SAN DIEGO — Saturday's game was still within Cincinnati's grasp in the top of the eighth inning, when Ken Griffey Jr. drew a walk to become just the Reds' second leadoff batter to reach base safely. Then came a play that left plenty of confusion in its wake.

        Dante Bichette, the next hitter, tried to check his swing on Adam Eaton's 3-1 pitch that some observers thought was ball four. Griffey broke with the pitch from the San Diego Padres right-hander and was thrown out at second base, though television replays indicated otherwise.

        Reds manager Jack McKeon was later asked if Bichette had missed a hit-and-run sign.

        “Yeah,” McKeon said. “That's what happens when things don't go right.”

        But Bichette insisted he didn't miss a sign. And first-base coach Dave Collins said that though Griffey was put in motion, “What we were doing was putting that play in the hands of the hitter.”

        In other words, it wasn't a pure hit-and-run, which would have commanded Bichette to swing no matter what.

        Had Bichette taken a full swing, Padres catcher Carlos Hernandez might have been distracted or disrupted enough not to throw out Griffey. Had Bichette taken the pitch, the Reds would have had runners on first and second and nobody out.

        But neither happened.

        Nevertheless, McKeon said he'll continue to put run ners in motion, especially if Cincinnati's offense continues to struggle. Saturday's output: Griffey's 19th homer and four singles. Only two runners reached scoring position.

        “You have to try. You have to do some things,” McKeon said. “We can't sit around and wait. We have to hope we can get a break.”

        VILLONE'S GEM: Ron Villone turned in an excellent performance in Saturday's loss.

        Villone no-hit the Padres for 4ö innings before Ruben Rivera homered and didn't allow a single runner to reach scoring position until the fateful eighth inning. Double plays in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings helped Villone avoid trouble before it began.

        Despite losing his third consecutive decision, Villone became the first Reds starter to work at least seven innings since June 3, when Denny Neagle pitched seven innings against Minnesota. It was only the 15th seven-inning effort by a Reds starter this year.

        TALES OF WOE: Cincinnati has lost four series in a row, its longest such streak since dropping five in a row between July 7-30, 1998.

        The Reds haven't been 6¹/₂ games out of first place since last May 15, when they trailed by a season-high seven games.

        Their five-game losing streak matches a season high.

        PLACID PARRIS: Trying to focus on improvement instead of his set backs, Steve Parris said he wouldn't dwell on his immediate future, despite what seems to be his impending removal from the starting rotation.

        “I'm not going to worry about it,” Parris said Saturday, one day after he allowed seven runs in three innings and lost his sixth consecutive decision. “If that's the decision they want to make, then that's the decision they make. I'm going to do what I can the next time I start for the team. It's kind of out of my control ... I'm not going to give up on the season.”

        Parris, who became the majors' first 10-game loser after posting a 11-4 record last year, said that his outing against the Padres was “probably the worst I've felt all year,” though he couldn't pinpoint a reason.

        McKeon and pitching coach Don Gullett criticized Parris for consistently falling behind hitters. Naturally, Parris said this didn't happen by design.

        “I wasn't trying to pitch around anybody. I was try ing to be aggressive,” Parris said. “Right now, things aren't working out. I'm still going to be aggressive, though. I'm going to go right at guys. If they hit homers, they hit homers. One of these days that's going to stop. It better stop soon, or that's going to be it for me, I think.”

        UP NEXT: Rookie Rob Bell (4-5) will try to halt Cincinnati's skid in today's series finale when he confronts Padres right-hander Matt Clement (5-6). San Diego is 13-7 in Clement's last 20 starts, dating back to August 30, 1999.

Participate in our e-mail poll

Padres 3, Reds 1 Box, runs Crossed signals costly Griffeys happy to be together on Father's Day Rose's name cheered at Phillies celebration Reds coach unfazed by Bouton book

• Return to Reds front page...