• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Jackson, Reynolds key offensive assault for Diamondbacks

Aug 5, 2008 - 6:22 AM PHOENIX (Ticker) -- A rare poor start from Dan Haren didn't keep the Arizona Diamondbacks' offense from maintaining their success at Chase Field.

Conor Jackson drove in two runs and Mark Reynolds homered Monday, propelling the Diamondbacks to a 13-7 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Haren (12-5) surrendered four runs and eight hits over six frames, striking out eight. While the righthander won his fourth straight start, his performance ended a 11-game stretch in which he had not allowed more than three runs in a start.

"His stuff was good, just not with the command we are used to seeing," Arizona manager Bob Melvin said. "He hung a few more balls than he normally does, but other than that, I thought his stuff was good. He seems be able to get better as the game goes along if he doesn't have great stuff early on."

In this outing, he was spared by his teammates, who posted a season-high, 18-hit attack and continued their strong offensive numbers at home. The Diamondbacks are batting .279 with 276 runs scored at Chase Field, compared to a .231 average with 235 runs scored on the road.

"I really didn't have much to start," said Haren, after falling behind by three runs in the first inning. "All in all, it was kind of ugly there in the first inning. But we fought back, got a run and kept fighting. I got to tip my hat to the offense tonight, we just came out banging."

"We see the ball pretty good here," Arizona center fielder Chris Young said. "I guess we have our fan support behind us, so you get a little more adrenaline flow."

With Arizona trailing, 4-3, in the fifth, Jackson lined a run-scoring double to center off Jason Davis (1-1) to knot the game before rookie Alex Romero's single to right drove in the go-ahead run. Jackson added an RBI single in the sixth to double the lead to 6-4.

Jason Michaels halved the deficit in the top of the seventh with a leadoff homer, but Reynolds answered with a leadoff blast of his own in the bottom half of the frame to stake Arizona to a 7-5 advantage.

Thanks to some poor pitching and defense by Pittsburgh, Arizona finally put the game away in the eighth as Orlando Hudson opened the inning with a double and Jackson drew one of the 10 walks issued by the Pirates.

"We have some young starters who are going to have the ups and downs," Pirates first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz said. "That's part of the learning process and, hopefully, each game they pitch, they are going to get better."

Augie Ojeda then reached on a bunt single when a throw by reliever Tyler Yates was not handled by first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz, enabling Hudson to score.

Reynolds followed with his third hit of the contest, an RBI single to center. The Diamondbacks finished the damage in the six-run inning when Chris Snyder drew a bases-loaded walk and scored after Tony Clark's two-run, ground-rule double.

"I had an all right night," Reynolds said. "I forgot Conor was on third (in the fifth) and I didn't get him in. Something I hate the most is too leave a man on third with less than two outs. But I got my other at-bats and drove in some runs."

Brandon Moss - one of four players who joined Pittsburgh in the three-way deal with the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers involving Jason Bay and Manny Ramirez - had two hits and two RBI for the Pirates.