National League Roundup : Cincinnati Stays Red Hot, Cools Off Astros, 5-3

The Cincinnati Reds are convinced they will overtake the Dodgers and win the West.

They narrowed the gap to 4 1/2 games Friday night and slowed the rush of the hot Astros when they came from behind at Houston to beat Nolan Ryan, 5-3.

It was the sixth win in a row for the Reds in a streak that began last Sunday when they overcame a 6-1 deficit to beat Fernando Valenzuela and the Dodgers. The victory ended the Astros’ nine-game win streak and was only their fourth defeat in the last 24 games.

Ryan was holding a 2-1 lead when the Reds erupted for four runs in the sixth inning. A looping pinch double by Max Venable broke a 2-2 tie, and Eddie Milner singled in two more runs.

The explosion didn’t surprise Pete Rose, the Reds’ player-manager.

“This team has got the confidence and positive attitude to fight back when we are down,” Rose told the Associated Press. “They always seem to make the big play when they have to have it. All I heard tonight is, what time is the L.A.-Frisco game? That’s a good sign.”

The Astros missed a chance to tie their all-time longest winning streak--10 games.

“We are playing a team that’s hot right now,” Astro Manager Bob Lillis said, “but we’re anxious to come back tomorrow and play them.”

St. Louis 5, Montreal 3--The Cardinals stretched their lead in the East to two games in this game at St. Louis, and once again, Cesar Cedeno was the catalyst.

With the score tied, 3-3, and one out in the eighth, Cedeno tripled down the right-field line for his third hit of the game. Terry Pendleton also tripled down the right-field line, making it 4-3, and Ozzie Smith squeezed-bunted home the fifth run.

Since the Cardinals obtained him from the Reds Aug. 29, Cedeno has 26 hits in 56 at-bats (.464). He has hit five home runs and driven in 16 runs.

“You can’t say how much he has meant to our team,” Pendleton said. “He’s got new blood in his veins.”

Rookie Todd Worrell, a former star at Biola, pitched two scoreless innings to improve his record to 2-0.

Pittsburgh 7, New York 5--Former Dodger R.J. Reynolds continued to produce for the lowly Pirates. In the 11th inning at New York, Reynolds hit a bad-hop single to score Sixto Lezcano with the winning run. Sid Bream, another new Pirate who was involved in the Bill Madlock trade, followed with another run-scoring single.

Reynolds’ grounder hopped over first baseman Keith Hernandez to drop the Mets two games out of first place in the East with 14 games remaining.

Rick Reuschel, going for his 14th victory on a team that has won only 50 games, departed after six innings with a 5-2 lead. But the Pirates gave up three unearned runs in the bottom of the seventh to let the Mets tie the game.

The Pirates have won three in a row for the first time this season.

San Diego 11, Atlanta 1--Garry Templeton had four hits, and Tony Gwynn drove in four runs at San Diego as the Padres found a team they could handle with ease. It was the fifth loss in a row for the hapless Braves.

Chicago 3, Philadelphia 1--Ryne Sandberg hit a two-run home run at Philadelphia, and rookie Reggie Patterson and Lee Smith combined on a six-hitter.