MIAMI, 3 August 2003 — Jeff Kent struck a solo homer and Josh Beckett’s balk allowed the winning run to score as the Houston Astros cooled off the Florida Marlins 2-1 in the National League on Friday.

Florida lost for only the second time in 10 outings and had its six-game winning streak snapped, while the Astros held on to their lead in the NL Central.

Tim Redding (8-9) allowed one run on six hits over seven solid innings to pick up the win. He struck out five and walked one.

Octavio Dotel pitched a scoreless eighth before Billy Wagner closed out the game with a scoreless ninth, earning his 32nd save of the season.

Kent homered in the second before Houston took a 2-0 lead in the fourth. Jeff Bagwell tripled and later scored the decisive run when Beckett was called for a balk.

Beckett (5-5) gave up two runs on two hits over seven innings with nine strikeouts and no walks. Luis Castillo had three hits for the Marlins and drove in their run in the fifth.

Phillies 6 Padres 0

In Philadelphia, Kevin Millwood was perfect for 5 1/3 innings before settling for a three-hit shutout as the Phillies blanked the San Diego Padres 6-0. Millwood (11-7) struck out eight and walked one.

Expos 8 Brewers 4

In Montreal, Tomo Ohka pitched seven solid innigns for his first win in more than a month as the Expos beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-4. Ohka (8-10) allowed one run on eight hits over seven innings.

Reds 5 Giants 3

In Cincinnati, Barry Larkin and Juan Castro homered to lead the Reds past the San Francisco Giants 5-3. It was only the second homer of the season for Larkin, who has twice been on the disabled list.

Pirates 12 Rockies 11

In Pittsburgh, Jason Kendall’s single drove in the winning run in the ninth inning to lead the Pirates to a 12-11 triumph over the Colorado Rockies. Trailing 11-6 heading to the bottom of the ninth, the Pirates exploded for six runs with two coming on a triple by Tike Redmond that tied the game.

Cubs 4 Diamondbacks 3 (14 innings)

In Chicago, Aramis Ramirez drove in the winning run in the bottom of the 14th inning with a single to give the Cubs a 4-3 decision over the Arizona Diamondbacks. The game was delayed by rain for three hours and ended almost eight hours after it started.

Cardinals 8 Mets 2

In New York, Scott Rolen, Miguel Cairo and pitcher Steve Kline all drove in two runs to steer the St. Louis Cardinals to an 8-2 win over the Mets. Edgar Renteria homered and had three hits for St. Louis, which scored six runs in the eighth inning.

Braves 2 Dodgers 0

In Atlanta, Andruw Jones homered and Greg Maddux tossed five shutout innings as the Braves blanked the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-0 in another game delayed by rain. Maddux (10-8) allowed two hits while striking out four and walking two. Robert Fick drove in the other run for the Braves while John Smoltz had three outs for his 41st save of the season.

White Sox Catch Royals After Mauling Mariners

Carl Everett homered and drove in five runs to help the Chicago White Sox move into a tie for first place in the American League Central Division with a 12-1 mauling of the Seattle Mariners on Friday.

Carlos Lee homered, had three hits and drove in two runs for the White Sox, who have won five straight games to catch the Royals in the standings, including three at Kansas City before heading out West.

Paul Konerko also homered for Chicago, which has won 13 of its last 14 games. The Sox trailed the Royals by eight games on July 17.

Bartolo Colon (9-9) went eight strong innings for the win, allowing one run on seven hits with eight strikeouts and no walks. Freddy Garcia (9-11) was belted for seven runs on seven hits in 1 2/3 innings to take the loss.

Angels 5 Blue Jays 0

In Anaheim, Ramon Ortiz pitched seven shutout innings as the Angels ended Roy Halladay’s 15-game winning streak with a 5-0 drubbing of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Orioles 2 Red Sox 1

In Baltimore, Pat Hentgen allowed one run on four hits over eight-plus innings as the Orioles edged the Boston Red Sox 2-1.

Rangers 10 Indians 3

In Arlington, Texas, Mark Teixeira and Todd Greene both struck two homers to lead the Rangers to a 10-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians.

Alex Rodriguez, Michael Young and Rafael Palmeiro, with the 515th of his career, also collected home runs for Texas. John Thomson (9-10) allowed three runs on five hits over eight innings for the win.

Twins 10 Tigers 4

In Minneapolis, Shannon Stewart had three hits, including a homer, and drove in two runs to help the Minnesota Twins brush aside the Detroit Tigers 10-4. AJ Pierzynski also had three hits and drove in a run for the Twins while Mike Restovich and Denny Hocking both drove in two runs.

Devil Rays 9 Royals 6

In Kansas City, Travis Lee homered, had three hits and drove in four runs to hand the Tampa Bay Devil Rays their fourth straight victory, a 9-6 decision over the Royals.

Marlon Anderson had two hits and drove in two runs for the Devil Rays. Brandon Backe (1-0) tossed four innings of one-hit shutout relief for the win while Lance Carter pitched the ninth for his 19th save of the season.

Athletics 3 Yankees 2 (10 innings)

In Oakland, Miguel Tejada homered in the bottom of the 10th inning to clinch a 3-2 victory for the Athletics over the New York Yankees.

Keith Foulke (8-1) pitched two shutout innings of relief for the win while Mark Ellis and Scott Hatteberg both had two hits for Oakland.

Antonio Osuna (2-3) was the loser, allowing one run on one hit in 2/3 innings. Jorge Posada and Derek Jeter drove in the New York runs.