Jared Fernandez says he grips the ball differently than other knuckleballers. (AP photos) | ZOOM |

        HOUSTON — No, it wasn't too big of a game Jared Fernandez pitched Sunday. Three days after the Reds traded for premier starter Ryan Dempster and two days after Dempster got rocked trying to stop the Reds' losing streak, a knuckleballing nobody put the brakes on the team's spiraling descent.

        That very feat resembled one of his butterfly-darting pitches that gave the Astros fits all day, striking out eight and leaving batters mumbling in the Reds' 8-3 win before 31,242 fans at Minute Maid Park.

        For the Reds, though, those knuckleballs floated down like manna from heaven, drifting in on wisps of wind, landing softly at the feet.

        Jared Fernandez, where have you been?

        Well, for starters ...

        Utica, down to Trenton, up to Pawtucket, back down to Trenton, back up to Pawtucket, back down to Trenton, back up to Pawtucket, over to Louisville, up to Cincinnati, back down to Louisville and back up to Cincinnati.

Adam Dunn scores on a wild pitch in the fourth inning, spiking pitcher Tim Redding in the process. Redding left the game two batters later. | ZOOM |

        Hard to follow?

        Now you know what it felt like to be an Astros hitter Sunday.

        “That was a good one for us,” said Reds manager Bob Boone, who isn't predisposed to single out victories or losses as anything extraordinary until the leaves begin falling from the trees.

        But, he knew.

        Boone knew the Reds needed another start similar to the one Jimmy Haynes provided a day earlier, upon which the Reds couldn't capitalize, losing 2-1. He knew the hitters needed another chance to win a game, to keep the St.Louis Cardinals close, to kick the Astros off their heels.

        “I'm glad they (Astros officials) kept the roof on (the ballpark),” Fernandez said. “I think the air conditioning helped it. I wasn't sure what to expect coming into the game.”

        When the Astros get wind of that comment, they'll not only roll back the roof, they'll open doors and poke holes in the walls.

Aaron Boone is safe at third. | ZOOM |

        In the dugout, Boone and Reds pitching coach Don Gullett wondered out loud to each other: “How many pitches do you think he can throw? One hundred and fifty? One hundred and sixty?”

        After 126 pitches — seven full innings, in which Fernandez had given up seven hits and three runs — Boone pulled him.

        “I was tickled by the way he pitched,” Boone said. “When his ball dances, he's just what the doctor ordered.”

        Stoppers come in unlikely shapes and velocities, despite the stereotypical profile of hard-throwing big men. Fernandez is 6-foot-1 and 225 pounds. His knuckleball was floating in, at various times, anywhere from 65 to 76 miles an hour.

        Reds catcher Corky Miller has a signal for when he wants the slower knuckleball: He wiggles his fingers like they're in molasses.

Russell Branyan is forced out at second. | ZOOM |

        Fernandez threw only four or five sliders, and six fastballs, one of which Astros leadoff hitter Julio Lugo parked for a two-run homer that cut Houston's deficit to 6-3.

        The count was 3-2 on Lugo, and Fernandez wasn't going to give in.

        “I was sitting dead-red knuckleball because my philosophy was it was working,” Fernandez said. “Corky called for a slider; I shook it off and I said, "No, I'm throwing the knuckleball,' but then he called for a fastball and I said, "All right.' It was in a bad location.”

        Fernandez could have gone longer: He threw “160-something pitches in Double-A in 1995 or'96.” And when his knuckler's dancing, he can rack up some strikeouts. He had 11 in seven innings in Triple-A this year.

        It was in Utica in'95 where Fernandez worked some with knuckleballing Hall of Famer Phil Niekro, who was managing the Silver Bullets women's baseball team. Also while there, Fernandez crossed paths with Tim Wakefield who, it turns out, is the most recent notable big-league knuckleballer until Fernandez came along.

Raul Gonzalez is tagged out at home | ZOOM |

        “I throw my knuckleball differently than they do,” Fernandez said. “They dig their fingernails right in and do a push; I put my knuckles right on it and I throw it. The big-league ball feels a little smaller; the leather feels a little more slippier. Playing catch over the last few days, I just worked on getting a feel for it.”

        Who is this guy? What did he just do — walk off the set of “It Happens Every Spring” and decide it was time to save a pennant race?

        Fernandez got some huge outs Sunday. With two on and none out in the second inning, he got Richard Hidalgo to ground into a double play. With two on and none out in the sixth, he struck out Lance Berkman. Strike three flitted in like a giant Texas moth, and Berkman couldn't have hit that pitch if he had a boat oar, a fly swatter and a BB gun.

        “He throws like this and he'll be in the big leagues for a long time,” Boone said.

Reds 8, Astros 3 Reds Box, Runs Miller made most of stint with Reds Dunn asked to widen strike zone Reds-Brewers Series Preview Astros swat at butterflies Dodgers 2, Diamondbacks 1 Cardinals 4, Padres 1

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