Saturday, September 18, 1999

PIRATES 3, REDS 1

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One slip leads to Reds' loss

BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Ed Sprague scores on a suicide squeeze play behind Eddie Taubensee. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        PITTSBURGH — The Reds lost their second consecutive game Friday but no ground in their race for a postseason spot.

        The Reds had one bad inning in a 3-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates; the Cardinals beat the NL Central-leading Astros 11-8; and the Phillies beat the wild card-leading Mets 8-5.

        The Reds stayed 3¹/₂ games behind the Astros in the NL Central and three games behind the Mets in the wild-card race.

        One slip essentially sealed the Reds' loss.

        Ron Villone dominated Pittsburgh for all but one of his six innings — the fourth, in which he yielded three runs while surrendering just one hit.

        “Sometimes one little spurt's too much. It cost us the game,” said Villone, who also was victimized in the crucial fourth by three walks and catcher Eddie Taubensee's passed ball. “It's getting toward the end of September. You don't want to lose anything. Especially games that don't have a whole lot of scoring. One inning sometimes makes you feel like you can ruin your season. I just hope it's not.”

Ron Villone adjusts his cap after throwing a wild pitch. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        Meanwhile, Pirates starter Todd Ritchie (13-9) neutralized the Reds lineup with the exception of Barry Larkin, whose third-inning homer represented one of his three hits — and the Reds' lone run.

        After Ritchie allowed seven hits in eight innings, Northwest High School graduate Scott Sauerbeck, who also attended Miami University, retired Dmitri Young and Taubensee on grounders for his first major-league save.

        “They scored only three runs,” Larkin said of the Pirates. “I don't know what we're averaging, but I'm sure it's more than three runs.”

        At this juncture, it's easy to suggest that several Reds could be pressing. Most of their youthful core, including center fielder Mike Cameron, third baseman Aaron Boone and second baseman Pokey Reese, have never experienced a pennant race. Included in that 26-and-under group is first baseman Sean Casey, the Pittsburgh native whose 0-for-4 evening extended his Three Rivers hitting futility to 3-for-32 (.094).

        Even McKeon said, “It could be that everybody's trying to do a little bit too much, trying to carry the load themselves.”

Eddie Taubensee is forced out on a double play by Abraham Nunez. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        But Larkin said: “I don't see anybody tightening up. Everybody's loose. We had a good time coming here on the bus (Thursday) night. Everybody was goofing around before the game.”

        None of the Reds was laughing when the outcome turned.

        Villone (8-7) weathered early challenges, surviving Mike Benjamin's one-out triple in the first inning and Chad Herman sen's one-out double in the second. The left-hander wasn't so lucky in the fourth.

        Brian Giles generated the rally's lone hit, leading off the inning with a stand-up triple to right field. After Kevin Young walked, Taubensee failed to grab a high but catchable pitch, enabling Giles to score the tying run.

        Ed Sprague and Hermansen also walked to load the bases before former Red Joe Oliver's sacrifice fly scored Young.

        Sprague went to third base on that play, which proved important when Abraham Nunez pushed a squeeze bunt toward the pitcher's mound. Villone correctly reasoned that he had a chance to erase Sprague, since the bunt was too hard, and charged the ball fiercely.

        But in his haste, he stubbed his right big toe, stumbled and fell halfway between the mound and home plate as Sprague scored.

        By contrast, Villone handled matters perfectly when he pounced on another bunt from the next batter, Ritchie, and started a forceout at third base that helped him escape the inning.

        “A play too late,” Villone said.

       

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