Juan Encarnacion hits a three-run home run off Atlanta Braves starter Jason Marquis as catcher Javy Lopez looks on during the fifth inning. (AP photo) | ZOOM | DESKTOP WALLPAPER: Click here to load image, then right-click to "Set As Background"

        ATLANTA — Juan Encarnacion is often viewed as the odd man out in the Reds' outfield picture that has been further crowded by Ken Griffey Jr.'s return. But Encarnacion showed Saturday night why you want his bat in the lineup.

        His three-run homer was the key blow in the Reds' 6-4 victory over the Atlanta Braves before a crowd of 44,026 at Turner Field.

        Encarnacion's homer — his 11th of the year — came with two outs in the fifth on a 3-0 pitch and took the Reds from a 2-1 deficit to a 4-2 lead.

        “That was a big one,” Reds manager Bob Boone said. “I finally got someone to swing on 3-0.”

        Adam Dunn and Aaron Boone added solo shots in the sixth. The victory snapped a two-game losing streak.

        “It was a nice one to get,” Dunn said. “We haven't played real well the last couple of series. Tonight, we didn't leave a lot of guys in scoring position.”

        Griffey was out of the lineup Saturday (he did pinch hit in the ninth and singled). He's expected to play today. Bob Boone said Sean Casey gets today off; Dunn will play first.

        “Casey is probably the happiest guy in (the clubhouse) right now,” Boone said. “He can use a day. It will work out.”

Cincinnati Reds right fielder Austin Kearns makes a catch at the wall to retire Atlanta Braves batter Marcus Giles in the third inning. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        Jimmy Haynes (4-5) picked up the victory. Gabe White and Danny Graves (16th save) finished it. Haynes' seven-inning outing — his longest of the season — allowed Boone to rest everyone in the bullpen but White and Graves.

        “I thought that was the sharpest (Haynes) has been,” Boone said.

        “We really needed that.”

        Atlanta starter Jason Marquis (3-3) retired the first 11 Reds he faced. By the time the Reds got a runner, the Braves had a 2-0 lead.

        In the third, Marquis grounded a ball up the middle that shortstop Barry Larkin fielded but couldn't make a strong throw on. It went for an infield hit.

        Up came Rafael Furcal, who is not exactly known for his power. But he ripped the first pitch from Haynes to right field for his second homer of the year and his third career homer hitting left-handed.

        That made it 2-0.

        “That was the one mistake,” Haynes said. “It was a fastball in that ran over the plate.”

Braves second baseman Marcus Giles avoids Adam Dunn as he throws to first to retire Barry Larkin for a double play. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        But Marquis went from perfect to hittable pretty quickly. Casey broke Marquis' string with a two-out single in the fourth. Dunn followed with a single up the middle, and Austin Kearns got the Reds on the board by lining a single to left to score Casey.

        The Reds came within inches of a big inning. The next hitter, Larkin, scorched one to right. But Darren Bragg ran it down near the warning track.

        That merely put Marquis' troubles on hold.

        Marquis got the first two hitters in the fifth. But Haynes helped himself with a long drive to right for a double. Todd Walker extended his hitting streak to eight games with a single to right.

        Marquis then fell behind Encarnacion 3-0. Boone gave him the green light. Good call. Encarnacion crushed one to left for his 10th home run of the year.

        The ball traveled 396 feet and never got more than 25 feet off the ground.

        “I've been giving them the green light all year,” Boone said. “But nobody would swing.”

A ball off the bat of Todd Walker gets past Atlanta Braves second baseman Marcus Giles in the fifth inning. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        Encarnacion's swing gave the Reds a 4-2 lead and started the homer parade.

        Dunn hit his 10th of the year and second in as many nights to lead off the sixth. It went 406 feet, and Kobe Bryant's dunks have more hang time.

        “That was some swing,” Boone said.

        “That's the hardest one I've ever hit,” Dunn said.

        Two outs later, Aaron Boone hit his first home run since April 18, a shot that just made it out to left. It was Boone's second hit in as many games. DiMaggio's streak is safe, but that's a good sign for Boone, who entered the game hitting .130 since April 28.

        “He's swung real good the last two nights,” Bob Boone said. “That's good sign.”

        It was the first time all year the Reds have hit two home runs in one inning.

        Haynes, meanwhile, started a pretty good roll after Furcal's homer. He retired 11 of the next 13 and did not allow a runner past first in the fourth, fifth and six.

        The Braves broke through with two runs in the seventh. But Haynes was able to limit the damage. He allowed 10 hits but didn't walk a batter and struck out five. White and Graves each threw a perfect inning.

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