Major League Baseball

Reds 6, Diamondbacks 1

Published Apr. 10, 2011 5:16 a.m. ET

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Bronson Arroyo was good and, as he readily acknowledged, a bit lucky, too.

As a result, he's 2-0 on the young season and his Cincinnati Reds are back on track after a brief detour.

Arroyo gave up just one run - unearned on his own throwing error - and the Reds overcame a strong outing by Arizona's Daniel Hudson to beat the Diamondbacks 6-1 on Saturday night.

''Sometimes you have a lucky day,'' said the Reds' right-hander, still not at full strength after a bout with mononucleosis in the spring. ''I missed some spots today and they hit the ball not very hard some places that other times they would hammer them.''

Arroyo scattered eight hits as the Diamondbacks failed to convert two scoring threats in the first four innings, then Arizona reliever Juan Gutierrez's throwing error cleared the way for the Reds' four-run ninth.

''Luckily we had the lead, I had a good tempo going, kept those guys off balance enough and gave us an opportunity to get in the bullpen and those guys did the job,'' Arroyo said.

After a 5-0 start, Cincinnati had lost two in a row, the last a 13-2 drubbing in the series opener on Friday, and for most of Saturday night they were locked in a tight one.

Hudson (0-2) gave up two runs on three hits in seven innings, striking out eight and walking three. After scoring twice in the first inning, the Reds had only two baserunners in the next six against the 24-year-old right-hander, and neither got past first base.

''I battled my command in the first inning,'' he said. ''I was throwing a little too much across my body and left a couple of pitches up. I didn't have good command in the first but other than that, I felt good.''

Scott Rolen had an RBI single and Jay Bruce brought in the Reds' second run with a sacrifice fly in the first.

Arizona cut it to 2-1 in the sixth when Chris Young singled, advanced from first to third on Arroyo's throwing error, then scored on Melvin Mora's two-out single.

After Cincinnati's Aroldis Chapman hit 103 mph on the Chase Field radar gun while throwing a scoreless eighth, the Diamondbacks fell apart in the ninth.

Gutierrez walked leadoff batter Joey Votto, and then tried to barehand Rolen's grounder. He knocked the ball down, grabbed it, then threw it away to first. Instead of what could have been a double play had the ball made it past the pitcher to an infielder, runners were at second and third with no outs.

Gomes doubled off the glove of Mora at third to bring both runners home. Gomes called taking advantage of an opponent's mistake ''the name of the game.''

''You look at the end of the season and the more times you do that, the chances are more times you're just flat-out winning ball games. If they're going to give you extra outs, that's what you've got to do is capitalize on them.''

Hudson struck out Drew Stubbs to start the game, then Brandon Phillips singled and Votto walked. Rolen followed with a single for his ninth RBI of the season, then Gomes walked to load the bases with one out.

Jay Bruce hit a fly to short center that Young caught and fired toward home. Hudson cut off the throw and relayed it to third to catch Rolen trying to advance. Votto crossed the plate just before Rolen was tagged out to make it 2-0.

Arizona blew scoring chances in the first and fourth innings.

In the first, Stephen Drew and Justin Upton singled with one out and each stole a base to put runners at second and third with one out. Arroyo fanned Russell Branyan and Young to escape the jam.

In the fourth, Branyan led off with a double off the fence in right but, not particularly fleet of foot, he was held at third on Miguel Montero's single, leaving runners at first and third with one out. Mora popped out, then Gerardo Parra bounced out to end the inning.

NOTES: Votto walked three times. ... Arizona outhit the Reds 9-6. ... Eighteen of the 25 players on Arizona's opening-day roster were not with the team at the start of 2010. ... Ex-Arizona State star RHP Mike Leake (1-0) will make his first appearance against the Diamondbacks when he starts for the Reds in the series finale on Sunday.

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