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CINCINNATI — They were flying out of Great American Small Park like Puffed Wheat and Puffed Rice out of a cannon.

And when the Cincinnati Reds are hitting home runs, the Cincinnati Reds are winning — as in three Wednesday to account for eight runs in a 9-5 victory over the sad Diego Padres.

Javier Valentin hit one with the bases empty in the fifth. Edwin Encarnacion hit one with one on in the sixth. Adam Dunn hit one with the bases loaded in the seventh.

It enabled the Reds to take two of three from the Padres, their fourth of seven on the homestand with three remaining against Colorado.

And it enabled Bronson Arroyo to win his fifth straight start, then make a postgame plea to owner Bob Castellini and general manager Walt Jocketty not to set up trade booths on Joe Nuxhall Way.

Arroyo pleaded his case strongly and, yes, friends in New York tell him his name is mentioned loud and often about Yankee pin-stripes.

"Honestly, if they trade me, they're saying, 'That's it, we're not going to build a winning team here,'" he said. "The starters we have have a chance to pitch here a long time, health-wise and age-wise.

"If they go ahead and trade me out now because of the salary I'll make next year ($25 million in 2009 and 2010), then I feel they're just cashing in the money for a losing team," Arroyo added.

"When I see Bob Castellini I feel like he's a guy who wants to win and I don't think he is ready to say, 'That's it. I've put in as much as I want to put in, then go ahead and start tearing the pieces apart. I hope the vibes I get from him are for real. If it's not, I'll have another surprise coming my way."

Arroyo sees Edinson Volquez, Johnny Cueto, Aaron Harang, Homer Bailey and Daryl Thompson and sees a glossy future, with him in the middle.

There are no thoughts now of returning to Boston and he says, "Definitely, the last two years we have not had the pitching we have now. Everyone around here feels like things are starting to roll and there is no reason to panic."

For four innings 42-year-old Greg Maddux, once a Mandrake of the Mound, had the Reds guessing which hand the baseball was in and getting it wrong nearly every time — no runs, two hits.

Valentin was in the Reds' lineup for one reason — he is a Maddux Mauler. One of the two hits was his single. Then he homered in the fifth to tie the game, 1-1 — and he is now 11-28 (.393) with five homers for his career against Maddux.

"Must be magic," Valentin said with a shrug and a smile. "You have to make him pitch. He wants you to swing at his first pitch. Can't do it. If you wait, sooner or later he will give you one pitch to hit. Don't miss it.

"He is just one guy I feel comfortable against, even though I know he is a great pitcher."

Said manager Dusty Baker. "Everybody has a nemesis and it isn't always the best player. That's just your nemesis. It's a big positive in Javy's head and a big negative in Greg's head. You end up making mistakes to that guy and the pitch to Javy was a ball up and he hadn't gotten a ball up on anybody. He was pitching masterfully."

The Padres led, 3-2, when Maddux left in the sixth with one out and two on. Cla Merideth replaced Maddux and Encarnacion crushed his first pitch for a two-run homer and a 4-3 lead.

Left-hander Joe Thatcher intentionally walked Brandon Phillips ahead of Dunn in the seventh and Dunn crushed his eighth career grand slam and his 29th homer this season.

While Maddux can't purchase or pilfer a win, Arroyo is 5-0 with a 3.07 ERA over his last five starts, pushing his record to 9-7, after giving up three runs (two homers) and six hits over seven innings Wednesday.

Lost in the swirl of home runs and big-time pitching was one play that turned the game. Brandon Phillips was picked off second base by Maddux in the sixth inning — caught in a rundown, known as a pickle.

At the time the score was 3-1 for San Diego. But in the back-and-forth, shortstop Khalil Greene dropped a throw and Phillips made third.

He then scored on Dunn's infield squibber to the left of second base and Encarnacion homered for the 4-3 lead.

"I asked Phillips, 'Hey, man, were you pretty good playing pickle when you were a kid?'" said Baker. "And he told me he was one of the best and that's what it looked like."

Dunn, perhaps wishing to duck more talk about his possible trade, dressed quickly and was gone before the media hit the clubhouse after his five-RBI day.

"When Adam Dunn heats up, there is nothing better," said Baker. "And right now he is starting to heat up. He isn't fouling off balls like he was doing before. He is centering the ball and, man, he can carry you for an extended period of time."

Next game

Who: Rockies (Cook, 12-6) at Reds (Volquez, 12-3)

When: 7:10 p.m. Friday, July 25.

TV: FSN

Radio: WONE-AM (980), WLW-AM (700)