MIAMI — Barry Larkin dislocated the middle joint of the middle finger of his left hand while striking out on a Ryan Dempster sinkerball in the fifth inning Sunday.

        “I tried to make an adjustment in the middle of my swing,” Larkin said. “I saw the ball going down and the next thing I knew my finger was hurting.”

        Larkin needed surgery after injurying the same finger in April and missed 22 games. Larkin tore the sheath of the tendon that surrounds the finger, but trainer Greg Lynn said that the first injury did not create a weakening in the finger that led to the second injury.

        “It's just coincidental,” Lynn said.

        Larkin is day-to-day.

Pokey Reese is safe at second. (AP photos) | ZOOM |

        REESE RETURNS: Larkin's injury forced second baseman Pokey Reese, who had missed nine games in a row with a strained left hamstring, back into the lineup while Juan Castro replaced Larkin at shortstop.

        Reese wasn't necessarily rushed back into action, since manager Jack McKeon had planned to try to use Reese in tonight's series opener at Atlanta.

        Reese responded by singling in three at-bats and making one of his Gold Glove-caliber plays on Mark Kotsay's seventh-inning grounder.

        “It was a nice little test for him,” Lynn said. “We're going to need him now.”

        WILLIAMSON'S PAIN: The Reds decided around gametime Sunday that right-hander Scott Williamson should return to Cincinnati to have his sore lower back examined.

        Left-hander Ron Villone will replace Williamson in tonight's series opener at Atlanta.

        Though Williamson is 3-2 with a 2.61 ERA in nine starts since leaving the bullpen, he has frequently complained of back pain after his outings. Lynn said that after Williamson did his usual between-starts throwing a couple of days ago, “it became kind of apparent to us he wouldn't be able to make his turn (today).”

Michael Tucker jaws with Mike Redmond. (AP photos) | ZOOM |

        JUST TALK: Both teams' benches and bullpens emptied but no punches were thrown in the seventh inning, after Marlins starter Ryan Dempster hit Reds outfielder Michael Tucker in the right side with a pitch.

        Dempster had reason to be irritated. Dante Bichette had slugged his previous pitch for a three-run homer. The Reds had mounted a serious rally only because umpire Ian Lamplugh incorrectly ruled Reese safe at second base as he slid in to try to break up a double play on Ken Griffey Jr.'s grounder. Lamplugh said that Marlins shortstop Andy Fox missed stepping on the bag, but television replays indicated that he did.

        FOR PETE'S SAKE: The Reds' 4.39 team ERA entering Sunday was the lowest since the season's second game. That's a direct result, said McKeon, of having a healthy Pete Harnisch, Friday's winner, in the starting rotation.

        “Remember, we didn't have him in the first half,” McKeon said of Harnisch, who missed eight weeks with a weakened shoulder. “Can you imagine if we had him healthy all year? That's the difference between being two games out of first place and seven games.”

        ETC.: Right-hander Rob Bell's capable effort was lost in the late-game scramble. Bell allowed three runs and five hits in six innings, though he walked five.

        • Bichette ended his streak of 109 consecutive at-bats without a home run. He hadn't homered since July 23 at Arizona.

        UP NEXT: Ron Villone (8-7), who has not allowed a run in his last eight appearances — a span of 9 1/3 innings — will open the four-game Atlanta series tonight against the formidable Greg Maddux (14-7). Removed from the rotation in early July, Villone hasn't started since making a spot appearance on July 22.

Marlins 7, Reds 6 Box, runs Results of our Reds poll Larkin dislocates finger on swing Reds-Braves Scouting Report

Bengals release DeMarco
Bengals eye cuts for practice squad
Results of our Bengals poll
Lazier wins IRL debut at Speedway
IRL results
Speedway fans eat up breakfast of champions
Speedway lands Busch race
Speedway Notebook
High school football page
DAUGHERTY: Penn State QB can't avoid rush to judgment
Kentucky's fate in young QB's hands
Kentucky Scouting Report
SEC East overview
SEC West overview

• Return to Reds front page...