• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Webb wins 20th as Diamondbacks snap skid

Sep 13, 2008 - 5:53 AM PHOENIX (Ticker) -- Brandon Webb got back on track and the Arizona Diamondbacks got a much-needed win on Friday.

Webb threw eight scoreless innings to win his 20th game of the season and Arizona survived a ninth-inning scare to come away with a 3-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

Chris Young had an RBI single in the sixth and Adam Dunn walked with the bases loaded in the eighth for the Diamondbacks (72-74), who snapped a season-high six-game losing streak.

Arizona, which won for the fourth time in their last 17 games, stayed 3 1/2 games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers (76-71) in the National League West Division.

It wasn't easy in the ninth for the Diamondbacks, who saw closer Brandon Lyon allow four singles as the Reds trimmed the deficit to one on a two-run base hit by Jeff Keppinger. But Chad Qualls came on and struck out Jerry Hairston, Jr. with runners on first and third to end the threat and secure his third save.

"A win is a win," Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said. "That is all we are talking about. We talked about it before the game that was what we were looking to do, win the game, and we did."

Qualls rescued the Diamondbacks from blowing a strong start from Webb (20-7), who had not been at his best during Arizona's slump in the month of September. The righthander had allowed 19 earned runs over his last 13 2/3 innings in losing his last three starts.

But Webb turned it around, surrendering five hits and two walks, while striking out two. Webb did not allow a runner past second base during his outing.

"It feels good to finally get there and the team needed a win and I needed to get off my slump and get back to where I usually am," Webb said. "All that happened tonight. I have gone through slumps and stretches but not really as bad as the last few outings."

The win also secured the righthander's first career 20-win season.

"It was good to get it over with," Webb said. "Good to get that and put it behind me. Hopefully, I can go out and pitch and not look back."

Reds starter Aaron Harang (4-16) was as effective as Webb with his pitches but was hurt by an errant throw to first base in the sixth to give Arizona the lead.

With one out, David Eckstein hit a high chopper over the mound, which Harang fielded, but his throw sailed wide of first, allowing the diminutive shortstop to make it all the way to third.

"I knew there was a fast runner running I grabbed it and Edwin (Encarnacion) was screaming at me to eat it," Harang said. "I think that is why I kind of pulled off because I was trying to hold on to it and keep from throwing it and it just came out. I knew it was going to be a close play, so I tried to make the play as fast as possible, but the ball got away."

Young cashed in on the opportunity, lining the first pitch through the left side of the drawn-in infield to give Arizona a 1-0 lead.

"In a game like that, something so minor is going to make a difference, and that is how it turned out," Harang said.

Cincinnati had a chance to even the game in the eighth when Paul Bako hit a one-out double to center. But Webb struck out rookie Adam Rosales and, after a walk to rookie Chris Dickerson, the righthander retired Danny Richar on a grounder to first to escape the jam.

Arizona tacked on two more in the eighth when Adam Dunn drew a bases-loaded walk and Eckstein scored on a wild pitch to give the Diamondbacks a 3-0 advantage.

Harang went seven innings and allowed four hits and one walk with four strikeouts, losing for the sixth time in his last eight starts.

"That was as well as Harang has thrown the ball in the second half here," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "We had the tying run on third and the winning run on first, that is what you want.

"We are just so close in every game we lose, we have to cut down or don't make any mistakes. We don't have the offense right now to make those mistakes."