Reds 8, Marlins 7

The seventh inning was just what Dr. Baseball ordered for the Reds. The eighth inning was evidence of how hard wins are for the Reds to come by.

"All my hair is going to gray," Dusty Baker said. "I'm going to call Keith Hernendez for some of that stuff.

The seventh: Blog whipping boy Corey Patterson led off with a perfect bunt for a single. Jeff Keppigner squared to bunt on the first pitch, then hit the secondf pitch out to left. Ken Griffey Jr. walked. Brandon Phillips followed with a shot to the second deck.

Two swings, four runs -- 8-4 game.

The eighth: David Weathers came in and gave up a single. He got two outs, then walked a batter. Dusty Baker decided to go with the percentages and bring in left-hander Jeremy Affeldt to face Luis Gonzalez. Gonzalez singled home a run. Baker then went with closer Francisco Cordero. He hit Wes Helms with a pitch to load the bases. He got Mike Rabelo to fly to short right. Griffey came in and called off Phillips. The went off Griffey's glove as he closed it. Two runs scored to make it 8-7. Former Red Cody Ross walked to load the bases. Alfredo Amezaga gave one a ride to right center. Griffey ran it down, but it bounced out of his glove. He caught it again before it hit the ground.

Griffey said Phillips coming at him distrached him on the first one and just missed it. The second one? "It hit the palm. I was able to gather it in with my good Moeller hands."

Cordero pitched a 1-2-3 for his sixth save.

Aaron Harang gave up back-to-back home runs to Jeremy Hermida and Hanley Ramirez in the first. He have up another one in the fourth to Dan Uggla.

The Reds got nothing going against rookie right-hander Burke Badenhop early. But Paul Bako singled with an out in the fifth. Harang sacrificed him over, and Patterson doubled him in. Keppinger hit a routine groundball to former Red Jorge Cantu at third. Cantu threw it away, allowing Patterson to score.

The Reds took the lead in the sixth. Joey Votto walked. Edwin Encarnacion doubled. Adam Dunn got Votto home with a sacrifice fly. Encarnacion took third on the play. That proved large. He scored an out later on a wild pitch.

Harang could not hold the lead. Uggla led off with a double. Wes Helms followed with a roller that stopped on the third baseline. Mike Rabelo hit a sac fly to tie it.