Reds end regular season on winning note; playoffs await

CINCINNATI — On a day where the game-time temperature was 51 degrees, the Cincinnati Reds won 3-2 over the Milwaukee Brewers in the final regular game of the season. 

Tuesday night hero Jay Bruce put the Reds ahead for good with a one-out solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning, putting the Reds up by a run. 

The NL Central champion Reds will begin their road to the World Series Wednesday against the NL East champion Philadelphia Phillies in the National League Divisional Series. The Reds will travel to Philadelphia for the first two games of the NLDS. The third game of the series will be next Sunday in Cincinnati.

The Phillies earned the homefield advantage by having the best record in the National League at 97-65. The other NLDS matchup will be the Atlanta Braves (wildcard) at the NL West champion San Francisco Giants.

Sunday could have possibly been the final start and game as a member of the Reds for former ace Aaron Harang. 

Harang allowed two runs in the top of the third before leaving the game with a blister on his right middle finger. He finished with two-plus innings pitched, striking out three. He gave up two earned runs on three hits and two walks.  

As Harang walked off the field toward the Reds' dugout, he got a standing ovation from the 37,582 fans in attendance at Great American Ball Park. 

"I don't really know now, but you kind of know in a way," a tearful Harang said about returning to Cincinnati next season. "It's not completely over yet, so we'll see what happens." 

Harang credited the fans following the game when asked about the ovation they gave him. 

"They've been here through the good and the bad and a lot more bad for this organization, so hopefully this is a turnaround to things to come," Harang said. "They've always been out there cheering you when you are doing well, so hopefully we can just keep it going." 

Harang wrapped up the regular season at 6-7 with the no-decision, Sunday. His season ERA is 5.32. 

"It was tough (on the way Harang left the game)," Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "I wanted to give him the ball personally today because of what he's meant to the organization. It's been a tough three years for him. I was hoping to get him to 7-7 today, but I guess he injured his finger a couple days ago, and it didn't heal the way he thought it would heal, but he wanted to go out there and pitch. 

"You like that attitude, and he went as far as he could go." 

Harang began Sunday's game with first-inning strikeouts of Rickie Weeks and Prince Fielder. In the second inning, he struck out Lorenzo Cain. 

That was about as good as it got for the Reds' Opening Day starter the past five seasons. 

Both runs Harang allowed came in the third inning, the inning where he was removed from the mound. It started with a base hit by Brewers' starting pitcher Randy Wolf, followed with a walk by Weeks. Both runners scored on a double to centerfield Corey Hart. 

Baker was asked about Harang's spot on the postseason roster. 

"We haven't set our roster yet," Baker said. "He's not going home and he's not going to Arizona, so he'll be with us." 

Five players, though, will be headed to Arizona: Sam LeCure, Matt Maloney, Carlos Fisher, Jordan Smith and Chris Valaika. 

Baker said this season ranks high on his favorite seasons list due to the fact the Reds weren't expected to be in the spot they are currently in. 

"Nobody expected it," Baker said. "The last (few) years were difficult because you take a losing record personally. When I first got here, everybody wanted us to win the World Series right away, but our goal first was to have a winning record. 

"Last year, I thought we had a real good shot (at a winning record) until everybody got hurt. We finished strong, which we carried it into the season, and you see the progress of the young players. That is really gratifying when you see the young guys get better." 

But on Fan Appreciation Day, the Reds were the first to get onto the scoreboard with a smoking bat in the first inning. 

The first inning, the Reds (91-71) put up two runs on four hits against Brewers pitcher Randy Wolf (13-12). Wolf pitched seven innings for the Brewers (77-85), allowing three earned runs on nine hits and one walk in the losing effort. Wolf struck out three batters on 124 total pitches. 

Cincinnati started off the four-hit barrage with a single down the first base line by Orlando Cabrera.  An RBI double to centerfield by MVP candidate Joey Votto put the Reds on the scoreboard first. Jonny Gomes followed with a two-out bloop single to score Votto. 

The Reds' relief pitching kept the lead starting in the third inning with Logan Ondrusek, who has not allowed a run in his last 10 appearances, getting three straight outs in relief of Harang, who left one runner on base.  

Ondrusek was the first of six relief pitchers the Reds brought out of the bullpen. 

Matt Maloney (2-2) pitched three innings with three walks and two hits to earn the win. He had two strikeouts.  

Aroldis Chapman pitched the seventh inning, allowing one hit and fanning one batter. Arthur Rhodes and Jared Burton pitched in the eighth. 

In Chapman's relief appearance, Hart was caught stealing home plate with the tag applied by Corky Miller, who replaced Ramon Hernandez behind the plate, for the final out of the inning. 

Francisco Cordero gained his 40th save of the season with a scoreless ninth. Cordero has achieved the 40 save mark for the third time in his career. Cordero is the fourth Reds pitcher to reach that milestone. The other three were Danny Graves ('04), Jeff Shaw ('97) and Jeff Brantley ('96). 

GAME NOTES: Bruce went 2-for-2 and is hitting .388 in his last 22 appearances … Drew Stubbs gained his 30th steal in the fourth inning (He's the 9th players in Reds history to get 20 home runs and 30 steals in a season) … The Reds' final season attendance mark was 2,060,550 (highest since '06) … The Reds have occupied first place in the NL Central for the last 50 days of the season …  The Reds have spent 110 of the last 141 days in or tied for first place … The fire alarms set off for over five minutes at GABP and the game continued … Chapman had a wild pitch ... Manny Para pitched the eighth inning for Milwaukee … Game time was 2:41.