bably put the Indians away for good. "We had a couple chances and he seemed to find another gear tonight, that weve unfortunately seen in the past," Francona said. "When he starts hitting

CINCINNATI -- Since the All-Star break, the last-place Reds have traded away another star and turned into a formidable team.Brandon Phillips had three hits and left-hander Brandon Finnegan allowed two singles in six innings on Thursday, leading the Cincinnati Reds to a 7-0 victory and a rare series win over the St. Louis Cardinals.The Reds took two of three, giving them only their fifth series win in the last 23 between the NL Central rivals. And it goes beyond the one series.For the first time since 1999, the Reds have won six straight series after the All-Star break. They traded RBI leader Jay Bruce to the Mets during the current surge.This is the time when some teams might phone it in, manager Bryan Price said. This group hasnt.Phillips had a single and a pair of doubles, scored three times and drove in a run against former teammate Mike Leake (8-9). Ramon Cabrera drove in three runs, and Eugenio Suarez knocked in a pair.Finnegan (7-8) allowed only a pair of singles, and then left after throwing 79 pitches on a humid, 88-degree afternoon. The bullpen gave up three more singles while closing out Cincinnatis fourth shutout, which is tied with Milwaukee and Pittsburgh for the fewest in the NL.I didnt have my best command, Finnegan said. They hit some balls hard, but we had some guys catch it. I had a lot of movement on the ball. (It) was a confidence boost, definitely.Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 0 for 4, ending a 17-game hitting streak that was the longest of his career.It was the second time that the Reds faced Leake since they traded him in the middle of last season as part of their rebuilding. On July 7 at Great American Ball Park, Leake allowed only one earned run in 7 1/3 innings of a 7-6 Reds victory that ended with Vottos homer in the bottom of the ninth.This time, he left the game after failing to retire a batter in the sixth, giving up eight hits and seven runs. After spending his first 5 1/2 seasons in Cincinnati, Leake suspects the Reds have an advantage because they know how he pitches.Im sure it plays a part, Leake said.Leake extended his streak without walking a batter to 35 innings, the longest in the majors this season. It ended when Adam Duvall walked on a full-count pitch to open the sixth. The club record is held by Bob Tewksbury, who went 44 innings without walking a batter in 1993. Duvall later scored on Phillips double, his third hit of the game.The Reds got a pair of runs in the second inning, all on hits to right field. Phillips singled, Scott Schebler doubled and Cabrera pulled a ball down the line for a two-run single. Phillips doubled again to right field in the fourth and scored on Suarezs sacrifice fly.STATSThe Reds won nine straight series after the All-Star break in 1999, when they lost a one-game playoff to the Mets for the NL wild card. ... The Cardinals got Brandon Moss and Jhonny Peralta back from the DL at the start of the series. Moss went 6 for 13 with two doubles and a homer in the series. Peralta was 2 for 10.TRAINERS ROOMCardinals: Leadoff hitter Matt Carpenter is expected to come off the DL over the weekend. Hes missed 29 games with a strained right oblique. He went 4 for 12 during a rehab assignment with a homer and a double.Reds: SS Zack Cozart was out of the lineup for the third consecutive game with a bruised finger on his throwing hand. ... Schebler was hit on the right side of the knee in the sixth but stayed in the game. He left after the inning as part of a double switch.UP NEXTCardinals: St. Louis returns home and starts a three-game series against Atlanta. LHP Jaime Garcia (7-8) is 2-1 in seven career starts against the Braves with a 4.32 ERA.Reds: Anthony DeSclafani (6-0) opens a series in Pittsburgh. Hes 0-1 with a 3.27 ERA in two career starts at PNC Park.---Follow Joe Kay on Twitter: http://twitter.com/apjoekay Wholesale NHL Gear . Jay Feely kicked a 41-yard field goal in overtime, and the Cardinals edged the Tennessee Titans 37-34 in overtime after blowing a 17-point lead late in the fourth quarter. Cheap NHL Jerseys China . Andrew Luck lost his favourite target and the Indianapolis locker room lost one of its most revered leaders when Reggie Wayne was diagnosed Monday with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee that will cost him the rest of the season. http://www.cheapnhljerseysbywholesale.com/ . But the quarterback hopes to stay involved in football after officially calling it quits Tuesday. "Id love to look at those opportunities as they arise," Pierce said in an interview from his Winnipeg eatery. Cheap NHL Jerseys Gear . A forerunning sled crashed into the worker Thursday at the Sanki Sliding Center. The unidentified worker broke both legs and was airlifted to a nearby hospital. Discount Adidas Hockey Jerseys .