Braun was held out of the starting lineup due to an ailing left shoulder, but was needed in the ninth with the Brewers down a run.
Yuniesky Betancourt led off the inning with a single to right off Leo Nunez (0-2). Braun then hit for Mike McClendon (3-0) and sent Nunez’s 1-1 offering deep to left field for his 13th homer.
It was Nunez’s second blown save of the season in 21 chances.
John Axford pitched the ninth for the Brewers and issued a leadoff walk to Omar Infante . With two outs, Axford walked the bases loaded before striking out Brett Hayes to earn his 14th save in 16 opportunities.
Diamondbacks 4 Nationals 0: In Phoenix, Stephen Drew hit a three-run triple and Josh Collmenter pitched seven sharp innings for the surging Diamondbacks.
Collmenter (4-1), allowed three hits, struck out five and walked one, improving to 3-1 with a 1.23 ERA in five starts since he entered the rotation last month.
David Hernandez and Joe Paterson each got three outs to complete the three-hitter, Arizona’s 17th victory in 21 games. The Diamondbacks (32-26) are a half-game back of San Francisco for first in the NL West.
Yunesky Maya (0-1), making his second start of the season, allowed four runs and six hits in 4 1-3 innings for the Nationals.
Cardinals 6 Cubs 1: In St. Louis, Lance Berkman hit a three-run homer, Albert Pujols had a two-run shot and Jaime Garcia bounced back from the worst outing of his career, powering St. Louis to the victory.
Garcia (6-1) allowed a run and four hits over eight innings, improving to 4-0 with a sparkling 0.46 ERA in five home starts this season. He struck out eight and walked one in his first game since he surrendered 11 earned runs in a 15-4 loss at Colorado last Saturday.
Berkman snapped an 0-for-13 skid with his 12th homer, a drive to center on a 1-1 pitch from Ryan Dempster (4-5) in the first inning.
Giants 3 Rockies 1: In San Francisco, Cody Ross hit a go-ahead two-run double in the fourth for San Francisco, and Matt Cain pitched seven innings for his first win in more than three weeks.
Rookie Brandon Crawford added an RBI double and Emmanuel Burris had three hits for the Giants, who beat the Rockies for the sixth time in nine games this season between the NL West rivals.
Cain (4-4) allowed four hits, struck out seven and issued a season-high four walks. The right-hander pitched with runners in scoring position for four straight innings but allowed just one run.
Brian Wilson worked the ninth for his 16th save in 18 chances.
Pirates 2 Phillies 1, 12 innings: In Pittsburgh, Jose Tabata hit a game-ending single with two outs in the 12th inning, giving the Pirates the win.
Tabata drove in Xavier Paul with a grounder off Danys Baez (1-3) that went into right field. Paul reached on a two-out single and swiped second base.
Tabata also had a tying sacrifice fly in the sixth inning for Pittsburgh, which has won three of four.
Braves 6 Mets 3: In New York, Eric Hinske came into the game after a scary injury to rookie Jordan Schafer and later hit a tiebreaking home run in the ninth inning that sent Atlanta to the victory.
Schafer was hurt when he fouled a bunt off his face in the fifth. He was struck squarely around his upper lip and nose, wobbled off the field with a towel pressed tight to his face and went to a hospital for X-rays.
Old Mets nemesis Chipper Jones began the Braves’ comeback from a 3-1 deficit with a leadoff home run in the eighth.
Reds 2 Dodgers 1: In Cincinnati, Scott Rolen hit a two-run single with two out in the fifth inning, lifting Bronson Arroyo and the Reds to the win.
Arroyo (4-5) allowed one run and five hits in six innings, enough for his first victory in seven starts since a 9-5 win at Milwaukee on April 25. The right-hander, still dealing with the aftereffects of mononucleosis he contracted during spring training, was 0-2 with a 13.50 ERA in his previous three outings.
Francisco Cordero turned in a perfect ninth to earn his 11th save in 13 opportunities this season and No. 301 for his career, snapping a tie with Bruce Sutter for 21st place on the saves list.
Padres 3 Astros 1: In San Diego, Chris Denorfia homered and the Padres beat the Astros for their 10th win in 31 home games.
It was a matchup of the two worst teams in the NL. The Astros had their season-long four-game winning streak snapped.
Dustin Moseley (2-6) earned his first win at Petco Park by holding Houston to one run and six hits in seven innings. Heath Bell pitched the ninth for his 15th save.
