Reds Battle Back to 500 Mark With Its 5th Win in 6 games.

Scott Rolen's first home run of the season got the Reds rolling in the seventh inning.  The Reds seized upon the momentum to defeat the San Francisco Giants 4-2.

Barry Zito and Bronson Arroyo had all the scouts looking to see if their radar guns were on.  Neither throws real hard but both have the command and finesse to keep hitters off balance.

"Bronson gave up a lot of hits but not a lot of runs,"  Dusty Baker said.  "We got him out of there with a two run deficit.  That was big for us because Zito had us eating out of his hand."

San Francisco had nine hits off Arroyo in five innings but managed only a pair of runs.  Angel Pagan homered in the third inning.  The Giant parlayed three singles into a run in the fourth but no more.  Arroyo left two Giant runners stranded in the fifth and turned it over to the bullpen.

J.J. Hoover pitched a scoreless inning in his major league debut.  Jose Arredondo, Aroldis Chapman and Sean Marshall closed out any Giant comeback.

"The bullpen did a great job," Baker said. "Hoover got his feet wet. We were going to use him in that situation with the bottom of the lineup coming up.  It worked out perfectly.  Then we could go to Arredondo, then we could go to Chapman or Ondrusek, depending on the score."

Rolen got to Zito finally in the seventh.  The Reds managed just four hits until then.  After the spark was lit the Reds continued the rally.

"That was a career saver," Rolen said.  "It's kind of been the joke around here that I get a hit every two weeks.  It was timely.  He was trying not to over blow it but it's ok to over blow it.  That was a necessary result right there."

"It isn't quite that drastic," Baker said.  "When you're not swinging well, life's miserable.  He's hit some balls hard but that was big.  That was huge."

Rolen began the game with a .175 average and popped to short and struck out in his first two at bats.

"Zito isn't one to challenge you and he had us swinging at balls out of the strike zone.  That's what happened to me in my first two at bats.  You have to make him throw strikes."

Clay Hensley gave up a hit to Ryan Ludwick.  Ryan Hanigan, who had one of the four hits prior to the seventh, laid down a good bunt.  Hensley threw the wet baseball away putting runners on second and third with no out.  Pinch hitter Willie Harris popped up.  Drew Stubbs walked to load the bases.  Wilson Valdez hit a fly to media right field.  Nate Schierholtz's throw bounced on catcher Hector Sanchez.  It got away from Sanchez on what would have been a close play.

The game was tied.

"Schierholtz can throw too. It was a good play by (thirdbase coach) Mark Berry to send him. It was a good at bat by Valdez and a good slide by Ludwick."

Jeremy Affeldt came out of the San Francisco bullpen to face Joey Votto.  He threw a wild pitch to put the Reds in front.  Votto finished off the Giants with a long double to score Stubbs.

Chapman allowed a single to Buster Posey to open the eighth, then struck out Sanchez and Schierholtz.  Chapman hit pinch hitter Brett Pill with a pitch to put the tying runs on base.  Joaquin Arias came up to pinch hit for the Giants.  He had been just called up to take the roster spot of Aubrey Huff, who was placed on the disabled list with anxiety attacks.

Arias hit a hard line drive directly at Chapman.  Chapman snagged it.

"That was self defense right there.  That could have been a career saver too," Baker said.  "It went in at 96 and came out around 106.  I didn't like the way that eighth inning was going but Chapman's a good athlete."

Sean Marshall had no trouble in the ninth, stepping into the closer's role after Ryan Madson was lost for the season.

"I'm enjoying the role.  I'm having fun," said Marshall, who four saves in four attempts.