(Sports Network) – Lefty Travis Wood can continue a recent string of scoreless
outings tonight when the Cincinnati Reds visit the Pittsburgh Pirates for the
middle contest of three weekend games at PNC Park.

A 24-year-old, Wood had appeared in five consecutive games — four relief
outings and one start — since last allowing a run during a 5-3 loss to the
New York Yankees on June 20 in Cincinnati.

He’s 1-0 in his outings since, picking up the win after two-thirds of an
inning of relief against the Pirates during Cincinnati’s 11-8 victory in
Pittsburgh on Aug. 19.

Overall, he’s pitched 10 consecutive shutout innings while allowing five hits
and striking out nine batters.

He’s 2-1 lifetime against the Pirates with a 4.91 earned run average in 11
innings.

In Friday’s opener, pinch-hitter Ryan Ludwick posted the game-winning hit in
the bottom of the ninth inning, sending the Pirates to a 4-3 win.

Pinch-hitter Jason Jaramillo ripped a double to left with one out off Reds
reliever Bill Bray (5-3) before Ludwick came through with the walk-off single
to center against Nick Masset, allowing pinch-runner Chase d’Arnaud to easily
score from second.

Garrett Jones hit a two-run homer and Andrew McCutchen finished with two hits
and a run scored for the Pirates, who bounced back after a 2-5 road trip.

Joel Hanrahan (1-4) earned the win despite plunking Todd Frazier to force in
the tying run in the top half of the frame.

“I didn’t have all my good stuff, but I tried to find a way to make it work,”
Hanrahan said. “I think I hit my first guy of the year. This game’s funny.”

Joey Votto picked up an RBI double, while Frazier and Paul Janish had two hits
apiece for the Reds, who had their two-game winning streak snapped.

The Pirates start 26-year-old righty Brad Lincoln, who appears for the second
time in his career against the Reds.

Lincoln took a no-decision in the initial outing, tossing two-thirds of an
inning in relief in the aforementioned 11-8 game in which Wood got the
victory.

He’s made six starts since and is 1-3 while allowing 17 runs in 31 innings.

Lincoln is 0-2 in seven home appearances this season.

Pittsburgh is 9-4 versus the Reds this season.

The Sports Network

It’s been seven years since Pittsburgh won as many as 70 games
in a season. The Pirates waited that long; what was one more
half-inning?

Ryan Ludwick’s single in the bottom of the ninth drove in the
winning run and the Pirates came back from a blown save in the top
of the inning for a 4-3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday
night.

Ludwick’s fly ball to deep center field fell for a single and
scored pinch-runner Chase d’Arnaud from second after pinch-hitter
Jason Jaramillo had doubled to left with one out.

“It felt like it was what I was supposed to do,” said Ludwick, a
trade-deadline acquisition who was hitting .231 in 34 games with
the Pirates. “It’s been a while since I hit a walk-off, but it felt
good.”

Garrett Jones homered for the first time in more than a month
for Pittsburgh (70-87), which reached 70 wins for the first time
since 2004.

The Pirates had been a strike away from that elusive 70th
victory, but closer Joel Hanrahan hit Todd Frazier in the hand with
a 98 mph fastball, the eighth pitch of a dramatic at-bat with the
bases loaded and two outs in the top of the ninth.

The blown save was Hanrahan’s fourth in 43 opportunities.

“It was one of those days I didn’t have my good stuff, so you
try to find a way to make it work,” Hanrahan said. “It’s a full
count there, and I think I hit my first guy of the year there.
Baseball’s a funny game.”

Paul Janish had two hits and an RBI and Joey Votto had his 99th
RBI for the Reds.

Ryan Doumit had two hits and an RBI and Andrew McCutchen added
two hits for Pittsburgh, which won for the second in its past seven
games overall and second time in its past seven home games.

Pirates starter Jeff Locke was on a pitch limit and was lifted
after 4 2-3 innings when his 80th pitch became an RBI double by
Votto.