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner.CLEVELAND -- Justin Verlander recently watched videotape of his 2011 season, when he was the ALs MVP and noticed he wasnt pitching the way he had back then -- dominating, overpowering, nearly unhittable. Verlander made an adjustment. And made the Indians look silly. Verlander toyed with Clevelands lineup for eight innings and Don Kelly hit a three-run homer off Justin Masterson, leading the Detroit Tigers to their 10th straight win, 5-1 over the Indians, who cant seem to beat the one team theyre chasing. "Thats the Justin Verlander we know," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. Verlander (12-8) allowed one run and four hits as the Tigers won their second straight in this four-game series and beat the Indians for 10th time in 11 games to open a five-game lead over Cleveland in the AL Central. Kelly connected in the fifth inning off Masterson (13-8) and Miguel Cabrera picked up his 100th RBI as the Tigers improved to 11-3 against their nearest division rival. "Every games a big game but especially against the guys who are chasing us," Verlander said. "Theyve been playing extremely well. We know its going to be a battle this series. Its not over yet but winning the first two is a great start." The Indians, who are 24-10 against the Centrals three other teams, have to win the next two over Detroit just to gain a split. To do that, theyll have to beat Doug Fister and Max Scherzer. "Detroit has four aces, which is why they are so good," Indians manager Terry Francona said before the game. Although Scherzer leads the AL with 16 wins and is the front-runner to win the Cy Young this season, Verlander remains the Tigers top gun and the one they turn to when things get tough. He has struggled at times this season, but has now found his old form. "The adjustment that I made obviously made not just a little impact but a pretty big impact," said Verlander, who explained he altered his motion toward the plate. "Everything Ive been searching for I was able to find it today. Thats a huge stride in the right direction." Verlander gave up an RBI groundout in the second, but otherwise handled the Indians with ease. When Cleveland threatened in the sixth with two on and none out, Verlander turned up the heat. He retired Nick Swisher on a deep fly to right before blowing a 100 mph fastball past All-Star Jason Kipnis for strike two and then locked him up with an 84 mph changeup. Verlander then got Asdrubal Cabrera to ground out on another fastball then hit the century mark on the radar gun. As he headed toward the dugout, the right-hander pumped his fist knowing he had probably put the Indians away for good. "We had a couple chances and he seemed to find another gear tonight, that weve unfortunately seen in the past," Francona said. "When he starts hitting 100 at the knees, thats tough." Masterson had one bad inning, and it cost him. Kellys three-run shot highlighted Detroits five-run ffifth off the right-hander, who hurt himself by hitting two batters during the inning.dddddddddddd First, he plunked No. 9 hitter Ramon Santiago, who had squared to bunt before getting drilled. Austin Jackson followed with a single and Torii Hunters RBI groundout brought in Santiago to tie it 1-all. Cabrera, who missed three games with a hip injury, then sent a drive off the centre field wall for a go-ahead RBI double, arriving at second with a slow-motion slide. One out later, Masterson hit Victor Martinez on the right foot. Detroits DH hopped around in obvious pain and Cabrera even left third base to check on his teammate, who limped to first but stayed in the game. Kelly followed by drilling a 1-1 pitch into the Tigers bullpen for his fifth homer to make it 5-1. Kelly owns Masterson. Hes now 11 of 24 (.458) with two homers and eight RBIs. On June 9, he hit a three-run homer off Masterson in Detroits 4-1 win. "If I was Superman, hed be my Kryptonite," Masterson said. "Theres always a guy. He salivates when Im up there." Like his teammates, Masterson struggles with the Tigers. He dropped to 0-3 with a 7.23 ERA against Detroit this season. The Indians got some bad news even before losing their second straight game in this crucial four-game series as starter Corey Kluber was put on the 15-day disabled list with a sprained right middle finger. The team said Kluber injured his finger on Monday night when he pitched 7 1-3 shutout innings. There is no timetable on Klubers injury, but Indians starter Zach McAllister recently missed seven weeks with a similar ailment. "Im disappointed for him," Francona said. "It makes it harder for us." The Indians took a 1-0 lead in the second on Verlander, who despite his gaudy numbers against most teams, came in just 16-14 in his career against Cleveland. Asdrubal Cabrera led off with a double and Michael Brantley followed with a single. Cabrera got caught in a rundown between third and home for the first out, but Ryan Raburn came through with an RBI groundout against his former teammates. Masterson pitched himself into and out of trouble in the second. He walked Prince Fielder and Martinez to open the inning and then gave up a single to Kelly. However, the right-hander buckled down and struck out Alex Avila and Jose Iglesias before getting Santiago to bounce into a force at second. NOTES: The Tigers have won 14 of 18 against the Indians dating to Sept. 5 last season. Detroit has outscored Cleveland 109-62 in those games. ... Indians rookie RHP Danny Salazar will make his second career start Wednesday. Ubaldo Jimenez was pushed back for Salazar, who took a no-hitter into the sixth in his debut on July 11. ... Tigers 2B Omar Infante (sprained left ankle) began a minor league rehab assignment for Triple-A Toledo on Tuesday. ... Tigers RHP Octavio Dotel (sore elbow) will began a rehab assignment at Class-A Lakeland (Fla.) Wednesday. Hes been out since April 20. 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