CINCINNATI, Ohio -- Brayan Pena only wanted to spark a rally.
[b]Vapormax Italia[/b] . He wound up deciding the game. Penas second career pinch-homer started Cincinnatis big eighth-inning rally and swept the Reds over the Milwaukee Brewers 8-3 Thursday night. The Reds hit three homers in all as they pulled within 6 1/2 games of the NL Central leaders. Tucker Barnhart led off the fifth with his first career homer. Todd Frazier added a two-run drive in the sixth off Marco Estrada, who gave up six hits and four walks in six innings. Pena had homered during a 9-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. He batted for Bailey with the score tied at 3 in the eighth and connected on the first pitch from Jim Henderson (2-1) for a two-run homer. "I was just thinking about driving the ball and hitting it hard somewhere," Pena said. "He got a pitch up and I was able to take advantage of it. I wasnt expecting a homer, but Ill take it." Cincinnati sent 11 batters to the plate while scoring five times during the inning against a bullpen that entered the series with the fourth-best ERA in the league. It had one very bad inning. "Theyre going to happen, no doubt," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "Weve been good down there. We just werent good tonight." Homer Bailey (2-2) allowed eight hits in a season-high eight innings, finally returning to form after missing much of spring training with a strained groin. "This game was good for all of us," Bailey said. "Were fixing to turn things around. Weve had a lot happen already this year. This one showed were starting to come together as a group." Milwaukee has lost back-to-back games for only the second time this season. The Brewers havent dropped more than two in a row. Cincinnati opened the four-game series with another injury. Leadoff hitter Billy Hamilton sprained knuckles on his left hand while making a diving catch in centre field and will miss a few games. Hamilton stretched all out to reach Carlos Gomezs line drive that opened the game. He grimaced and flexed his left hand and wrist as he got up. Chris Heisey hit for him in the bottom of the inning. Hamilton hurt the middle finger on his left hand while sliding into base during the opening week of the season and missed two games. "Unfortunately, its the same hand that he hurt in New York," manager Bryan Price said. "Were optimistic that hell only miss a day or two, but we wont know for a day or two." Gomez stole a hit from Joey Votto in the bottom of the first, catching his fly at the top of the wall in centre. Votto pointed two fingers toward Gomez, who also stole a potential go-ahead homer from him for the final out in Milwaukees 4-3 win last July 8. Jean Segura singled in a run in the second, and Gomez doubled home a pair of two-out runs to tie it 3-all in the seventh. Milwaukee got two players back in the lineup, but outfielder Ryan Braun missed his fifth game because of a strained oblique. Braun is expected back this weekend. Segura returned at shortstop after being out of the starting lineup for four games because of an injury to his face. Third baseman Aramis Ramirez was back after missing two games with a sore left elbow and went hitless, extending his slump to 0 for 25. Outfielder Logan Schafer is eligible to return from the disabled list on Saturday, recovered from a strained right hamstring. For now, Roenicke is using Mark Reynolds in right field, a position the infielder played during spring training. NOTES: RHP Wily Peralta (3-1) faces RHP Mike Leake (2-2) in the second game of the series. ... The Brewers called reliever Rob Wooten. Milwaukees bullpen has thrown the fifth-most innings in the majors. Utility player Elian Herrera was optioned to Triple-A. ... The Reds put LHP Tony Cingrani on the DL with a sore pitching shoulder. Reliever Curtis Partch was called up from Triple-A. ... Closer Aroldis Chapman made his first rehab appearance, throwing one inning and fanning two batters at Class A Dayton. Hes recovering from a line drive off the forehead on March 19. He could be activated by the end of next week.
