CINCINNATI (Reuters) - Cincinnati and St Louis delivered another dramatic encounter in their intense NL Central rivalry on Friday when Brandon Phillips struck a walk-off home run to rally the Reds to a 6-5 victory. Trailing 5-4 and down to their last out in the ninth inning, Phillips belted a two-run homer to snatch the win for the Reds (46-47) and trotted joyously around the bases.
It was a satisfying moment for Phillips, who was a central figure in a nasty brawl between the two teams last season.
St. Louis (49-44) had taken a 5-4 lead in the eighth on a two-run home run from Albert Pujols. But Cincinnati struck back against reliever Fernando Salas, who gave up Phillips' homer and took the loss.
The defeat dropped St Louis into a tie with Pittsburgh at the top of the division.
(Writing by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
