The division-leading Padres lost 4-2 to Colorado earlier in the day for their 10th consecutive defeat. The Giants have picked up 5 1/2 games on San Diego during the Padres’ skid, going 5-4 during that span. It’s the closest they’ve been to first place in the division in the last 27 days.
Los Angeles has lost six of eight heading into a three-game series at San Diego beginning on Monday.
Sanchez (10-8) yielded three hits, struck out nine and walked one to win for just the second time in his last six appearances. The left-hander was 0-5 with a 6.04 ERA in 13 previous appearances against Los Angeles.
Brian Wilson pitched a perfect ninth for his NL-leading 40th save, completing the three-hitter.
Hiroki Kuroda (10-12) gave up three runs and six hits in eight innings for Los Angeles.
In St. Lois, Matt Holliday hit a go-ahead, three-run homer to back Chris Carpenter’s latest dominant effort against Cincinnati, helping the Cardinals get the victory.
The Cardinals reduced the Reds’ formidable lead to seven games with 28 games to go. The two teams are not scheduled to play again this season.
St. Louis had lost eight of nine overall going into the weekend. This was its first series win since Aug. 20-22 against San Francisco.
Homer Bailey (3-3) walked Albert Pujols intentionally in the sixth inning before giving up Holliday’s two-out shot on a 1-2 hanging breaking ball. Holliday fouled off two pitches before hitting his 25th homer, giving the Cardinals a 4-2 lead.
Carpenter (15-5) struck out a season-high 11 in 7 1-3 innings.
In San Diego, the NL West-leading Padres lost their 10th straight game, with Melvin Mora hitting a go-ahead single that sent the Rockies to a win.
Mora’s tiebreaking hit in the seventh inning gave Colorado its 10th win in 14 games. The Rockies pulled within 4 1/2 games of the reeling Padres.
In Miami, sent to the plate after a scary scene, pinch-hitter Scott Cousins delivered a game-winning single in the 10th inning for his first big league hit and the Marlins beat the Braves.
The Braves had overcome a 6-0 deficit. They began the day with a one-game lead over Philadelphia in the NL East.
Cousins batted after Emilio Bonifacio lined a foul that struck teammate Logan Morrison in the helmet in the on-deck circle. Morrison collapsed face-down as the crowd gasped, but quickly rose and walked off the field accompanied by a trainer.
Bonifacio hit a leadoff triple against Eric O’Flaherty (3-2). Cousins batted for Morrison and singled over the head of left fielder Melky Cabrera . It was only the second at-bat in the majors for Cousins.
In Chicago, Ruben Tejada hit his first major league homer and drove in five runs, Ike Davis also connected and the Mets erupted for 21 hits and pounded the Cubs to avoid a weekend sweep.
The Mets’ bats perked up for season highs in runs and hits even though David Wright got a day off and Jose Reyes was still nursing a strained right oblique. They scored five runs in the fifth, eighth and ninth innings while winning for just the second time in seven games.
Tejada, who had never knocked in more than a run, had a two-run single in the fifth and homered leading off the seventh.
In Philadelphia, Prince Fielder hit his 30th home run, Randy Wolf was sharp against his former team and the Brewers beat the Phillies to snap a five-game losing streak.
Fielder’s three-run shot off Kyle Kendrick (9-8) made him the second Brewer in team history with four straight 30-plus home run seasons. He helped the Brewers end their six-game road trip on a high after dropping the first five in Cincinnati and Philadelphia. John Axford tossed two scoreless innings for his 20th save.
In Pittsburgh, Ryan Zimmerman drove in four runs, Adam Dunn homered and Jason Marquis won his second in a row after previously going winless all season as the Nationals beat the Pirates in a matchup of last-place clubs.
The Nationals outscored the Pirates 17-3 in the final two games of the three-game set for their first road series victory in 18 attempts since they won two of three against the Mets from May 10-12.
Washington did most of its damage against Pirates right-hander Charlie Morton (1-11), who gave up six runs and eight hits over 3 2-3 innings yet still lowered his ERA to 9.66 because four runs were unearned. Morton began the game with a 10.03 ERA that was the third highest in major league history at this stage of a season for a pitcher with at least 10 decisions, according to STATS LLC.
In Phoenix, Hunter Pence’s three-run home run in the first inning helped the Astros beat the Diamondbacks.
Pence drove a pitch from Rodrigo Lopez (5-13) over the right-field fence for his team-high 22nd homer of the season. Michael Bourn walked to lead off the game and Jeff Keppinger followed with a single before Pence’s homer.
The hit was all the Astros needed from their offense on the day. Starter J.A. Happ (6-2) held the Diamondbacks to two runs on six hits over seven innings to get the win, his third straight as an Astro after coming over in a trade with Philadelphia for pitcher Roy Oswalt .
