Reds Sweep Indians in a Blowout

Mike Leake started off as if the flu still haunted him

Shin-Soo Choo hit a home run to open the game and Asdrubal Cabrera doubled right after that, scoring on a pair of ground outs but the Reds circled the wagons and Joey Votto played cavalry.  The Reds' pushed the Tribe virtually to the reservation with a five-run fifth to complete the rout in a 12-5 win..

The day started with anger and allegations of bean balls, drinking and lack of respect tossed between Cincinnati manager Dusty Baker and Wednesday night Indian starter, Derek Lowe.

The lightning rod for the hostilities was former Indian farmhand,  Brandon Phillips.  Lowe hit Phillips with a pitch on Wednesday night after Dusty Baker ordered his pitcher, Mat Latos to, "make him (Lowe) feel uncomfortable" in the batter's box.  Joey Votto was also plunked by Lowe in the back, two years ago.

"Brandon is starting to get hot," Baker said.  "It's just a matter of repetition.  He missed some time (with a strained hamstring).  People want me to hit someone else cleanup.  Everybody looks at statistics now.  Brandon's hitting around .290 there. He has close to 40 RBI (44).  Everybody isn't Joey Votto.  If you look at his career, he's hit 30 home runs before.  Had close to 100 RBI (98 in 2009).  The guys they want me to put there instead are just getting there.  Brandon's already done it. Next to Votto, he's up there in hitting with runners in scoring position."

Phillips is fine hitting cleanup.

"I'm not a typical cleanup hitter  I try to do my job.  I'm not going to do it every day and earlier I wasn't coming through," Phillips said.  "I've been doing better lately.  I need to protect Joey a little bit."

Phillips was shipped out of the Indians organization for his perceived bad attitude and has made the Tribe pay ever since.

Votto hit his 12th home run after Chris Heisey and Zack Cozart singled to start the game off Josh Tomlin to put the Reds ahead 3-2.  Phillips took over from there, hitting his eighth home run.  Phillips singled to drive in two more runs in the fourth and singled home another run in the fifth.  The Reds' secondbaseman also turned in three nice fielding plays.

Phillips is hitting .356 with 10 home runs and 30 RBI against his former team, since leaving in 2006.

"I try to do my job against every team but deep down, I like to beat the Indians," Phillips said.  "It's hard to hold it against them, the guys I had a gone.  They are going in the right direction.  Manny Acta is a great manager.  I knew him from my days with Montreal."

Ryan Ludwick, also a former Tribesman, launched a two-run home run in the five-run fifth inning off hapless, Scott Barnes.

Mike Leake, weakened by the flu, didn't last long enough to qualify for the win. He gave up Choo's second home run of the game and walked Carlos Santana to bring the tying run to the plate with a 6-3 lead.  Baker removed Leake in favor of Jose Arredondo, who closed out the inning  with the lead intact.

"We tried to get him a win there.  He had 73 pitches but we needed to get the win for the team," Baker said.

Leake is feeling better.

"I could have kept going but he felt at the time it was the right move to make to preserve that three-run lead," Leake said.

Heisey was pulled from the game for precautionary reasons with a slight groin pull.  Kristopher Negron got his first Major League hit in the five-run fifth. Devin Mesoraco left in the eighth inning.  He felt something in his side.

"I felt my groin when I scored in the fourth," Heisey said.  "They can be tricky.  I've had some of it this year.  It's a little tight. They decided to give me today.  Tomorrow I will come to the park and see how it feels."