Pujols' homer lifts Cardinals over Reds

[September 19, 2008]  CINCINNATI (AP) -- Albert Pujols hit a three-run homer and Kyle Lohse won his first start since coming off a suspension as the St. Louis Cardinals snapped a season-high seven-game losing streak with a 5-4 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday night.

Lohse (14-6) matched his career high for wins after serving a five-game suspension from Sept. 10-14 for throwing a pitch near the head of Reds pitcher Edinson Volquez -- his opponent Thursday -- on Aug. 17 at St. Louis.

The win was Lohse's first since beating Philadelphia 8-3 on Aug. 1. He was 0-3 in seven starts since.

The former Reds right-hander, who won 14 games for Minnesota in 2003, gave up six hits and three runs -- two earned -- with two walks and five strikeouts in 6 2-3 innings.

Volquez (16-6) lost for the first time in eight starts since Aug. 5. He was 3-0 with four no-decisions before Thursday. Volquez gave up four runs and three hits with six walks -- matching his season high -- and five strikeouts while failing for the fourth time to earn his 17th win.

Pujols, 0-for-8 with a walk in the first two games of the series, followed walks to Cesar Izturis and Skip Schumaker in the third with a line drive that landed five rows deep in the seats just to the right of center field. It was his 34th homer of the season and first since Sept. 9.

The Reds took a 1-0 lead in the second. Jolbert Cabrera reached on shortstop Izturis' two-base throwing error with one out, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on Adam Rosales' single to left.

After Pujols gave St. Louis a 3-1 lead, the Reds cut it to 3-2 in the third when Jerry Hairston Jr. walked and scored from first on Jeff Keppinger's double into the left field corner.

Felipe Lopez got that run back in the fifth by driving in Aaron Miles from second with a two-out single.

Joey Votto led off Cincinnati's sixth with a bloop double down the left field line and scored on Cabrera's groundball single to center. But St. Louis got consecutive doubles from Troy Glaus and Adam Kennedy against Josh Roenicke with two outs in the eighth.

The Reds added a run in the ninth on Hairston's two-out single off Chris Perez before Jason Motte came in to earn his first career save by getting Keppinger to fly out.

Notes: Eleven of Pujols' last 16 hits have been for extra bases. ... Rosales' RBI was the first of his career. He added his first stolen base in the same inning. ... Lopez batted in the No. 4 slot for the first time this season, and Kennedy made the first start of his career in right field. ... Reds RF Jay Bruce made his first career start in Cincinnati's cleanup slot. ... After two years as an exhibition game at Memphis, Major League Baseball announced that the third annual Civil Rights Game will be an interleague game between the White Sox and Reds next June 20 at Great American Ball Park.

[Associated Press]

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