Bronson Arroyo was at his best against the San Diego Padres in winning his 10th game of the season in a 7-2 contest.
Arroyo was abused, battered and bruised in his last start against the St. Louis Cardinals. He allowed four runs in the first inning of a 3-2/3 inning stint a week ago. The Reds were routed 13-3.
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"You have no choice but to put a bad outing behind you," Arroyo said. "Sometimes you dissect your preparation to figure out why you weren't as strong. It is only when you have two or three bad ones in a row that it gets frustrating."
Arroyo's bounce back did not surprise Dusty Baker.
"Bronson is the man. He's been doing this for a long, long time," Baker said.
His teammates provided run support in a 10-hit attack that was highlighted by two hits from Todd Frazier, who started the contest in an 0-for-31 funk.
"I talked to Pete Rose on Wednesday," Frazier said. "He told me never to call it a slump.
it is a funk. It was pretty cool, the best hitter in the game called me and wanted to talk to me. A lot of people talked to me, trying to figure out what was going on. Pete gave me some tips and told me things that will stay between us."
Frazier doubled one batter into the first inning and scored on a single by Joey Votto. The duo victimized Padre starter Andrew Cashner again in the third. Frazier walked. This time Votto delivered him with a triple. The Reds scored on a Chris Heisey single and an error by rightfielder Will Venable, then later on a throwing error by Forsythe in the fifth.
"It was good to see Frazier get back on track," Baker said. "That's why I batted him second to try to get him going because we need him."
Frazier will get a full day to enjoy Friday's success. He will not be in the lineup on Saturday against Tyson Ross, a right-hander.
"That guy throws a whole lot of sliders which is Todd's nemesis," Baker said.
Brandon Phillips hit a two-run home run, his 14th of the season in the seventh that scored Frazier, who beat out an infield hit. It was Phillips' first home run since July 2.
"Brandon hit the ball hard tonight," Baker said. "It was good to see Joey hit the ball hard too."
Will Venable homered off Alfredo Simon in the eighth
Jonathan Broxton made his first appearance since coming off the disabled list on Wednesday. Broxton retired the Padres on one hit, striking out Forsythe to end the game.
"It was a perfect time to get Big Broxton out there," Baker said. "He's used to pressure but on the first game back it's nice to get him started in a low pressure situation. It was good to see him throw 97-98. He hasn't thrown that hard for awhile."
Frazier, who chose the music for the fireworks show that followed the game, took some ribbing from his teammates after he broke the slump err, funk. His teammates called for the ball, as is the custom when a player gets his first Major League hit.
"They had me laughing over there," Frazier said. "That's what teammates do for each other, they have your back. They were just as happy for me as I was. I watched the Little League World Series today and it brought a smile to my face."
Frazier's Toms River, New Jersey Little League team won a championship. Frazier hit a home run to clinch it.
"Those were the days when you didn't think about anything," Frazier said. "You just swung the bat as hard as you could."
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