Junior Knocks In 8, Reds Roll

Ken Griffey Jr. hit two of Cincinnati's four homers and drove in a career-high eight runs as the Reds battered Cleveland's wobbly pitching staff and beat their intrastate rival 14-5 Saturday.

The first 12 runs scored on homers four by the Reds, three by the Indians as hitters enjoyed an all-or-nothing afternoon in front of 54,335 fans, the largest Saturday crowd in the stadium's 30-year history.

Griffey led the barrage with two homers, a bases-loaded single and a run-scoring double, adding to his reputation for hitting them out and driving them in against the other league. He leads the majors with 25 homers and 67 RBIs in interleague play since 1997.

Griffey emerged from a deep slump three hits in his last 10 games with a two-run homer in the third off Kane Davis (0-2) and a three-run shot in the fourth off Jim Brower. His fourth two-homer game of the season left him with 28 overall, two behind Mark McGwire for the major league lead.

Pokey Reese added a three-run homer and Chris Stynes had five hits, including his fourth homer in four games, as the Reds beat the Indians for a second consecutive day in front of a capacity crowd with divided loyalties.

Cleveland hit three solo homers off Steve Parris (5-11) two by Omar Vizquel, one by Kenny Lofton. Parris gave up a career-high four homers, all solo shots, in a 6-5 loss at Jacobs Field on June 10.

After a month-long slump that has dropped them out of contention in the NL Central, the Reds have won three in a row for the first time since June 2-4. They've moved back to .500 (43-43) for the first time since June 15.

With their pitching staff decimated by injuries, the Indians have lost 19 of 27. The five-time AL Central champions have fallen to 43-42 overall and have a double-digit gap to make up.

Cleveland has gone through 26 pitchers, matching the franchise record, and used 11 starters to try to get through an injury-filled first half.

Davis has made two fill-in starts and been rocked in both. He made his first major league start on June 28 and gave up eight hits and seven runs in an 8-1 loss in Kansas City.

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