CHICAGO, 2 August 2003 — Sammy Sosa continued his hot streak, hitting a three-run homer and driving in four runs to power the Chicago Cubs to a 9-4 win over the San Francisco Giants in the National League Thursday.
Sosa collected 13 homers in July, the most in the majors, and drove in 29 runs. He doubled home a run in the first and grabbed his homer in the sixth to help the Cubs pull away.
Moises Alou drove in two runs for the Cubs while Damian Miller had two hits and drove in a run. Kenny Lofton added three hits to the Chicago attack.
Carlos Zambrano (9-8) allowed four runs on nine hits to pick up the win. He struck out five and walked five before Joe Borowski finished up with a scoreless ninth.
Jim Brower (7-3) gave up five runs, four earned, on seven hits over five innings to take the loss. Edgardo Alfonzo homered, had two hits and drove in two runs for the Giants. Rich Aurilia and Andres Galarraga both added two hits.
Expos 3 Cardinals 2
In Montreal, Vladimir Guerrero homered and drove in all three runs as the Expos edged the St Louis Cardinals 3-2.
Zach Day (5-4) allowed one run on five hits over six innings for the win. Rocky Biddle tossed a scoreless ninth for his 26th save of the season. Woody Williams (14-4) gave up three runs on seven hits over six innings. Bo Hart had two hits and drove in a run for the Cardinals.
Padres 10 Pirates 7
In Pittsburgh, Mark Loretta had four hits and drove in three runs to help the San Diego Padres defeat the Pirates 10-7.
Gary Matthews Jr homered and drove in two runs while Ramon Vazquez had three hits and one RBI. Adam Eaton (6-7) went five innings for the win, allowing six runs on six hits, while Rod Beck pitched a scoreless ninth for his 14th save of the season.
Brewers 4 Mets 3
In New York, Matt Kinney pitched six solid innings to steer the Milwaukee Brewers to a 4-3 triumph over the Mets. Kinney (7-8) allowed one run on four hits over six innings for the win while Danny Kolb pitched a scoreless ninth for his fourth save of the season.
Phillies 7 Dodgers 3
In Philadelphia, Tomas Perez and Placido Polanco both hit three-run homers to secure the Phillies a 7-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Brandon Duckworth (4-5) claimed the victory, allowing one run on four hits over seven innings, as the Dodgers completed a sweep of the three-game series.
Reds 5 Rockies 4 (10 innings)
In Cincinnati, Jason LaRue homered in the 10th inning as the Reds edged the Colorado Rockies 5-4. John Riedling (1-3) pitched two hitless innings for the win. Russell Branyan also homered for the Reds. Brian Fuentes (2-1) allowed one run on one hit in one inning to take the loss.
Braves 7 Astros 4
In Atlanta, Javy Lopez cracked a three-run homer in a six-run first inning to lead the Braves past the Houston Astros 7-4.
Shane Reynolds (9-5) allowed four runs on six hits over seven innings for the win while John Smoltz pitched a scoreless ninth for his 40th save of the season. Andruw Jones drove in two runs for Atlanta.
Wade Miller (7-10) gave up six runs, five earned, on six hits in two innings to take the loss.
Rookie Harden Delights Oakland Crowd
In Oakland, California, rookie Rich Harden tossed seven shutout innings in his home debut to help the Oakland Athletics to a 3-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians in the American League Thursday.
The 21-year-old right-hander, one of baseball’s best young prospects, received several standing ovations from the crowd during his performance, giving up three hits while striking out nine and walking four.
Harden (2-0) struck out eight of nine batters he faced at one point as he led the A’s to their eighth win in 11 games and their second victory in the three-game series with the Indians. Chad Bradford gave up a run in the eighth before Keith Foulke pitched a scoreless ninth for his 28th save of the season.
Miguel Tejada had a two-run single for the A’s while Eric Chavez homered.
Devil Rays 7 Blue Jays 6
In Toronto, Damian Rolls homered and drove in three runs as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays edged the Blue Jays 7-6.
Rolls had three hits to guide the Devil Rays to a sweep of the three-game series. Jorge Sosa (4-8) allowed two runs on three hits over 5 1/3 innings to get the win while Lance Carter recorded the last two outs for his 18th save of the season.Mark Hendrickson (6-8) gave up five runs on nine hits in 4 1/3 innings to take the loss.
Mariners 4 Tigers 0
In Seattle, Joel Pineiro tossed seven shutout innings to win his eighth straight decision as the Mariners shutout the Detroit Tigers 4-0. Pineiro (13-5) allowed two hits while striking out six and walking six. Mike Cameron homered and drove in two runs for Seattle while John Olerud and Randy Winn drove in the other runs.
White Sox 8 Royals 6 (11 innings)
In Kansas City, Sandy Alomar recorded a pinch-hit, two-run double in the 11th inning to hand the Chicago White Sox an 8-6 win over the Royals. The White Sox moved within a game of the first-place Royals in the AL Central with their third straight victory over Kansas City. Carlos Lee added two homers for the Sox and drove in three runs while Paul Konerko also homered. Scott Schoeneweis (2-1) picked up his first win for the White Sox, allowing one run on two hits in two innings.
Rangers 7 Red Sox 3 (11 innings)
In Arlington, Texas, Alex Rodriguez connected on a grand slam homer in the bottom of the 11th inning to guide the Rangers past the Boston Red Sox 7-3. Rodriguez’s 25th home run of the season was the second game-winning grand slam of his career.
Twins 10 Orioles 9 (10 innings)
In Minneapolis, Jacque Jones singled in the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the Minnesota Twins a 10-9 triumph over the Baltimore Orioles. The Twins tied the game with two ninth-inning runs, Doug Mientkiewicz scoring the tying run from second base on a passed ball after a called third strike.
Yankees 2 Angels 1 (10 innings)
In Anaheim, Nick Johnson drove in the winning run with a single in the top of the 10th inning as the New York Yankees defeated the Angels 2-1.
Armando Benitez (4-4) pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings for the win while Mariano Rivera recorded the last three outs for his 20th save of the season.
