Brady Clark steals 2nd base as Phillies SS Nick Punto falls over him. (Steven M. Herppich Cincinnati Enquirer photo) | ZOOM |

        The ending was just what you would have expected from the 2001 Reds: injuries, apathy and futility.

        The Reds ran out a lineup Sunday that included only one starter from Opening Day. That was catcher Jason LaRue, and he was playing third base.

        Only 20,093 fans showed up. That put the yearly attendance at 1,897,755, or 697,604 below last year's total.

        And the Reds lost 4-1 to the Philadelphia Phillies, thanks to mediocre starting pitching (Lance Davis gave up three runs in 4 2/3 innings) and lackluster offense. The game ended with a bases-loaded groundout by pinch hitter D.T. Cromer. The Reds ended the season by scoring three runs in their last 36 innings.

Wilton Guerrero tags the Phillies' Johnny Estrada out at 2nd. (Steven M. Herppich Cincinnati Enquirer photo) | ZOOM |

        They finished 66-96, tying the fifth-most losses in club history.

        “When I came off the mound, it hit me. How in the world did this group of guys finish so bad?” reliever Scott Sullivan said. “We had the talent. It just didn't work out.”

        The Reds, to a man, were ready to turn the page.

        “It was a long season,” first baseman Sean Casey said. “We're glad it's over. But we're looking forward to next year.”

        That was manager Bob Boone's theme.

        “It don't look at this as the end of 2001,” he said. “I look at is as the start of 2002. ... I told the players, "Be safe; have a good winter; we have a lot of work. We're going to have a pretty strenuous spring training.'''

Reds fire Oester, Doran Boone defends Griffey from radio backlash Phillies 4, Reds 1 Reds box, run

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