That left two men on, but Daniel Moskos got Jay Bruce to strike
out swinging to end the inning.

“We hit that young man over there pretty hard,” Reds manager
Dusty Baker said about Locke. “We flirted with the fence probably
five or six times.

“We had plenty of opportunities, but we didn’t get the hit when
we needed it.”

Making his third career start, Locke was charged with one run,
six hits and two walks. He lasted only three innings in his most
recent start.

“It’s a process,” the 23-year-old said. “I’m definitely taking
the mound now, the nerves are gone, the composure’s there. I’m
still leaving some pitches up and falling behind some hitters.”

Janish had an RBI single off Chris Leroux in the sixth, but
Chris Resop, Tony Watson and Jason Grilli combined for two
scoreless innings.

Pinch-hitter Chris Heisey started Cincinnati’s ninth with an
infield single and Brandon Phillips followed with a single. After a
fielder’s choice and a strikeout, Phillips and Drew Stubbs pulled
off a double steal. Bruce was intentionally walked and Frazier was
hit by the pitch.

“They didn’t really hit the ball too hard that inning,” Jones
said. “They had some freak things happen, but we were able to help
Joel out. Ryan came up with the big hit.”

Jones homered for the first time since Aug. 21 after Doumit led
off the second with an infield single. Jones’ homer to right-center
off Edinson Volquez was his 16th and traveled an estimated 458
feet.

Doumit made it 3-0 in the second with a run-scoring single.

Making his third start since being recalled after his second
demotion to the minors this season, Volquez, Cincinnati’s opening
day starter, allowed three runs, six hits and two walks while
striking out five in five innings.

“I felt good. We didn’t win, but that’s part of the game,”
Volquez said. “A lot of things happen during a game, but I was
happy to be back out here and pitch some innings.”

Notes: Barring setbacks, LHP Dontrelle Willis will start for the
Reds on Sunday. He has not pitched since Sept. 12 due to a back
injury. … The announced paid crowd of 23,632 pushed Pittsburgh’s
season total to 1,874,283 _ the fourth-largest in club history. …
The previous time Cincinnati’s Saturday starter RHP Travis Wood
faced Pittsburgh, he had the shortest start of his career, 3 1-3
innings in a 9-3 loss April 18. … RHP Brad Lincoln will make his
final start of the season Saturday for the Pirates after allowing
six runs in 1 2-3 innings in his most recent outing.

(Sports Network) – Rookie left-hander Jeff Locke makes the third start of his
career tonight when the Pittsburgh Pirates host the visiting Cincinnati Reds
in the opener of a three-game series at PNC Park.

A second-round pick of the Atlanta Braves in 2006, Locke was 8-10 in 28
appearances in the minors this season, posting a 3.70 earned run average and
striking out 139 batters in 153 1/3 innings.

He made his initial big-league start at home against Florida on Sept. 10 and
took a 3-0 loss, then returned six days later for a 7-2 loss to the Dodgers in
Los Angeles.

In eight combined big-league innings, Locke has allowed 10 hits and six runs
while walking six and striking out one.

The Reds start 28-year-old Edinson Volquez, who’s lost three consecutive
starts.

The former National League All-Star, who last won on June 29 at Tampa Bay, was
sent to the minors after an 8-1 loss in St. Louis on July 5. He returned for a
4-1 loss at Colorado on Sept. 11 and was tagged for five runs and six hits in
6 2/3 innings of a 10-1 loss to Milwaukee on Sept. 17.

Volquez is 1-0 in six career starts against the Pirates with a 3.44 ERA.

On Wednesday in Cincinnati, Bronson Arroyo tossed his first shutout in over
two years, as the Reds handled the Houston Astros, 2-0, in the rubber match of
a three-game series.

Arroyo (9-12) gave up six hits and recorded his first shutout since August
2009. The right-hander struck out two and did not issue a walk in his first
win this season since Aug. 24.

