HOUSTON – Lucas Harrell pitched his first complete game and left fielder J.D. Martinez threw out a runner at the plate in the ninth inning to preserve the Houston Astros' 1-0 victory over the San Diego Padres Wednesday. Matt Downs homered and Harrell finished a six-hitter by striking out Nick Hundley with the bases loaded. The drive by Downs was one of only two hits by the Astros, who couldn't get anything else going against starter Clayton Richard (5-8). Giants 3, Dodgers 0: Tim Lincecum won for the first time in nearly two months to end the worst drought of his career and the San Francisco Giants held the Los Angeles Dodgers scoreless for the third straight game. Angel Pagan hit an RBI single and drew a bases-loaded walk to back Lincecum (3-8) as the Giants moved into a first-place tie in the NL West with the Dodgers. Mets 17, Cubs 1: Daniel Murphy homered twice, Scott Hairston hit a grand slam and David Wright drove in five runs as New York routed Chicago. Ike Davis had a three-run homer and an RBI double as he combined with Murphy, Hairston and Wright to drive in all 17 runs to help the Mets snap a four-game losing streak. Brewers 8, Reds 4: Rickie Weeks and Cody Ransom each hit a two-run homer off Homer Bailey, and Milwaukee avoided a three-game sweep by beating Cincinnati. Zack Greinke (9-2) remained unbeaten against the Reds, allowing two runs in six innings. Greinke is 4-0 in six career starts against Cincinnati. Braves 6, D'backs 4: Chipper Jones and Jason Heyward homered and the Atlanta Braves withstood Arizona's comeback attempt to beat the Diamondbacks. Jones' two-run homer off Trevor Cahill in the sixth inning was his first since May 4. Marlins 5, Cardinals 3: John Buck and pinch hitter Logan Morrison connected for consecutive home runs in the seventh inning, rallying the Miami Marlins past St. Louis and ending their eight-game losing streak against the Cardinals. The Cardinals had won five in a row overall. Pirates 11, Phillies 7: Chase Utley homered in his first at-bat of the season, but the Pittsburgh Pirates spoiled his return by connecting three times and beating the Philadelphia Phillies 11-7 Wednesday night. Michael McKenry hit a three-run homer and Andrew McCutchen and Casey McGehee also went deep for Pittsburgh. Nationals 11, Rockies 5: Washington Nationals walked into Coors Field Tuesday afternoon with a sputtering lineup, and they walked out Wednesday night with an offensive juggernaut and the best record in the National League. Over the past two nights, they unburdened themselves of all the runs they had been carrying around all year. They had saved them up, it turns out, for a pitching staff in disarray and a generous stadium. The Nationals stripped the Colorado Rockies and sold them for parts in an 11-5 demolition, the first time since late September 2005 the club scored at least 11 runs in consecutive games. — Agencies