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[b]Vapormax Off White Nere[/b] . He had spent 16 days on the disabled list before being activated Thursday. He was batting just .203 when he came to bat in the 11th inning on Sunday.HOUSTON -- After the Philadelphia 76ers tied an NBA record with their 26th consecutive loss, one of their youngest voices spoke loudest. Michael Carter-Williams, one of six rookies on the NBAs youngest team, delivered a pep talk after James Hardens triple-double led the Houston Rockets to a 120-98 victory on Thursday night. "During the game a couple of guys had long faces ... and I found myself a little bit down," said Carter-Williams, who had 10 assists. "I just dont want anyone in this locker room feeling bad for themselves ... I think thats really important that we dont get down on ourselves and we just give up just because we have a certain amount of losses. "I just felt like I needed to speak my piece and make sure that guys are upbeat every single day." Philadelphia coach Brett Brown was impressed by the leadership the 22-year-old Carter-Williams showed. "He never would have done that two months ago," Brown said. "He wouldnt have done it two weeks ago. All these things, all these small wins we find along the way, thats our road map this year. And life moves on. The group will stay together and we will finish this thing out together." Harden had 26 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in three quarters for his second career triple-double as Houston picked up its fifth straight victory. "We did a great job of coming out tonight and taking care of business," Harden said. "No matter what their record was, we knew they were going to come here and play hard." The 76ers (15-57) stuck around early before a big second-quarter run allowed the Rockets to pull away and roll to the win. Philadelphia moved within a game of Milwaukee for the leagues worst record. Philadelphia matched the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers for the NBAs worst skid and can set the record at home against Detroit on Saturday. "We move on," Brown said. "We are on a different path. We see this whole thing through a far different lens." James Anderson led the Sixers with 30 points and made six 3-pointers. The Sixers havent won since Jan. 29 and are two games away from going winless in two straight months. There was very little visible emotion as the final seconds ticked away and the players slowly made their way off the court. Dwight Howard added 17 points with 13 rebounds for Houston. Terrence Jones had 20 points. There were a number of lowlights as the 76ers took their spot in history. One came when Howard blocked a shot by Thaddeus Young and he fell backward to the ground. By the time he got up, the Rockets were already on the other end of the court running their offence.
[b]Vapormax Chrome Blush[/b]. Another was when the Sixers got a steal, but gave it back seconds later when Youngs pass intended for Anderson sailed high over his head and into the crowd. Carter-Williams got in on the bad play action when, under heavy pressure from Harden, he simply threw the ball into the Philadelphia bench in the second quarter. But the game wasnt without some nice plays by the Sixers, who have continued to play hard during this terrible stretch. A highlight came when Casper Ware grabbed a steal and made a 46-foot heave as time expired in the first quarter. That shot was part of a 12-0 run which got the Sixers within 35-33 early in the second quarter. A nice reverse layup by Anderson tied it at 43-all midway through the second quarter before Houston used a 20-6 run to take a 63-49 lead at halftime. The Sixers missed nine shots, including three layups, and had four turnovers as the Rockets built the lead. Houston was up by 17 late in the third quarter when the team went on an 8-0 run to pad the lead to 96-71. Brown addressed the dreadful stretch before the game and he isnt interested in anyones pity. "I hope they feel good about themselves," he said. "I dont want anyone feeling sorry for us or hanging our head ... we are going through something and we will get through it together." He also discussed their plan for rebuilding at length, saying he knew what he was getting into when he took the job and insisted this skid hasnt been difficult for him. "I can tell you very, very sincerely that this is something that in a twisted way is enjoyable in regards to watching the young guys get better," he said. "Obviously at times its hard going through it ... (but) I feel like were heading in the right direction." None of that can erase the fact that this streak now has its place in history as one of the worst in all of the four major professional sports. According to STATS LLC, the longest streaks in the other major sports are held by: -- In the NFL, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 26 losses in row, from Sept. 12, 1976-Dec. 4 1977. -- In MLB, the Philadelphia Phillies, 23 losses in a row, from Jan. 29, 1961-Aug. 20, 1961. -- In the NHL, the Pittsburgh Penguins, 18 losses in a row, from Jan. 13, 2004-Feb. 22, 2004. NOTES: Former Rockets and Hall of Famers Hakeem Olajuwon and Moses Malone attended the game. Malone also played for the 76ers. ... Houston point guard Pat Beverley sprained his right knee in the first half and didnt return. ' ' '