Miguel Cairo hit a solo homer for the Reds, who finished their 2011 home
schedule with a 42-39 mark. Chris Heisey had an RBI single in the first
inning.

In Phoenix, Miguel Montero went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer, as the Arizona
Diamondbacks hung on to defeat the Pirates, 8-,5 in the rubber match of a
three-game set.

Pirates starter Ross Ohlendorf (1-3) was chased from the game in the third
frame when he loaded the bases without recording an out. He went two-plus
innings, allowing seven runs on seven hits and two walks.

Derrek Lee continued to swing a hot bat for Pittsburgh, going 3-for-4 with a
home run and two RBI.

Pittsburgh is 8-4 versus the Reds this season.

The Sports Network

PHOENIX (AP)—Becoming NL West champions has been a notion off in the
distance for the Arizona Diamondbacks for weeks, something plausible, yet still
just out of reach.

Now that it’s closer to becoming a reality, the Diamondbacks are ready to
snatch it up.

Aggressive on the basepaths and with their bats, the Diamondbacks jumped on
the Pittsburgh Pirates early in an 8-5 win on Wednesday that cut their magic
number for clinching the division to two.

“You don’t want to beat around the bush too much, just go ahead and get it
done,” said Diamondbacks starter Wade Miley(notes), the biggest beneficiary of
Arizona’s take-it-now approach.

A day after stranding 11 runners in a loss to Pittsburgh, the Diamondbacks
put pressure on the Pirates from the start, setting a team record with four
stolen bases while scoring three runs off Russ Ohlendorf (1-3) in the first
inning.

Miguel Montero(notes) hit a homer for the first his three hits in the inning and
Arizona tacked on five more runs in the third with two-run hits by Aaron Hill(notes)
and Ryan Roberts(notes) to finish with 11 hits.

That was more than enough run support for Miley (4-2) and J.J. Putz(notes) closed
it out with a flourish, striking out the side in the ninth for his 22nd straight
save and 43rd overall.

Now, with 90 wins after a pair of 90-loss seasons, Arizona is on the brink
of closing out the Giants, who played the Dodgers later Wednesday. The
Diamondbacks get a day off on Thursday before opening a three-game series at
home against San Francisco on Friday.

“We can’t celebrate until happens,” said Chris Young, who had two hits and
drove in a run in a five-run third inning. “I’m sure a few guys will be
watching the Giants tonight and tomorrow, but if we can come into the Giants’
series ready and playing good baseball, we should be able to do this.”

Pittsburgh didn’t go quietly despite the big early hole.

Pirates manager Clint Hurdle used 15 different position players and six
pitchers, and his team did manage to chip away at the lead in the later innings.
But Pittsburgh, like it has most of the second half of the season, came up just
short, losing for the 10th time in 14 games.

Derrek Lee(notes) homered and drove in two runs, and Ryan Ludwick(notes) added a solo shot
for the Pirates.

“The attitude and the effort has been there all year,” Hurdle said. “They
are playing the game to win, whether it is September 21st all April 21st that
hasn’t changed. The execution has been problematic the last 50 games.”

Arizona lost to Pittsburgh 5-3 Tuesday night, thanks to ineffective hitting
with runners on and several defensive gems by the Pirates, but still moved
closer to its first division title since 2007 with San Francisco’s loss to the
Dodgers.

The Diamondbacks went right at the Pirates in the series finale, pulling off
two double steals in the opening inning. Justin Upton(notes) had a sacrifice fly to
drive in one run and Montero added two more with his 18th homer to right.

Arizona piled it on the third, chasing Ohlendorf after three straight
singles—Young’s drove a run—and a walk. Roberts followed with a two-run
double to the corner in left off Jared Hughes(notes), who then issued a four-pitch walk
to Miley, a .083 hitter. Hill made it 8-1 with a two-run single to left after
fighting off several good pitches.

Ohlendorf allowed seven runs on seven hits in two-plus innings.

