Page One

CINCINNATI – This sweep belongs to the A’s. 

Eric Chavez hit a two-run homer and the Oakland Athletics completed a three-game sweep in the ballpark where they couldn’t win during the 1990 World Series, beating the Cincinnati Reds 5-1 Sunday. 

The resurgent A’s have won seven in a row and 15 of their last 16, moving a season-high 12 games over .500. They’ve been the major leagues’ hottest team in June, going 18-3. 

Cincinnati lost its seventh straight and suffered another setback to its frail offense when Ken Griffey Jr. left the game after pulling up on a double in the fourth inning. 

Griffey’s tender right hamstring, which he pulled on June 7, tightened up as he rounded first base, prompting him to leave the game as 23,961 fans sat in silence over the latest misfortune. 

A torn tendon in the right knee and the pulled hamstring have limited Griffey to 20 starts this season. The Reds are 7-13 with him in the starting lineup. 

Left-hander Mark Mulder (8-4) won his sixth straight start, giving up six hits in six innings, including Aaron Boone’s RBI single in the fifth. Three relievers finished off a seven-hitter. 

The A’s pitchers have led their rebound from a 10-game deficit on May 8 to a contending spot in the AL West. Mulder and left-hander Barry Zito have gone unbeaten in 10 June starts. 

Oakland also has taken advantage of the National League along the way, going 14-1 in interleague play. The A’s have won 22 of their last 24 games overall against the NL. 

Chavez’s 18th homer off Chris Reitsma (3-5) in the sixth inning put Oakland ahead. Mark Ellis had an RBI triple and Miguel Tejada drove in two more runs, a happy send-off from the ballpark that was the setting for one of the biggest disappointments in franchise history. 

Oakland hadn’t played in Cincinnati since the 1990 World Series, when the A’s were heavy favorites with Dennis Eckersley in the bullpen and “Bash Brothers” Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire in the lineup. 

The Reds won the first two games at Riverfront Stadium, then completed the sweep in Oakland. 

There were only two holdovers from that series. Reds right-hander Jose Rijo, the MVP of the ’90 Series, is on the disabled list with a weak shoulder. Shortstop Barry Larkin played all three games and went 0-for-11. 

Reds manager Bob Boone juggled his slumping lineup throughout the series, with no luck. Before Sunday’s game, the Reds demoted outfielder Austin Kearns to make a spot for another reliever. 

Cincinnati has gone 4-for-53 (.075) with runners in scoring position during its longest losing streak since it dropped eight in a row last August. 

Notes: The A’s also played in Cincinnati during the 1972 World Series, which Oakland won in seven games. ... Oakland is 8-1 on its longest trip of season — 13 games. It ends with four games against the first-place Mariners. ... A’s OF Jermaine Dye was out of the lineup for a third straight game with a tight hamstring. He pinch-hit in the ninth and was hit by a pitch. ... Mulder is 5-0 in five June starts with a 2.10 ERA. Zito is 5-0 in five June starts with a 2.25 ERA. ... Reitsma opened the season 3-0 with a 2.59 ERA, but has lost his last five decisions over six starts and has a 4.89 ERA over that span.