Original Blog Entry: Braves beat Reds w/walk-off grand slam

NBey6 — Thu, 20 May 2010 21:39:58 GMT

05/20/10 4:27 PM ET Braves rally on Conrad's walk-off grand slam

By Jon Cooper / Special to MLB.com

ATLANTA -- Pinch-hitter Brooks Conrad hit a one-out, walk-off grand slam as the Atlanta Braves pulled off an improbable seven-run rally in the ninth inning to beat the Reds, 10-9, on Thursday. Conrad's drive to left off Reds closer Francisco Cordero was deflected over the wall at the 380 mark in left-center field by left fielder Laynce Nix. Nate McLouth hit a two-run single in the inning and another run scored on a Miguel Cairo error.

Craig Kimbrel pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his first Major League win.

The rally got Tommy Hanson off the hook. Hanson was roughed up for eight earned runs in 1 2/3 innings and the Braves managed only one earned run and five hits off unbeaten Cincinnati rookie Mike Leake.

The win gave the Braves a 5-2 record in their seven-game, three-team homestand, while the Reds dropped their second in a row for the first time since May 2.

The last team to come back from a six-run deficit to win in the ninth was the Indians on May 25, 2009. They scored seven in the ninth to beat the Rays, 11-10. For the Braves, it's their largest ninth-inning comeback in franchise history. The largest ninth-inning comeback for any team in history is the Tigers on April 25, 1901. They scored 10 in the ninth to overcome a nine-run deficit against Milwaukee for the 14-13 win.

Hanson saw his ERA rise from 2.88 to 4.17 following the shortest start of his career and he has allowed 13 earned runs over his past two starts, covering 8 2/3 innings. He shortest start prior to Thursday afternoon was two innings last year in Aug. 28 in Philadelphia, when he didn't return following an extended rain delay.

Leake appeared headed to 5-0, allowing three runs -- one earned -- on five hits, over six innings, striking out six and walking one. He also induced two double-play grounders, to get him out of jams in the fourth and fifth innings.

Troy Glaus had three hits, while Martin Prado chipped in two hits.

The Reds jumped on Hanson in the second inning, sending 12 men to the plate and scoring eight runs on seven hits, both season-highs. Eight of the runs and six of the hits came with two out.

Hanson hurt himself by allowing a single to Leake, his first of two hits on the day and a walk that loaded the bases. The Reds then broke the game open as the next seven batters reached, with six hits and a walk, including a Joey Votto grand slam and a two-run double by Laynce Nix that signaled the end of Hanson's day.

Nix added a long home run in the fifth to make it 9-1.

The Braves took advantage of four Reds errors, three resulting in their first three runs, as Leake mishanded a throw from Votto in the third and then Cabrera botched a Votto throw allowing two runs to score in the fifth. Leake avoided further trouble, striking out Chipper Jones then getting Brian McCann to ground into an inning-ending 3-6-1 double play.

The Braves head to Pittsburgh for a weekend series, followed by three in Florida, while Cincinnati begins Interleague Play with a three-game weekend set in Cleveland.

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