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MILWAUKEE -- Jonathan Lucroy has been frustrated, struggling at the plate the past month despite being named to his first All-Star team. T. J. Oshie Jersey . That all changed Tuesday night against the Cincinnati Reds. Lucroy homered leading off the bottom of the ninth to give the Milwaukee Brewers a 4-3 victory over the Reds. "To be honest with you, the last couple of weeks have been kind of tough for making solid contact, but Im glad to help the team out, contribute and get it done tonight," said Lucroy, who was batting just .200 (21 for 105) in his last 25 games. It was Lucroys second homer of the game and 11th of the season. It was his second career walkoff homer and both were against the Reds. His first was last season off closer Aroldis Chapman and this one was off Sam LeCure. The Brewers had lost five consecutive series before beating the Reds in the first two games of this series. Lucroys average had dipped from .341 on June 18 to .308 entering Tuesday nights game. "Hes frustrated because he thinks hes squaring up some balls," Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke said. "Its not like he wasnt locked in, but today obviously he was." Francisco Rodriguez (4-3) pitched the ninth to earn the victory. Cincinnati, which is 0-5 since the All-Star break, brought in LeCure (1-2) to pitch the ninth. His outing lasted just three pitches as Lucroy hit a 1-1 offering for a line drive homer inside the left field foul pole. His first homer of the game was on a 3-2 pitch from starter Homer Bailey in the sixth. The Reds came out of the All-Star break just 1 1/2 games behind Milwaukee in the NL Central but have quickly fallen 4 1/2 games back. "We just havent executed," Cincinnati manager Bryan Price said. "We havent swung the bats well. We havent gotten a quality start. "And we havent played particularly good defence, weve missed some signs and just havent played terribly well," he said. Milwaukee scored all its runs on solo home runs. Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez hit back-to-back homers in the first inning on the one-year anniversary of the start of Brauns 65-game suspension for violating Major League Baseballs drug policies. "Im glad Im not facing them so its nice to have them on our side," Milwaukee starter Jimmy Nelson said of having Braun, Ramirez and Lucroy in the lineup. Braun hit his 13th homer and Ramirez followed with his 12th homer, and first since June 26. Cincinnati made it 2-1 in the fourth on Jay Bruces RBI double that scored Billy Hamilton from third. Lucroys first homer extended Milwaukees lead to 3-1. Cincinnati tied it 3-3 in the seventh. Nelson hit Ramon Santiago on the foot with a pitch with the bases loaded and pinch-hitter Chris Heisey hit a sacrifice fly off reliever Brandon Kintzler. Billy Hamilton then hit a soft fly ball but Zack Cozart was doubled off second base to end the inning. Kintzler, Zach Duke and Rodriguez pitched three hitless innings of relief for Milwaukee. "Kintzler did a great job, coming in with the bases loaded and no outs," Nelson said. The Reds managed only five hits and Milwaukee had six. Nelson allowed three runs, four hits and a walk and hit three batters while striking out five in his fourth major league start. "He was down in the zone and his slider was good," Roenicke said. Bailey allowed three runs, four hits and two walks while striking out three in his first start since leaving a game against the Chicago Cubs on July 10 due to right knee soreness. NOTES: Brewers 2B Scooter Gennett left the game in the fifth inning due to tightness in his right quad. Roenicke said he was day-to-day. ... Cozart left the game after being hit on the right hand by a pitch from Nelson in the seventh inning. X-rays were negative and the team said he was day-to-day. ... The Reds placed RHP Logan Ondrusek on the 15-day DL retroactive to July 13 and recalled RHP Curtis Partch from Triple-A Louisville. ... A brief rain shower caused the Brewers to close roof at Miller Park in the fourth inning. It reopened in the sixth. Mike Gartner Capitals Jersey .Y. -- Syracuse guard Trevor Cooney was mired in a shooting slump, and his woes coincided with a late-season swoon by the Orange. Braden Holtby Jersey . After falling 5-0 on home ice in a game that could have tied them for second in the wild card standings, Washington head coach Adam Oates had some strong words for Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin. http://www.capitalsteamstoreonline.com/ .The Ottawa Senators winger was relegated to a corner seat in the locker-room to allow Daniel Alfredsson to return to his regular stall one last time.KAMLOOPS, B.C. -- Its crunch time on Thursday for two of the top teams at the Canadian mens curling championships as they fight for the right to play in the one vs. two game on Friday. Should B.C.s John Morris win, he would be guaranteed a top-two finish, most likely No. 1 since he handed Alberta their only loss. That victory gave both teams 8-1 records, with Morris getting an edge because his rink won the head-to-head matchup. "We want that one-two game," he said. "If we win tomorrow morning were in the one-two game." Should Manitobas Jeff Stoughton win, he would be in control and need only beat Ontario in the evening draw to ensure a top-two finish. He was just as anxious Wednesday after a win left Manitoba at 7-2. "We play B.C. which is a huge game for us," he said. "We play them in the morning and that could mean getting into the one-two game which is very important." Stoughton looked more in control and said he felt that way as well. Manitoba started with four wins then lost games to Alberta and Quebec but has bounced back. Alberta continued its roll with a 10-5 win over Ontarios Greg Balsdon in Wednesdays evening draw. Kevin Koe and Alberta have only Prince Edward island (3-6) and Quebec (4-4) standing in their way of a guaranteed top-two finish. The late draw had meaning for the teams jockeying for fourth place and a shot at making the final through the 3-4 game. "This was a big bounce-back game," said Saskatchewans Steve Laycock, after beating Prince Edward Island 8-5 to improve to 5-3, good enough for fourth spot. "We had a couple of tough ones in a row against Alberta and Manitoba, which we knew they would be . . . Heading into the final couple of days we know we control our own destiny now." They play Ontario aand B. Custom Washington Capitals Jerseys. C. on Thursday. Ontario fell to 4-4 with the loss to Alberta. "Tomorrows a big one," said Laycock. Earlier, Morris and B.C. scored a big five in the third end and coasted to an 8-3 win in eight over Ontario. Manitobas Stoughton continued to keep the leaders in sight with a 7-4 win over Laycock. Stoughton and third John Mead looked a lot more in control, although they also benefited from Laycocks mistakes. "We got a great deuce in the first end and then it was pretty mistake free," he said. "A lot of great shots made, you have to do that, and it felt pretty good all around for all of our guys." Stoughton also faces Balsdon Thursday and the Brier rookie from Toronto wasnt giving up hope. "Weve got a tough day tomorrow with Saskatchewan and Manitoba but if we can win our last three games, 7-4 . . . should be okay for a tiebreaker anyway." Morris and B.C. are clicking even more than they did at the Olympic trials, where they lost the final to Brad Jacobs. Jim Cotter, who throws fourth stones for B.C., has gained a lot of confidence and it shows, agrees Stoughton. "I think Johns just brought so much confidence to that team. Hes made them believe that theyre a great team, which they obviously are." Morris was ranked as the top third (based on the stones he throws), Cotter the top skip and Rick Sawatsky the top lead in cumulative percentages after the first two draws on Wednesday. Only Manitoba second Mark Nichols stopped it from being a B.C. sweep. Also, Quebecs Jean-Michel Menard still has hope after improving to 4-4 with an 8-3 win over winless Nova Scotias Jamie Murphy. On the outside looking in, New Brunswicks James Grattan sits at 4-5 after beating the Territories Jamie Koe 8-3, leaving Koe at 3-6. ' ' '