“I felt like the ball was coming out of my hand real good and I made good
pitches, and they took good swings,” said Ohlendorf said. “I had a really good
approach and I didn’t make enough good pitches.”

Miley wasn’t particularly sharp, but plenty good enough with the support his
teammates provided.

The left-hander worked through plenty of traffic, giving up Ludwick’s solo
homer in the second inning and an RBI single to Lee in the fourth. Miley was
lifted for a pinch hitter in the fifth inning after allowing two runs on five
hits.

The Diamondbacks had some nice defensive plays to help the effort, including
Hill’s shovel throw from second to get Alex Presley(notes) in the third inning and
first baseman Lyle Overbay’s(notes) over-the-rail grab on Matt Pagnozzi’s(notes) foul pop in
the sixth.

“We’ve just got keep pushing, keep winning ball games and seal the deal,”
Miley said.

Another game or two like this and they will.

NOTES: Montero has an 11-game hitting streak at home. … Arizona gets
Thursday off before starting its series against the Giants. Rookie RHP Josh
Collmenter(notes) will start for the Diamondbacks after allowing three runs in seven
innings of a 3-1 loss to San Diego his last outing. … Pittsburgh heads home to
play Cincinnati with RHP Edinson Volquez(notes) facing Reds LHP Jeff Locke(notes). Volquez
will be making his third start in the majors after losing his first two outings
with a 6.75 ERA.

Jeff Locke is learning a lot in his first September callup,
lessons that he hopes pay off next spring in a big-league roster
spot.

His second major league start resulted in a 7-2 loss to the Los
Angeles Dodgers on Friday night, but Pittsburgh manager Clint
Hurdle liked some of what he saw from Locke (0-2).

The 23-year-old left-hander gave up three runs and five hits in
three innings, walked two and struck out none, having been recalled
from Triple-A on Sept. 6.

“There were some nice sequences, but unfortunately, the first
run was on a changeup and a breaking ball up, and both those guys
jumped on those pitches,” Hurdle said. “Then after that, he
battled. We’ve just got to get him to work on getting the ball down
with more consistency. But there’s something there that you like
and you want to see more of.”

Locke, who lives in New Hampshire, said it was his first trip
out of the Eastern time zone. To compensate, he stayed up late and
slept in after the Pirates arrived for the four-game series that
began Thursday.

“It was very exciting,” he said. “It’s definitely an honor to
come here and pitch in one of the legendary stadiums of all time. I
had this adrenaline going. But I wasn’t nervous at all. I just left
a lot of pitches up and got into a lot of deep counts.”

Locke made 68 pitches, with 30 coming in the third inning, which
caused Hurdle to pull him.

“It was quick, but the biggest reason it was quick was because
of the number of pitches he threw in the third,” the manager
said.

The Dodgers took a 3-1 lead in the third on Matt Kemp’s single
that increased his career high RBIs total to 111 and Juan Rivera’s
fielder’s choice groundout. Rod Barajas tied the game at 1 in the
second when his RBI double hit the left-field line.

“This experience is incredibly beneficial, just to get up here
and get your feet wet,” Locke said. “It’s definitely a good
feeling, getting ready to come back into spring training again
knowing that you had that experience the year before. Now it’s
about consistency and staying tough.”

Hiroki Kuroda set a career high with his 12th victory, helped by
pinch-hitter James Loney’s three-run homer.

Kuroda (12-16) allowed two runs and five hits in six innings.
The right-hander struck out seven and walked two to win for the
first time in three starts this month. He is now 5-1 against the
Pirates in his career.

Loney’s first career pinch-hit homer off Chris Resop hit the top
of the right-field wall, capping a four-run sixth inning that
extended the Dodgers’ lead to 7-2. Dee Gordon grounded into a
fielder’s choice to first base, scoring Russell Mitchell for the
other run.

Kuroda gave up three consecutive hits to open the sixth,
including Alex Presley’s leadoff homer, before retiring the next
three batters to end the inning.

