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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- It was a scary sight for both teams.
|  | | Aaron Boone was briefly hospitalized after getting beaned, but later returned to the Reds' clubhouse. |
Cincinnati's Aaron Boone was writhing on the ground in pain after being struck in the face by a seventh-inning fastball. He
came away with a broken nose in a game that ended with the San
Francisco Giants rallying for a 3-2 win over the Reds in the ninth
on Tuesday night.
"I'm doing all right," said Boone, who was back in the
clubhouse after a trip to the hospital for a round of X-rays and
tests. "I just remember getting hit and laying there and being a
little nervous. It was a scary feeling, but when I opened my eyes
and I could see everything was normal, I felt a lot better."
San Francisco starter Russ Ortiz, whose pitch struck Boone, was relieved to hear that Boone was doing all right.
"I was just trying to go inside with a fastball, but my release
was wrong and it just got away from me," he said.
The game, though, got away from the Reds.
Down 2-1, the Giants rallied on two-out RBI singles by Barry
Bonds and Jeff Kent. The rally began with a one-out walk to Bobby
Estalella off Danny Graves (8-1), who blew a save and lost for the
first time this season. Marvin Benard followed with a single, and
after Bill Mueller flied out, Bonds hit a sharp grounder to right,
scoring Estalella with the tying run. Kent followed with the
game-winner up the middle.
"A victory is a victory, whether it's by 10 runs or one," Kent
said. "It was just nice not to have to go into extra innings. We
can go home and sleep in peace. To pull it out in the ninth inning
is great. It's a big emotional boost for us to come back against a
quality closer."
Robb Nen (1-2) got the win, striking out both batters he faced
to break a personal nine-game losing streak.
But the game was marred by the frightening beaning.
The force of the blow knocked his batting helmet off, and Boone
fell to the ground in pain as teammates and trainers rushed to tend
to him. He was bleeding from the nose area.
Players from both sides and the crowd at Pacific Bell Park
watched in hushed silence as he lay face down, his feet kicking the
ground. After several minutes, he was helped up and the crowd gave
him a warm round of applause.
Boone then walked off the field with help from team trainers, a
towel wrapped around his face. He was taken to St. Francis Hospital
for precautionary tests and X-rays.
"You never want to see a player, any player, go down like
that," Reds reliever Scott Williamson said. "We all had
butterflies in our stomachs. But our prayers were answered. He's
back in the clubhouse with us and he's going to be all right."
A shaken Ortiz, locked in a 1-1 duel with former Giants pitcher
Osvaldo Fernandez, was lifted in favor of Felix Rodriguez, and Juan
Castro went in as a pinch-runner for Boone to load the bases. Hal
Morris, pinch-hitting for Fernandez, sent a slow roller on the
infield grass that scored Dmitri Young from third with the go-ahead
run.
Fernandez, pitching against his former team for the first time,
walked a career-high six batters but also had five strikeouts,
twice fanning batters to end innings with baserunners in scoring
position. He allowed one run on three hits in six innings.
Williamson got Bonds to ground into an inning-ending double play
in the seventh.
Ortiz allowed two runs on six hits in six-plus innings.
Cincinnati took a 1-0 lead in the first when Pokey Reese
singled, stole second, took third on a groundout and scored on
Barry Larkin's grounder.
San Francisco evened the score in the fourth when Ellis Burks
walked and scored on Rich Aurilia's double.
Game notes
The Giants are 5-14 in one-run games. ... Reds right
fielder Dante Bichette was not in the lineup for the second
straight night. He remains day-to-day since leaving Sunday's game
at Cleveland with a sprained right ankle. He got hurt sliding back
to second base on a pickoff throw. ... Shortstop Aurilia made a
surprise start after missing seven of the previous 11 games due to
a strained left hamstring. Manager Dusty Baker said Aurilia showed
much improvement in his running Monday, and decided to give him the
start.
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Baseball Scoreboard
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