The Reds Beat San Francisco 6-3 Hold 1/2 game Lead.

Francisco Cordero fanned Freddy Sanchez to seal a 6-3 win over the Giants.

Aaron Harang allowed just two runs in seven innings to even his record at 5-5.  It is the same Aaron Harang that many fans wanted out of the rotation after his first four starts.

At the time Dusty Baker said, "We need Aaraon Harang.  We need him to win.  He's only had four starts man, if it was after 14 starts it would be another story."

Tonight Harang made his 13th start.  After four starts he was 0-3 with a 8.31 ERA.  He has methodically won five of his seven decisions and trimmed overe three runs a game off his ERA to 5.17.

"It was definitely tough early in the season to get that far behind," Harang said.  "It was a tough start last time but I tweaked some things in the bullpen and focused on keeping the ball down.  I knew they (Giants) were agressive so I wanted to let them get themselves out."

Orlando Cabrera, the veteran who knows that he will get tomorrow off, had four hits to snap an 0-for-13 slide.  He scored three runs and narrowly missed scoring a fourth. 

"We bounced back after the last two games," said Cabrera, who hit three doubles.  "I wanted to take extra batting practice but Dusty asked why?  He said I've been centering the ball but I wasn't getting any hits.  Sometimes I like to feel better when I'm hitting the ball and nobody is catching it.  Its something mental.  I did and I feel better."

Baker defended his middle relief before the game.

"I don't like separating a team like they do in football, defense and offense.  Sometime during the season, your starting pitching will struggle, your hitting will struggle.  We have to pick each other up.  Early in the season we weren't getting the starting pitching.  Then we weren't hitting.  I was thinking today.  Until we get the bullpen straight, let's just score more runs.  How about that?  This team is tough to score on but they can be scored on."

On cue, Cabrera led off with a single.  A couple of ground outs put him on secondbase with two outs.  Scott Rolen delivered him with a double, one of six for the Reds.

San Francisco phenom, Buster Posey, hit his first career home run off Harang with a man on to give San Francisco a brief lead.

The Reds tied the game with a run in the third.  Cabrera stroked a one-out double.  Joey Votto snapped an 0-for-11 streak with an infield single.  San Francisco starter, Jonathan Sanchez walked Rolen and Jonny Gomes to bring Cabrera home.  Jay Bruce attempted to bust the game open with a long line drive to leftcenter that Pat Burrel ran down on the warning track.

Drew Stubbs belted his seventh home run off the batter's eye in centerfield off Sergio Romo.

Harang pitched out of trouble with the help of a vengeful Bruce in the seventh.

Posey and Eli Whiteside singled with on out.  Harang fanned pinch hitter, Travis Ishikawa but walked Andres Torres.  Harang went to 3-0 with Freddy Sanchez, a former batting champion with a .338 average.  But came back and got him on a line fly to the gap in rightcenter, that Bruce ran down.

Daniel Herrara, Logan Ondrusek and Cordero held off the Giants over the last two innings while Gomes drove in Votto and Rolen in the seventh to build the cushion that Baker asked for before the game.

Notes:

Brandon Phillips extended his hitting streak to 12 games....Scott Rolen has hit an extra base hit in five straight games.  "He's an All-Star and is playing like one," Baker said.......The Reds got seven hits off Jonathan Sanchez which is the most he's allowed this season.  Sanchez had 2.63 ERA at the start of the game....