When the Cincinnati Reds needed a big home run on Sunday, down by a run with two outs in the ninth, they sent right-hander Micah Owings to the plate as a pinch-hitter. St. Louis closer Ryan Franklin hadn’t allowed a run all season when Jerry Hairston Jr. and Owings teed off, though the Cardinals prevailed in the 10 th on a Colby Rasmus RBI double.

Owings, who is 6-for-18 (.333) at the plate this season, is 3-for-5 with two doubles and a homer as a pinch-hitter. In his two-plus major league campaigns, the 26-year-old right-hander is batting .346 (9-for-26) pinch-hitting for a teammate -- and he’s got a pair of home runs.

Only 15 players have hit more pinch homers than Owings since he reached the majors in April 2007. The most in this span is six by Matt Stairs, in just 64 at-bats. Three players have four, and another 11 have three.

Among the 53 players with at least two pinch homers since the start of the 2007 season, Owings ranks eighth with a .692 slugging percentage as a pinch-hitter. If you place him with the 15 players with three or more pinch homers to make a sweet 16, the Reds starter is fourth in slugging:

Highest SLG among PHs with Three Pinch Homers, 2007 Season & Since
(includes Owings with 2 Pinch Homers)

Pinch-Hitter. . . . . . .AB. . . . . . . .HR. . . . . . . .RBIs. . . . . . . SLG
Marcus Thames. . . . . 19. . . . . . . . 3. . . . . . . . .10. . . . . . . . .947
Cody Ross. . . . . . . . .23. . . . . . . . 4. . . . . . . . . .8. . . . . . . . .913
Jason Giambi. . . . . . .21. . . . . . . . 3. . . . . . . . . .5. . . . . . . . .810

Micah Owings. . . . . . 26. . . . . . . . 2. . . . . . . . . .8. . . . . . . . .692
Geoff Jenkins. . . . . . 30. . . . . . . . 3. . . . . . . . . .9. . . . . . . . .667
Matt Stairs. . . . . . . . 64. . . . . . . . 6. . . . . . . . .17. . . . . . . . .641

With his bat, Owings is likely to make more pinch-hitting appearances in 2009 than the number of times he’ll be pinch-hit for. A reputation as a clutch pinch-hitter may start earning him intentional walks as well.