CINCINNATI (AP) _ Oh, brother!

When the Cincinnati Reds put their final lineup of the season on the field Sunday, it made a footnote to baseball history. For the first time, two sets of brothers were in the same lineup.

The Reds called up Stephen Larkin _ the younger brother of Barry Larkin _ on Sunday so they could pull off the first. The Larkins teamed with the Boones _ Aaron and Bret _ for an all-brother infield.

``This is a chance to witness history,″ manager Jack McKeon said. ``It’s the first time in the history of the game that two sets of brothers have played in the same infield.″

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When the Reds took the field, there was Stephen Larkin at first, Bret Boone at second, Barry Larkin at short and Aaron Boone at third.

The four of them played infield together twice during spring training _ on March 5, 1996 against Detroit and on March 4, 1997 against Toronto _ but had never been together on the same major league roster.

The only other sets of brother ever to play for the same major league team in the same season were Carson and Lyle Bigbee and Johnny and Phil Morrison of the 1921 Pittsburgh Pirates. They never appeared in the same game together.

The Reds finished their season Sunday against the Pirates.

``Since we were playing the Pirates, we thought, `Let’s outdo ‘em,’ ″ McKeon said.

The Reds provided a brother footnote earlier this season when they played Montreal. That set up the first meeting of siblings in the 1990s _ Cincinnati’s Boones and Montreal’s Guerrero brothers, Vladimir and Wilton.

Bret Boone and the two Guerrero brothers all homered in Cincinnati’s 6-4 victory on Aug. 16.

The Larkins have long hoped for a chance to play together in a major league game. Stephen, 25, hit .228 for Double-A Chattanooga this season before going on the disabled list Aug. 14 to have his pacemaker replaced.

Stephen Larkin has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a thickening of the heart walls that can lead to an irregular heartbeat. The pacemaker takes care of the problem.

Stephen Larkin was in Sarasota, Fla., doing some Instructional League work when the Reds told him about the promotion.

``My family’s extremely happy about it,″ Barry Larkin said. ``And I’ve always wanted to play on the same team with him. Hopefully we’ll be able to do this for an extended period. This is one game at the end of the season. I hope we can do something in the future.″

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While the rest of the Reds laughed and went about preparing for the last game of a losing season, Stephen Larkin sat quietly by his dressing cubicle, tugging on his new cap.

``I’m kind of nervous right now,″ he said. ``I’m trying to think of it as another game. It’s not that easy.″