“He throws a lot of different stuff that moves different ways.
He’s tough,” Presley said. “He doesn’t throw much down the middle
and he keeps it off the plate, so he gets a lot of weak contact and
you have to be patient with him and wait for him to make
mistakes.”

Pittsburgh is 17-39 since July 20, when it was 51-44 and led the
NL Central by a half-game.

The Pirates’ other run came in the first when Garrett Jones
scored on shortstop Gordon’s throwing error that sailed past first
base.

NOTES: Kemp had his 51st multi-hit game, the most by a Dodger
since Juan Pierre’s 59 in 2007. … Mattingly said he heard from GM
Ned Colletti that LHP Clayton Kershaw won’t be suspended by MLB
after hitting Arizona’s Gerardo Parra with a pitch and getting
ejected Wednesday. … Dodgers RHP Jonathan Broxton will have
arthroscopic surgery Monday to reduce a spur on his right elbow and
remove loose chips. He hasn’t pitched since May while bothered by
his elbow and a sore back. … Pirates C Ryan Doumit had two
singles to improve to 18 for 49 in 14 career games at Chavez
Ravine.

© 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

“It was a little peace of mind, but I still think it bothered me,” Kuroda said through a translator. “Little things bother me. I didn’t change any of my mechanics.”

He said he plans to make his next scheduled start.

Kuroda (12-16) allowed two runs and five hits in six innings. The right-hander struck out seven and walked two to win for the first time in three starts this month. He is now 5-1 against the Pirates in his career.

“(Rod) Barajas called a great game,” Kuroda said. “He knew all the batters. He wanted me to pitch inside and every time I was doubting pitches he called the right ones.”

Loney’s first career pinch-hit homer off Chris Resop hit the top of the right-field wall, capping a four-run sixth inning that extended the Dodgers’ lead to 7-2. Dee Gordon grounded into a fielder’s choice to first base, scoring Russell Mitchell for the other run.

“Those extra runs made it a lot easier on us,” Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said.

Kuroda gave up three consecutive hits to open the sixth, including Alex Presley’s leadoff homer, before retiring the next three batters to end the inning.

“Hiro was good,” Mattingly said. “He was sharper than his last two outings, like he had a little zip back. It felt like he was throwing the ball where he wanted. The MRI helped him because it let him know there was no damage and gave him the freedom as a player to go out there and let it go.”

Pittsburgh’s Jeff Locke (0-2) gave up three runs and five hits in three innings, walked two and struck out none in his second major league start after being recalled from Triple-A on Sept. 6.

Locke, who lives in New Hampshire, said it was his first time being out of the Eastern time zone.

“It was very exciting,” he said. “It’s definitely an honor to come here and pitch in one of the legendary stadiums of all time. I had this adrenaline going. But I wasn’t nervous at all. I just left a lot of pitches up and got into a lot of deep counts.”

Pittsburgh is 17-39 since July 20, when it was 51-44 and led the NL Central by a half-game.

The Dodgers took a 3-1 lead in the third on Kemp’s single that increased his career high RBIs total and Juan Rivera’s fielder’s choice groundout. Barajas tied the game at 1 in the second when his RBI double hit the left-field line.

The Pirates’ other run came in the first when Garrett Jones scored on shortstop Gordon’s throwing error that sailed past first base.

NOTES: Kemp had his 51st multi-hit game, the most by a Dodger since Juan Pierre’s 59 in 2007. … Mattingly said he heard from GM Ned Colletti that LHP Clayton Kershaw won’t be suspended by MLB after hitting Arizona’s Gerardo Parra with a pitch and getting ejected Wednesday. … Dodgers RHP Jonathan Broxton will have arthroscopic surgery Monday to reduce a spur on his right elbow and remove loose chips. He hasn’t pitched since May while bothered by his elbow and a sore back. … Pirates C Ryan Doumit had two singles to improve to 18 for 49 in 14 career games at Chavez Ravine.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.