Mac Homers Bottenfield To 13th

Kent Bottenfield is expecting some good news Wednesday.

"I bought my tickets for Boston last week," he said after Mark McGwire's 27th home run helped him become the National League's first 13-game winner in the St. Louis Cardinals's 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night.

Bottenfield (13-3) thinks its pretty likely that he will be notified Wednesday that he's been picked for the team by San Diego manager Bruce Bochy.

La Russa, the Cardinals' manager, hinted that Bottenfield would make the team when he said Bochy had told him that he was not concerned that Bottenfield scheduled to pitch Sunday.

McGwire, elected to the All-Star team earlier in the day, broke a 3-all tie in the fifth, hitting a 431-foot drive off Brett Tomko (3-5) that bounced off the Stadium Club.

Reds manager Jack McKeon said the Reds had their chances against Bottenfield.

"He's a good pitcher, but he's beatable," McKeon said. "We had him on the ropes tonight and but couldn't get him."

Bottenfield allowed all five runs and seven hits in six innings, sending Cincinnati to just its third loss in 16 games. He is the first Cardinals pitcher to win 13 before the All-Star break since Joaquin Andujar in 1985.

Manny Aybar pitched two scoreless innings and was lifted after walking Michael Tucker starting the ninth.

Lance Painter retired Sean Casey on a groundout, and Ricky Bottalico struck out Greg Vaughn and Barry Larkin with the tying run on second for his 11th save in 14 chances.

After McGwire's homer, Cincinnati took a 5-4 lead in the sixth on second baseman Joe McEwing's second run-scoring error of the game and Aaron Boone's RBI single.

Consecutive doubles in the bottom half by Fernando Tatis, Edgar Renteria and Darren Bragg who had been hitless in 14 at-bats gave St. Louis a 6-5 lead in the bottom half.

Tomko allowed six runs and eight hits in five innings.

S. Louis took a 2-0 lead in the first on a run-scoring throwing error by Tomko and McGwire's RBI grounder, but Vaughn hit his 18th homer in the second and Casey, who had been in a 4-for-24 slide, hit a run-scoring single that tied the score in the third.

Eli Marrero's sacrifice fly put the Cardinals back in front in the fourth, but Pokey Reese hit an RBI double that retied the score in the fifth.

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