By Kevin Kelly and John Erardi
The Cincinnati Enquirer

PHOTO GALLERY

Photos of Sunday's game

Reds pitcher Jimmy Haynes will get extra rest after being pulled from Saturday's game against the Cubs with back pain and spasms.

Manager Bob Boone said Haynes, 0-2 with a 12.38 ERA in two starts, is tentatively scheduled to pitch Saturday against the Phillies at Great American Ball Park.

Paul Wilson will start in Haynes' spot Friday.

"We'll see how (Haynes) responds the next few days, and then make a determination on if he pitches next Saturday or if we disable him," Boone said.

An MRI taken Saturday showed a bulging disc in Haynes' lower back, but the pain is in his mid-back.

Haynes, who has lasted four innings in each of his two starts, is expected to throw in the bullpen Thursday.

"(The extra rest is) fine because it gives it a chance to heal," Haynes said. "I don't want to go out there and pitch with that again."

MONEY MATTERS: Zach Kirk has decided to keep Sammy Sosa's 500th home run ball and sell it to help pay for his education.

The 22-year-old Cardinals fan from St. Louis caught the historic home run Friday.

"I want to be a teacher," said Kirk, a senior general studies major at Missouri. "With the money I get I want to put forward to getting a Master's in education and become a high school business teacher and coach soccer."

Kirk, who attended the game with his girlfriend, Jessica, said the ball is in a "safe place" and that he plans on contacting a broker for help selling it.

"This is a blessing," he said. "It's a great opportunity for me to put that money to good use."

MORE HOME RUNS: The Reds' Austin Kearns hit Great American Ball Park's 21st home run of the season, and Sean Casey hit the 22nd in the Reds 5-4 victory Sunday afternoon over the Cubs.

Cubs manager Dusty Baker said if the summer humidity of Cincinnati has the typical effect of making the ball fly even more, it is going to be scary how many home runs are hit here.

"The thing is - you just don't know yet," he said. "There may be a different wind pattern in this ballpark in the summer than there is now. But if this (the home-run frenzy) is indicative of what's to come, boy, there are going to be a lot of runs scored here."

Hitters say the ball carries particularly well to left-center and right-center fields. There's a wind-chute through the power alleys, they say.

"It's a hitter's ballpark," said Sosa, who hit his 500th career home run Friday. "From what I see, it's an even better hitter's park than Riverfront. ... The ball really jumps here."

LENNY THE H: Pinch-hitter extraordinaire Lenny Harris got a start at third base Sunday for the Cubs, but it's his work off the bench that has largely kept him in the big leagues for 16 years.

He first came up with the Reds in 1988. He was traded to Los Angeles (with Kal Daniels, in a deal that brought Mariano Duncan to the Reds) during the 1989 season, and was re-signed by the Reds as a free agent before the 1994 season, staying here for 4 1/2 years before being traded to the Mets in 1998 for pitcher John Hudek.

"I've always wanted to finish my career here in Cincinnati," Harris said Sunday. "Hopefully, things will work out for me. This is where I started, and I've always considered this as home. Every time I come in here, I'm motivated."

The left-handed hitting Harris, 38, hit a big home run Friday night to tie the score at 9-9, before the Reds went on to win 10-9.

HARNISCH HURT: Pete Harnisch's first start at Triple-A Louisville was a short one.

The right-hander, who is rehabilitating from Tommy John surgery, came out of Sunday's game against Toledo after the first inning with a tight hamstring.

He allowed three earned runs on five hits and walked one.

ATTENDANCE: Through six games, the Reds have drawn an average of 28,883 fans to Great American Ball Park. That is 7,057 more per game than Cinergy Field (21,826) after six dates last year.

"Operationally, we've learned a lot (about the new ballpark)," said John Allen, the Reds chief operating officer. "Each day we improved and the fans' knowledge increased. I think it was a great learning curve for our fans. They learned how to get around the ballpark."

"Our operations people got a feel for everything. By the end of the homestand you didn't have nearly as many people with those deer-in-the-headlights look...The cold weather here the last couple of days especially hurt us with attendance, but it's way to early to draw any conclusions."

The week in review

Opening Day

• Pomp, circumstance and a 10-1 loss to the Pirates.

Game 2

• Four outs from victory, Kevin Young and Jason Kendall each hit two-out, two-run homers off Josias Manzanillo in a 7-4 Pirates win.

Game 3

• Reggie Sanders hits two homers and drives in five in a 7-5 Pirates victory. Reds hit .192 in the series.

Game 4

• Reds blow a 7-0 lead, then are tied 9-9 before beating the Cubs 10-9.

Game 5

• Jimmy Haynes allows five runs in four innings then leaves with back spasms; Ken Griffey Jr. dislocates his shoulder diving for a ball; Reds lose 9-7 to Cubs.

Game 6

• Reds fall behind 4-0 in the first inning; rally to win 5-4 on an eighth-inning Sean Casey homer.