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Valentin's game-winning single in 10th lifts Reds past Brewers

Jul 26, 2007 - 9:00 PM CINCINNATI (Ticker) -- Javier Valentin singled home the winning run in the 10th inning to give the Cincinnati Reds a 6-5 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday.

The win gave the last-place Reds three wins over the National League Central Division-leading Brewers in the four-game series.

Adam Dunn led off the bottom of the 10th with a double to deep left field off Milwaukee closer Francisco Cordero. Edwin Encarnacion followed with a single under rookie third baseman Ryan Braun's glove.

That set the stage for Valentin, who ripped Cordero's two-strike offering into left field, scoring Dunn with the winning run.

"It's good. I'm not going to change," said Valentin, who "felt lost" in his first four at bats. Valentin had a walkoff single in the Reds' 12-inning victory over the Brewers on Monday.

"I knew I was going to be mobbed," Valentin said. "I told myself to enjoy it and not cry but those guys hit hard."

Cordero (0-3) took the loss after blowing the save in the ninth inning. The righthander allowed two runs on five hits and a walk in 1 1/3 innings.

"I had to send Frankie back out there," Milwaukee manager Ned Yost said. "(Chris) Spurling pitched two innings last night and (Matt) Wise threw 25 pitches plus we have a doubleheader on Saturday."

Yost was confident his closer could pull the team through.

"It was one of those things," Yost said. "Any time you can put the ball in play off Frankie, you have to tip your hat to the hitter. He's been in tough situations all year and when he needs a strikeout, he went and got them."

Rookie Jared Burton (2-1) pitched a perfect 10th inning to record the win for the Reds.

Cincinnati pinch hitter Norris Hopper led off the bottom of the ninth with a double to right field off Cordero, then scored the tying run on a single up the middle by Scott Hatteberg.

Hopper tried to bunt his way on but hit a little flare behind first base that Tony Graffanino could not reach.

"I made a good pitch. I'm not mad at myself," Cordero said. "It was a slider down and away. It was the pitch I wanted to make but I'm facing big league hitters. The only little mistake I made was getting a pitch a little up to Hatteberg. I thought he was going to bunt."

Cordero eventually got out of the inning by inducing a double play grounder by Brandon Phillips.

"I consider Cordero to be one of the best closers in the league, and to do that against him is fantastic," Cincinnati interim manager Pete Mackanin said. "That was a real nice team effort a nice win with a depleted bench. Hopper. I like to watch that guy play. I don't know what it is, but he makes me smile."

The Brewers had taken a 5-4 lead in the eighth inning when Corey Hart singled home Bill Hall. Hall led off the top of the eighth with a double to deep right field off reliever Todd Coffey. After Kevin Mench grounded out to Coffey, Hart followed with a single to center, plating Hall with the go-ahead run.

Ken Griffey, Jr. snapped an 0-for-13 slump with his 25th home run off Milwaukee starter Dave Bush in the first inning. He later doubled off the glove of Tony Graffanino at first base to plate Hatteberg with the second run of the game in the third.

The Brewers tied the game with a pair of runs off Reds starter Ryan Livingston in the fourth. J.J. Hardy doubled to start the inning and Braun, who had a seven-game hitting streak stopped on Wednesday, singled to plate Hardy.

Griffey's third hit of the game, a single with two out in the sixth, led to a bases loaded at-bat for Jeff Keppinger. Keppinger delivered a two-run single on a 3-2 pitch to make it 4-2.

Griffey was a triple short of hitting for the cycle.

"You can't lead the league in doubles if you hit triples," Griffey said. "Triples are overrated. Two guys would have to fall down for me to hit a triple. They don't pay for triples."

Braun hit his 17th home run to lead off the sixth, and Graffanino his ninth homer of the season to tie the score at four in the seventh.

Making his first start at home this season, Livingston pitched six innings, allowing three runs on five hits. The rookie lefthander struck out one and walked one.

Bush struggled through 5 1/3 innings, giving up four runs on seven hits, walking three and striking out four.