HOUSTON — This one smelled like a trap the moment the Cincinnati Reds tiptoed from out of the Texas humidity and into the air-conditioned comfort of Minute Maid Park.

The Astros were on an eight-game losing streak, had lost 10 of 11, and manager Phil Garner was rumored to be the next Texas-style lynching.

"Come visit my web," said the Astros to the Reds.

Clearly, this was a game played by one team walking on egg shells and the other on broken glass.

Fortunately for the Reds, after a long evening's struggle, first baseman Scott Hatteberg broke a tie with an eighth-inning home that produced a 2-1 Cincinnati victory.

That's two straight. Two in a row. One-two. It's the first time the Reds have won back-to-back games since May 1, 28 games ago.

It prompted Reds starter Matt Belisle to smile broadly and say, "The guys were joking, a quote from the movie Major League, 'If we win one tomorrow, it's called a winning streak and it has been done before.' That's funny, but I think we'll feed off the momentum of two in a row."

The Reds were 0-9 this season when they were tied in the seventh inning, but were tied, 1-1, in the seventh inning Tuesday and won.

The Astros had beaten the Reds seven of the first nine times they met this season, but Belisle masterfully put a temporary restraining order on that, holding Houston to one run and four hits over 7 2/3 innings, walking none and striking out a career-best eight.

"The angle on my pitches were real good tonight," said Belisle. "I've been elevating some balls the last few games. The quality of my pitches was a lot better, and I was hitting the outside corner. My pitches were down and away instead of down the middle, and I was able to mix in some good curveballs later."

The Reds were Saran-wrapped for five innings by Jason Jennings, a pitcher making only his third start of the season and first since April 8, spending 46 days on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation. He mesmerized the Reds for no runs and three hits for five innings, then departed.

The Astros scored in the second after Belisle had two outs and nobody on. Craig Biggio doubled to left, and Adam Everett drove a low liner to center.

Norris Hopper attempted a diving catch and the ball whizzed past him, scoring Biggio. Everett was out at the plate trying for an inside-the-park home run.

That turned into a game-saver — Hopper scrambling after the ball and relaying it to second baseman Brandon Phillips, who threw it home.

"That was a seed, a four-seam fastball," said Belisle. "I had a good view of it, but I heard it more than saw it. A huge, huge play."

Springfield native and former Red Rick White replaced Jennings in the sixth and gave up two quick hits, a double off the third-base bag by Hopper and a single by Hatteberg. Trever Miller took over and walked Ken Griffey Jr., filling the bases with no outs.

Brad Lidge was next on the mound, and the Reds got one run, a sacrifice fly by Adam Dunn to tie it, 1-1, setting the scene for Hatteberg's eighth-inning homer, his fifth, on a 2-1 pitch against Chad Qualls.

And you know flowers are sprouting when Hatteberg turned from villain to superhero in one at-bat.

Hopper, who had three hits, led the eighth with a single. Manager Jerry Narron flashed the hit-and-run. Hopper ran, but Hatteberg didn't hit. He watched the pitch go by, and Hopper was thrown out at second.

"My mind said swing, but my body wouldn't do it because the pitch was too bad," said Hatteberg. "Honestly, the way it worked out (the home run), I wasn't too disappointed. I pride myself in being able to do that (hit-and-run), then I go up there and do that. My body wouldn't swing at it. (Catcher) Brad Ausmus made a perfect throw, and there went our rally."

Until Hatteberg decided to swing and cracked the home run.

"I'm glad I made up for it because those mistakes are not what we need right now," he said. "I'm supposed to swing at anything, but the pitch was so bad that my mindset is not to do it. I screwed it up and thank God I made up for it, even though home runs are not my game."

David Weathers made it all-consuming in the ninth when he walked two with one out to fill the bases. He was rescued on a double play started by Alex Gonzalez, who scrambled around in the dirt like a kid in a sandbox retrieving the ball in time to tag second base and throw Carlos Lee out at first.

"We all felt all along we can play better than we have, and when we get good starting pitching like we have the last two days (Kyle Lohse's shutout Monday and Belisle's production Tuesday) we can win," said Narron. "Now with Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo going back-to-back, we feel pretty good."