Mets’ Reed Avoids Injury, Continues His Strong Start

Rick Reed stopped a line drive with his left thumb in the first inning. Then he stopped the Milwaukee Brewers for most of the game.

Reed turned in another sharp start Wednesday night and the New York Mets beat the Brewers for the seventh consecutive time, 3-1, at New York.

The night got off to an ominous start for Reed. He was hit on his glove hand by Marquis Grissom’s line drive to start the game, but recovered to throw out the leadoff man.

Met Manager Bobby Valentine was worried after Reed was hit five pitches into the game.

“I was wishing upon wishes that he was going to be OK. I wasn’t going to let him talk me into anything,” Valentine said.

He gave up seven hits and struck out six, leaving after James Mouton opened the eighth with a single. Reed (2-0) has given up only three earned runs in 29 2/3 innings this season.

Armando Benitez pitched the ninth for his sixth save in seven chances.

Arizona 8, Colorado 7--Tony Womack hit his first home run and drove in the go-ahead run with an eighth-inning single as the Diamondbacks rallied from a four-run deficit to beat the Rockies at Phoenix.

Steve Finley tied the score at 7 with his sixth home run, a two-run, 414-foot shot to center field off Colorado reliever Gabe White with two out in the seventh.

The decisive run was unearned because Colorado third baseman Jeff Cirillo couldn’t handle Kelly Stinnett’s grounder to lead off the eighth. Pinch-hitter Bernard Gilkey walked, then Womack lined a pitch off reliever Julian Tavarez (1-1) past Cirillo to drive in Stinnett.

Cincinnati 5, San Francisco 4--Benito Santiago returned from a dislocated knuckle and hit a two-run homer to lead the Reds to a victory over the slumping Giants at Cincinnati.

Santiago’s second-inning homer put the Reds ahead to stay and helped Rob Bell (1-1) earn his first major league win. Bell, a right-hander promoted from double-A at the start of the season, went 5 2/3 innings in his third start, giving up six hits and four runs.

St. Louis 4, San Diego 3--Darryl Kile followed a horrid outing with his strongest of the season as he worked eight innings in the Cardinals’ win at St. Louis.

Tony Gwynn returned to the Padre lineup after missing seven games because of a knee injury, going 0 for 4 with a run-scoring groundout in the seventh.

Pittsburgh 5, Florida 1--Todd Ritchie pitched seven strong innings and Kevin Young hit a two-run double to help the Pirates end the Marlins’ three-game winning streak at Miami.

Ritchie (1-0), who had no-decisions in his first two starts despite allowing only three runs in 13 innings, gave up one run and eight hits, striking out four and walking only one batter.

Alex Fernandez (2-2) pitched 6 1/3 innings, giving up four runs and six hits.

Montreal 7, Chicago 3--Vladimir Guerrero drove in four runs and hit a go-ahead double in the seventh inning that lifted the Expos past the Cubs at Montreal.

Guerrero fell a home run short of the cycle. He also struck out for the first time since last Sept. 25, a span of 22 games and 82 plate appearance.

Henry Rodriguez and Jeff Reed homered for the Cubs, who lost their fourth in a row.

The score was tied, 3-3, in the seventh when Guerrero hit a two-out, two-run double off Ruben Quevedo (0-2).

Carl Pavano (2-0) gave up three runs and six hits in seven innings. He won his first career start against the Cubs, the only NL team he had yet to face.