in front of Mike Cameron. | ZOOM |

        That's a healthy approach, even against opponents such as the last-place Cubs (57-88). Though the Reds' Sept.28-29 showdown at Houston marks the only time they'll confront a team with a record above .500, they know that the lopsided victories they enjoyed last weekend over Florida will be rare.

        “These teams like the Cubs have all these guys they just brought up, and they know they have nothing to lose,” Graves said.

        Said catcher Eddie Taubensee, “Every team is going to want to play the spoiler.”

        They won't, if Greg Vaughn keeps wielding his influence.

        The Reds' left fielder drove in a pair of runs with a single and his 39th home run, boosting his season RBI total to 103 — the most by a Red since Dave Parker had 116 in 1986.

        The Reds increased their lead to 5-2 in the fifth on Vaughn's homer off Cubs starter Jon Lieber (8-10). He's on the verge of becoming the first Red to reach 40 home runs since George Foster hit that many in 1978. Vaughn has homered nine times this year against the Cubs, by far his highest total against any team.

        “It was just an insurance run when he hit it, but it turned out to be the difference in the ballgame,” Reds manager Jack McKeon said of Vaughn's blast.

        Rebounding from a frustrating night at the plate, Eddie Taubensee fueled the Reds' four-run first inning with a two-run triple. Tuesday, he batted three times with a pair of teammates on base and grounded into a double play, flied out and struck out into a double play.

        The Reds kept Sosa from homering for the second game in a row, freezing his longball total at 59 while he singled twice in four at-bats.

        “I'll take singles from Sammy every day,” Graves said.

       

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