By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The Reds had a team meeting after Thursday's game, which is usually the last, desperate measure taken by teams going bad. So why in the name of Abner Doubleday were the Reds meeting after an 8-6 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals that completed a four-game sweep?

PHOTO GALLERY

Thursday's game

"We wanted everyone to keep things in perspective," shortstop Barry Larkin said. "We've got to keep playing in the groove we're in. We've got to play with the same intensity."

Third baseman Aaron Boone, who hit three home runs Thursday, put it this way: "We've got to turn the page. We've got to come in (today) with a sense of urgency to keep this thing going."

In other words, losing two out of three to the Milwaukee Brewers, who open a three-game series today at Great American Ball Park, would put a serious damper on the sweep of the Cardinals.

Though the Reds were talking perspective and staying on an even keel, they had to be positively giddy with themselves.

It was the first four-game sweep of St. Louis since September 1999. The Reds have won seven of nine and 11 of 15 and are within a game of .500 at 17-18, 2 1/2 games behind the National League Central-leading Chicago Cubs.

BY THE NUMBERS

How the Reds swept the Cardinals: • 10: Home runs the Reds hit in the series, giving them 54 for the year, most in the National League. • 1: Player, besides Aaron Boone, who has hit three home runs in a game this year. Richie Sexson did it at Atlanta April 25. • 9/99: The last time the Reds swept a four-game series from the Cardinals was Sept. 24-27, 1999. • 0-for-6: What the Cardinals were against left-hander Kent Mercker in the series. Mercker faced five batters. He struck out two and got a double play and two groundouts. • 7-for-14: Boone's series batting line. He hit five home runs and drove in seven runs. • 0-for-22: The home skid Sean Casey ended with his first-inning home run Thursday. • 3: Players the Reds have tied for third in the NL with 10 home runs (Boone, Adam Dunn and Austin Kearns). • 30,567: The crowd for Thursday's game - the largest since Opening Day. • 1-for-14: What Jim Edmonds, who came in hitting .402, went in the series. His average dropped 42 points.

After Thursday's last out, the crowd of 30,567 (the biggest since Opening Day) - stood and cheered. But the Reds' mantra in the clubhouse was subdued: Maintain the even keel.

"I think that's important," Reds manager Bob Boone said. "We're certainly not uncorking the champagne. But everyone is enjoying what's happening."

The fourth game of the sweep was unlike the other three. The Reds fell behind 3-0 as starter Paul Wilson continued his struggles in the first inning. Seventeen of the 29 runs Wilson has allowed have come in the first.

But the Reds came back with a run in the first on Sean Casey's solo home run, breaking an 0-for-22 skid at Great American for the first baseman.

Boone made it 3-2 with the first of his bombs.

Larkin, back in the starting lineup, doubled in the third and scored on Austin Kearns' double.

That made it 3-3.

Wilson settled in and gave the Reds five innings. But the Cardinals scored one in the fifth and another in the sixth to go up 5-3.

But the sixth was the best inning of the year for the Reds in many ways.

Boone led off with a home run. Adam Dunn followed with a walk. After Juan Castro popped out, Kelly Stinnett, hitting .371, doubled, sending Dunn to third.

That brought up pinch-hitter Reggie Taylor, who fell behind to Mike Crudale.

Taylor decided his best option was to bunt.

"That's a scary thing," Bob Boone said. "It takes a lot of guts."

Taylor's bunt was so good that Dunn could have walked home. Taylor knows what they'd be talking about on sports radio if the bunt hadn't been good.

"You get it down, you're a hero," the outfielder said. "You don't, and you're the biggest idiot in Cincinnati."

The run tied it at 5-5, but it did more than that.

"It got us the momentum back," closer Scott Williamson said.

Larkin then walked. Jose Guillen hit a ball that St. Louis shortstop Edgar Renteria bobbled. Guillen motored down the line to just beat the throw as Stinnett scored.

"Once in a while, we do run hard," Bob Boone said.

Casey got another run home with a single off Steve Kline, a tough lefty, to make it 7-5.

The Cardinals added a run in the seventh, but Boone answered with another long ball.

The 8-6 lead was plenty safe with Williamson, who worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his eighth save.

