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ATLANTA(AP) Once
Micah Owings
realized he was OK, one of his biggest concerns was making sure his mom knew he was fine.
Owings walked off the field after getting beaned with the bases loaded in the 12th inning, and the
Cincinnati Reds
beat the
Atlanta Braves
4-2 on Sunday for their seventh consecutive win.
Owings (7-12), who pitched two scoreless innings, was hit on the left side of his batting helmet by an 0-1 fastball from Kawakami.
Owings was on his back for several seconds before medical staff from the Reds and Braves helped him sit up and walk to the
dugout.
The scary play came in front of several family members, who came in from Gainesville, Ga., hoping to see Owings get into the
game.
''Yeah, it was nice to have them here even though I'm sure my mom was flipping out from the get-go, but I tried to reassure
everybody when I knew that I could see and that everything was fine,'' Owings said. ''I wasn't dizzy or anything, but I wanted
everyone to know because I knew they would be worrying and praying at the same time.''
According to Cincinnati manager
Dusty Baker
, Owings was bleeding ''at the ear'' in the dugout.
''He can't fly for a couple of days,'' Baker said. ''But he was in good humor about it. The doctors are in there now stitching
him up.''
Joey Votto
scored on the play, and
Corky Miller
followed with a sacrifice fly to make it 4-2.
Kawakami (7-11), who has started 25 of 27 games, allowed two runs and two hits in two innings. Atlanta has lost five straight,
matching its season-worst skid set April 14-18.
Cincinnati trailed 2-1 before
Drew Stubbs
hit his fifth homer against
Mike Gonzalez
in the eighth. The Reds have won 12 of 14.
''Anytime a guy gets hit, it's a scary situation,'' said Stubbs, who finished with three hits. ''It could've been much worse
- a concussion that puts him on the DL - but I was ready for the game to end in the ninth.''
The Braves wasted a terrific start by
Tim Hudson
, who allowed one run and four hits over seven innings in his second game since returning from elbow surgery. The right-hander
retired the last 14 batters he faced while making his first appearance at Turner Field since beating Washington on July 18,
2008.
''It was a tough loss today,'' Hudson said. ''I wish we could have pulled this one out. For the most part things are starting
to zero in for me. My curveball and my split were really good today. Those are pitches I haven't had in a really long time.''
Johnny Cueto
also turned in a strong start for Cincinnati, striking out nine while allowing one run and three hits over six innings. The
right-hander was attempting to win consecutive starts for the first time since June 25 at Toronto and July 1 against Arizona.
Jared Burton
replaced Cueto in the seventh and former Reds catcher
David Ross
hit his first pitch for his seventh homer, giving Atlanta a 2-1 lead.
Owings, also one of Cincinnati's top pinch hitters, wasn't sure how long he would be unable to play. In 169 career at-bats,
Owings has eight homers, 30 RBIs and a .538 slugging percentage.
''I don't think I could have gotten out of the way of it anyway,'' he said. ''Luckily, I was looking for a slider.''
Kawakami, speaking through an interpreter, apologized and Owings said he had no hard feelings.
''The sign was 2-seamer inside,'' Kawakami said. ''(Ross) held up his glove high, and I tried to jam it, knowing he was going
to come up swinging. Just instantly, I lost the feeling of trying to be aggressive after that. It's the worst place to hit
a person. Of course, I was scared for him.''
NOTES: Braves LF
Garret Anderson
held onto
Paul Janish
's pinch-hit flyout in the eighth despite colliding with CF
Nate McLouth
. Neither player appeared hurt and both stayed in the game. ... Because RHP
Justin Lehr
has a slight groin pull, RHP
Homer Bailey
will start for the Reds on Monday at Colorado. Baker said LHP
Matt Maloney
will be called up from Double-A Carolina to start Tuesday against the Rockies. ... Atlanta 2B
Kelly Johnson
snapped a 0-for-20 slide with a pinch-hit single in the seventh. ... Before the game, Atlanta recalled RHP
Manny Acosta
from Triple-A Gwinnett and sent down RHP
Luis Valdez
.
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