The Reds’ magic number for clinching the NL Central was
trimmed to two before the first pitch when the St. Louis Cardinals lost 7-3 at
the Chicago Cubs.
Denorfia’s shot off Chapman (1-2) went down the line,
skipping past the glove of third baseman Scott Rolen and scoring Chase Headley from
first. Left fielder Jonny Gomes made a sliding stop in foul territory before it
got to the wall, but Headley beat the throw home.
Heath Bell (6-0) pitched the ninth for the win.
Rockies 10 Giants 9, 10 innings: In Denver, Troy Tulowitzki capped a four-hit night with an
RBI double in the 10th inning and the Rockies gave their faint playoff hopes a
boost with a victory over San Francisco.
Tulowitzki homered, doubled and had five RBIs to help the
Rockies snap a five-game slide and pull within four games of first place in the
NL West.
Carlos Gonzalez started the winning rally with a one-out
single off All-Star closer Brian Wilson (3-3).
Huston Street (4-4) pitched two scoreless innings for the
win.
Mets 5 Phillies 2: In Philadelphia, Lucas Duda hit a
three-run double in the Mets’ five-run seventh inning, and New York snapped
Philadelphia’s 11-game winning streak.
The NL East-leading Phillies missed out on a chance to
clinch a fourth straight playoff berth — all they need is one win or Atlanta
loss and they’re in — with their first defeat since Sept. 11 in New York.
Philadelphia’s magic number to secure its fourth consecutive division title is
two.
Rookie Dillon Gee (2-1), making his fourth big league start,
allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings, helping the Mets end a
season-high six-game skid.
Braves 5 Nationals 0: In Washington, Braves manager Bobby Cox earned
his 2,500th win, getting five effective innings from Derek Lowe and a three-run
homer from Alex Gonzalez .
The 69-year-old Cox, set to retire at the end of the season,
became the fourth major league manager to reach the milestone. The Braves
snapped a four-game losing streak.
Cubs 7 Cardinals 3: In Chicago, Sam Fuld hit a go-ahead two-run
single off Chris Carpenter and Casey Coleman pitched seven effective innings to
lead the Cubs to the victory.
Blake DeWitt and Aramis Ramirez had two hits and two RBIs
apiece for Chicago, which trailed 3-0 in the third. Coleman allowed two earned
runs and five hits.
Carpenter (15-9) lasted just four innings and reliever Blake
Hawksworth was hit in the face by a Fuld liner in the fifth, sending the
right-hander to the hospital.
Marlins 4 Brewers 0: In Milwaukee, Chris Volstad pitched
into the seventh inning in another scoreless outing and rookie Mike Stanton hit
his 21st homer, pushing the Marlins to the win.
Volstad (11-9) allowed six hits and walked none before
leaving with two out in the seventh, running his scoreless streak to 15 2-3
innings. The right-hander tossed a five-hitter in a 4-0 victory over St. Louis
in his previous start and hasn’t allowed a run since he returned from a
six-game suspension for his part in a brawl with the Washington Nationals on
Sept. 1.
The loss clinched a second consecutive losing season for the
Brewers (72-82) after they won the NL wild card in 2008.
Pirates 6 Astros 4: In Pittsburgh, Pedro Alvarez hit a three-run homer
and Zach Duke pitched into the seventh inning for the second consecutive start,
leading the Pirates over Houston.
Duke (8-14) was pulled by manager John Russell after giving
up Humberto Quintero’s leadoff single in the seventh. The left-hander allowed
three runs and seven hits while walking one and striking out three.
Alvarez had two hits, including a home run off Bud Norris (9-9).
Diamondbacks 5 Dodgers 2: In Phoenix, Cole Gillespie hit a tiebreaking
three-run homer in the sixth inning and Daniel Hudson turned in another
outstanding outing for Arizona.
Hudson (8-2) allowed two runs and two hits in 8 2-3 innings,
coming close to his first career complete game. The 23-year-old right-hander
improved to 7-1 with a 1.69 ERA in 11 starts since he was acquired in a trade
with the Chicago White Sox on July 30.
With one out and a runner on second in the sixth, John Ely (4-9)
intentionally walked Brandon Allen to get to Gillespie, the Diamondbacks’ No. 8
hitter.
