Top prospect Austin Kearns was recalled from Double-A Chattanooga and will make his big-league debut starting in left field tonight.

        Kearns, the No.1 pick in 1999, hit his fifth home run in four games Tuesday night for Double-A Chattanooga.

        “He's crushing the ball,” Reds general manager Jim Bowden said. “We told him as soon as he's ready we would call him up. This is a short-term thing. We don't know how long (Sean) Casey's going to be out with his concussion. This is a good time for a cup of coffee here for Austin.”

        Kearns probably will go back down when Ken Griffey, Jr., returns from the disabled list.

        The Reds might have chosen to call up Raul Gonzalez from Triple-A Louisville to take Jose Acevedo's spot on the roster. Gonzalez pushed his hitting streak to 13 games with a 4-for-5 night Tuesday. He's hitting .481.

        “We gave him a lot of consideration,” Reds general manager Jim Bowden said. “But Kearnsie is smashing the ball. The home runs were the big thing.”

        Kearns was given a shot at the right-field job in spring training, but he lost out to Juan Encarnacion and Ruben Mateo.

        Kearns started slowly as Chattanooga, but he extended his hitting streak to seven games Tuesday night.

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