NEW YORK, 12 September 2004 — Rookie John van Benschoten pitched eight strong innings to seize his first major league victory, powering the Pittsburgh Pirates past the Houston Astros 6-1 in the National League (NL) Friday.
The Astros took a 12-game winning streak into the first contest of a doubleheader Thursday but have now lost two of three to the lowly Pirates as they battle with Chicago and San Francisco for the NL wildcard lead. Van Benschoten (1-3) was effective in his third major league start, allowing one run on five hits with three strikeouts and one walk. Salomon Torres tossed a hitless ninth to finish up for the Pirates, who host the Astros two more times on the weekend to complete the five-game series.
In Chicago, Carl Pavano delivered a seven-hit shutout to lead the Florida Marlins to a 7-0 blanking of the Cubs in the first game of a doubleheader. Pavano (17-5), who also had two hits and an RBI, struck out six batters and walked none. Miguel Cabrera recorded three hits and drove in three runs while Paul Lo Duca drove in two runs.
In game two, Mark Prior pitched eight solid innings to lift the Cubs to an 11-2 triumph. Prior (5-4) gave up two runs on nine hits with eight strikeouts and no walks. Moises Alou homered, had three hits and drove in four runs and Aramis Ramirez also homered for the Cubs, who got four hits from Neifi Perez.
In Cincinnati, Willy Mo Pena homered for the second straight night as the Reds ended a four-game losing streak with a 6-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Josh Hancock (4-2) yielded three runs on seven hits over six innings for the win and Danny Graves pitched the ninth for his 38th save of the season.
In New York, Jason Michaels had four hits, including a homer, and drove in four runs as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Mets 9-5. Placido Polanco also homered for the Phillies while David Bell had three hits. Todd Jones (10-5) pitched a perfect sixth inning and received credit for the win.
In Atlanta, Johnny Estrada’s three-run homer gave the Braves a 4-3 win over the Montreal Expos. John Thomson (11-8) surrendered two runs, one earned, on seven hits over six innings for the victory. John Smoltz notched the last six outs for his 37th save of the season and Marcus Giles also homered for the Braves.
In Denver, Khalil Greene and Ryan Klesko thumped three-run homers as the San Diego Padres defeated the Colorado Rockies 10-4. Xavier Nady also homered for the Padres. Brian Lawrence (14-12) gave up four runs on eight hits over six innings for the win.
In Phoenix, Doug DeVore’s two-run homer helped Randy Johnson and the Arizona Diamondbacks edge the San Francisco Giants 2-1. Johnson (13-13) yielded one run on four hits with eight strikeouts and one walk to win his 100th game with the D-Backs on his 41st birthday.
In Los Angeles, Steve Finley belted a tie-breaking, two-run homer in the seventh inning to nudge the Dodgers past the St. Louis Cardinals 7-6. Shawn Green, Jayson Werth and Adrian Beltre, with his 45th of the season, also homered for the Dodgers. Giovanni Carrara (5-2) tossed a scoreless inning of relief for the victory.