Afterward, a cameraman went around to all the principles with the same question: Which are the real Reds, the ones who started 5-13 or the ones who swept the Cardinals?

"We'll find out," Bob Boone said. "Stay tuned."

St. Louis	AB	R	H	BI	BB	SO	Avg.
OPalmeiro cf-lf	5	0	2	1	0	0	.267
Cairo 3b-lf-2b	4	2	3	0	1	0	.283
Pujols 1b	5	1	1	2	0	2	.350
JDrew rf	5	2	3	1	0	1	.297
EPerez lf	3	0	1	0	1	2	.297
Kline p	0	0	0	0	0	0	---
TMartinez ph	1	0	0	0	0	0	.302
Fassero p	0	0	0	0	0	0	---
Renteria ss	5	1	1	0	0	0	.353
Marrero c	5	0	3	2	0	2	.227
WDelgado 2b	3	0	0	0	0	0	.207
Edmonds ph-cf	2	0	0	0	0	1	.356
Stephenson p	3	0	0	0	0	1	.133
Crudale p	0	0	0	0	0	0	---
Rolen 3b	0	0	0	0	0	0	.282
Totals	41	6	14	6	2	9

Cincinnati	AB	R	H	BI	BB	SO	Avg.
Larkin ss	3	2	1	0	1	0	.250
FLopez ss	1	0	1	0	0	0	.239
JGuillen rf	4	0	1	0	0	0	.317
Reith p	0	0	0	0	0	0	---
Mercker p	0	0	0	0	0	0	---
RMateo ph	1	0	0	0	0	1	.196
Williamson p	0	0	0	0	0	0	---
Casey 1b	4	1	2	2	1	2	.296
Kearns cf-rf	4	0	1	1	0	1	.292
ABoone 3b	4	3	3	3	0	0	.288
Dunn lf	3	1	0	0	1	0	.228
JCastro 2b	4	0	1	0	0	1	.286
Stinnett c	3	1	2	0	1	0	.371
PWilson p	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
WPena ph	1	0	0	0	0	0	.067
Sullivan p	0	0	0	0	0	0	---
Taylor ph-cf	1	0	0	1	0	0	.209
Totals	34	8	12	7	4	5

St. Louis	300	011	100	-6	14	1
Cincinnati	111	004	10x	-8	12	2

E-Renteria (3), Larkin (4), JGuillen (5). LOB-St. Louis 11, Cincinnati 7. 2B-Cairo 2 (5), JDrew (2), Larkin (3), JGuillen (5), Kearns (4), Stinnett (6). HR-ABoone 3 (10), off Kline, Stephenson 2; Casey (5), off Stephenson; Pujols (8), off PWilson. RBIs-OPalmeiro (11), Pujols 2 (24), JDrew (4), Marrero 2 (15), Casey 2 (19), Kearns (25), ABoone 3 (24), Taylor (7). CS-FLopez (5). S-Taylor. GIDP-WDelgado.

Runners left in scoring position-St. Louis 7 (Cairo 2, Pujols, JDrew 2, EPerez, Stephenson); Cincinnati 3 (Kearns 2, ABoone).

Runners moved up-OPalmeiro, Renteria.

DP-Cincinnati 1 (Larkin, JCastro and Casey).

St. Louis	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	NP	ERA
Stephenson	5 1/3	8	5	5	2	2	81	4.68
Crudale L, 0-1	BS, 1 1/3	1	2	0	1	0	20	0.00
Kline	1 1/3	2	1	1	1	1	24	5.27
Fassero	1	1	0	0	0	2	13	7.15

Cincinnati	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	NP	ERA
PWilson	5	10	4	4	2	5	99	5.45
Sullivan W, 3-0	1	2	1	1	0	2	22	3.98
Reith H, 2	1 1/3	2	1	1	0	1	18	4.15
Mercker H, 5	2/3	0	0	0	0	0	5	1.59
Williamson S, 8	1	0	0	0	0	1	7	1.84

Inherited runners-scored-Kline 2-1, Crudale 1-1.

HBP-by Reith (Rolen).

Umpires-Home, Dan Iassogna; First, Alfonso Marquez; Second, Tim Tschida; Third, Jeff Nelson.

T-2:49. A-30,567 (42,263).