Happy Birthday Harang

Aaron Harang gave himself a present on his 31st birthday. He pitched his way to an 8-3 victory over the division leading St. Louis Cardinals.

Harang has been the victim of non-support over the last two years losing or levied no decision in well pitched games because the Reds hitters couldn't score runs. To that end Harang also gift wrapped a two-out, two-run single in the Reds decisive five-run fifth that broke the 2-2 tie.

"Im happy we got some runs for him," Dusty Baker said. "He made just one mistake to Ryan Ludwick. The pitch was supposed to be farther inside."

Ludwick's two-run home run in the third matched Jay Bruce's two-run first inning home run. It was the eighth home run of the season for Ludwick and the ninth for Bruce.

"I'm more happy with the way I pitched with that (Cardinals) lineup," Harang said. "On the hit I was just trying to put the ball in play and make something happen."

To navigate that lineup, Harang had to face Albert Pujols four times with a total of five runners on base. Pujols had whopping .364 career batting average against Cincinnati with 35 home runs and 102 RBI coming into the game Saturday despite an 0-for-4 evening on Friday night. Harang had more success against Pujols with a .304 average and two home runs.

"I just went after him," said Harang, who hung Pujols with his second straight 0-for-4. The last two games are the only two that Pujols has not reached base at least once this season. "Great hitters like him feed off the timidness of pitchers that try to pitch around him."

The larger-than-normal bobblehead crowd let out a loud cheer if not a relieved exhale when Pujols fouled out to catcher Ryan Hanigan on the first pitch to him in the seventh inning. Visions of a 7-6 game swirled in the head of Dusty Baker

"I don't want to do that again," Baker said. "You don't want to mess with Albert."

The Reds have won three games in a row, missing its entire starting infield until Brandon Phillips returned from a battle with the flu. Joey Votto is still out with the same malady, even though they Reds gave away bobbleheads with his likeness that drew 40,651 to the park.

"I'm happy the team was winning without me and Joey," said Phillips, who contributed two hits to the cause. "It was fun playing in front of the big crowd. I thank Joey for his bobblehead. We get to show the fans that we have a good team. It was like the Field of Dreams. Win and they will come."

Baker also liked the crowd and the energy that they showed.

"We had over 9,000 walkups," Baker said. "It shows we have some buzz going in this town."