PITTSBURGH, 22 June 2005 — Jose Guillen hit a pair of home runs and Livan Hernandez won his ninth straight decision as the Washington Nationals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-4 in National League action at PNC Park on Monday.
The surprising Nationals improved to 41-29 as they continue to lead the NL East in their first season in the US capital after moving from Montreal.
Washington has won 17 of its last 21 games, including four times in seven on the current road trip. Hernandez (10-2) allowed four runs — just two earned — on eight hits with two strikeouts and one walk. Gary Majewski tossed a scoreless eighth and Chad Cordero finished up for his 22nd save. Brad Wilkerson, Cristian Guzman and Brad Wilkerson all drove in two runs for the Nationals, while Brian Schneider had three hits.
In other games, Chris Carpenter pitched eight solid innings as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Reds 6-1 in Cincinnati. Carpenter (10-4) allowed one run on four hits, walking two and striking out eight. Reggie Sanders and Albert Pujols homered for the Cardinals.
In Houston, Lance Berkman homered as the Astros beat the Colorado Rockies 7-0. Andy Pettitte (4-7) pitched seven solid innings, allowing five hits, walking one and striking out eight for the win.
In Milwaukee, Aramis Ramirez hit a two-run homer as the Chicago Cubs beat the Brewers 5-4. Greg Maddux (6-4) pitched six innings, allowing three runs on seven hits, walking three and striking out two. Ryan Dempster pitched 1 2/3 innings for his ninth save. Derrek Lee homered for the Cubs and Maddux earned his 311th career victory to tie Tom Seaver for 17th on the career list.
In San Diego, Jake Peavy tossed a two-hitter over eight innings as the Padres blanked the Dodgers 1-0. Peavy (6-2) struck out 13 and walked one and Trevor Hoffman finished for his 18th save, completing the three-hitter. Brian Giles had three hits and drove in a run.
In San Francisco, Pedro Feliz and Mike Matheny belted back-to-back homers in the bottom of the seventh inning as the Giants beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 8-3.
Noah Lowry (4-6) pitched 5 2/3 solid innings to pick up the win, striking out three and giving up no runs on six hits.
Ramirez Drives Red Sox
Past Indians, Ends Streak
In Cleveland, Manny Ramirez homered and drove in four runs as the Boston Red Sox edged the Cleveland Indians 10-9 in American League play at Jacobs Field on Monday.
Jason Varitek and Ramirez both had three-run shots as the Red Sox withstood a Cleveland rally to end the Indians’ nine-game winning streak. Boston scored six runs in the fifth inning to take a 9-4 lead but the Tribe battled back to make a game of it in the late innings before falling short by a run.
Ramirez wound up with three hits for Boston, while Johnny Damon also homered for the Red Sox and had two hits and two RBIs.
David Wells (6-4) allowed four runs on 10 hits over five innings and got the win, striking out four and walking two. Keith Foulke struggled but got the last four outs for his 14th save.
In other games, Vernon Wells hit a three-run homer as the Blue Jays beat the Baltimore Orioles 11-2. Ted Lilly (5-7) pitched seven innings, allowing two runs on three hits, walking two and striking out 10 for the win. Aaron Hill and Shea Hillenbrand also homered for the Blue Jays.
In New York, Casey Fossum pitched seven strong innings as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Yankees 5-4. Fossum (3-5) allowed one run on three hits, walking three and striking out five.
Danys Baez pitched 1 1/3 innings for his 10th save. Julio Lugo had three hits and drove in one run for the Devil Rays.
In Chicago, Paul Konerko homered and drove in four runs as the White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals 11-8. Neal Cotts (2-0) pitched 2 1/3 innings, allowing six runs on seven hits, walking four for the win. Dustin Hermanson pitched one inning for his 17th save.
Frank Thomas and Jermaine Dye homered for the White Sox.
In Anaheim, Paul Byrd pitched a complete-game six-hitter as the Los Angeles Angels beat the Texas Rangers 5-1. Byrd (7-5) allowed one run and struck out four and walked one in pitching his first complete game since he had arm surgery two years ago.
In Seattle, Mark Kotsay hit a three-run homer as the Oakland Athletics beat the Mariners 6-2. Dan Haren (5-7) allowed two runs on six hits over eight innings for the win. Nick Swisher and Bobby Kielty also both homered for the A’s.
