Reds don't waste time sweeping series against Cards

CINCINNATI -- A vanilla victory left the Cincinnati Reds completely satisfied.

Aaron Boone and Adam Dunn homered Wednesday night as the Reds connected early for a change, then held on for a 4-2 victory over the Cardinals.

After beating the Cardinals with ninth-inning homers in the first two games of the series, the Reds won their third straight in more run-of-the-mill fashion. No frayed nerves. No theatrics. No home-plate celebration.

They were happy with ho-hum.

"This is nice," Boone said. "That was a good ballgame out there. We did things in every aspect."

They've done a little of everything while taking three games from a team that arrived with a seven-game winning streak and a lot of momentum. Most of the breaks and all three games have gone Cincinnati's way.

"Amazing," said Cardinals starter Jason Simontacchi (1-2), who struck out a career-high nine but gave up the two homers. "You make a mistake and they capitalize on it by hitting a home run -- not a double, but a hard line drive that goes out of the park."

That's how it's going for the Reds, who started the season in dismal shape but have matched their season high with three straight wins.

"We're playing better," said Boone, wearing a green "Get Lucky" shirt with a cereal brand's leprechaun. "We're getting better all the time."

That particularly applies to closer-turned-starter Danny Graves (2-2), who made his second straight impressive showing. Graves held the NL's top offense to five hits in 7 2/3 innings. Scott Rolen hit a solo homer, one of his three hits, and scored on Edgar Renteria's infield single.

After struggling in his first five starts, Graves has finally settled into his new role, giving up two runs and 10 hits while winning his last two games.

"It's not easy," Graves said of the role switch. "It's like telling Adam Dunn to hit right-handed. It's not easy to do, though he might be able to do it. For me, it's a huge adjustment. There's a bunch of things I'm still learning."

Graves got his sinker working and got one grounder after another on the rain-softened infield -- 17 in all, including a double play. Showers moved through the area early in the evening, but the rain wasn't hard enough to hold up the game.

"He's getting outs with one, two, three and four pitches," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "He's got good stuff however you want to use him, as a starter or reliever."

Graves left after walking to Cardinals in the eighth, but Kent Mercker struck out Jim Edmonds to end the threat. Scott Williamson pitched the ninth for his seventh save in as many chances.

Simontacchi had an unusual game. He set a career high in strikeouts, but hurt himself with his first error in the majors.

Boone, who ended the series opener with a solo shot in the ninth, hit another one in the second inning to put the Reds ahead to stay. It was his seventh of the season.

Dunn hit his 10th in the sixth inning, a two-run shot that continued his all-or-nothing season at the plate. He has struck out 47 times -- most in the majors -- and 15 of his 21 RBIs have come off homers.

Simontacchi set up the Reds' other run and snapped the Cardinals' streak of 63 2/3 innings without an error. Boone walked with one out in the fourth, went all the way to third on Simontacchi's errant pickoff throw, and scored on Jason LaRue's soft infield single.

The Cardinals are one of the NL's best defensive teams, committing only 14 errors in 32 games.

Rolen led off the fifth with his seventh homer, only the second hit off Graves to that point. He also doubled and scored in the seventh.

Noteworthy

The NL Central rivals finish their four-game series Thursday. ... Rolen is 8-for-14 in his last four games with a pair of homers. ... Cincinnati's unearned run was the first allowed by the Cardinals since April 16, a span of 19 games and 170 innings. ... Tests detected an inflamed nerve in the neck of Reds RHP Ryan Dempster. RHP Chris Reitsma will start in his place Friday against Milwaukee. ... Ken Griffey Jr. caught fly balls in the outfield before the game. Griffey separated his right shoulder while trying to make a diving catch on April 5. ... Boone and Graves were the only Reds starters who didn't strike out. Reds batters fanned 11 times, and lead the majors with 298 strikeouts in 34 games.