NATIONAL LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Cardinals’ Tewksbury Scores a Quick Six

Bob Tewksbury became the first six-game winner in the majors when Gregg Jefferies singled home the go-ahead run in the eighth inning Sunday, giving the St. Louis Cardinals a 6-5 victory over the Houston Astros at Houston.

Ray Lankford homered on the first pitch of the game. He has led off three games with homers this year, including as the first batter in the majors’ first game of the season.

Tewksbury (6-0) gave up five runs and nine hits in seven innings, striking out five and walking none. He took a 5-2 lead into the sixth, but Luis Gonzalez tied the score with a three-run homer.

“What’s important is that we regrouped as a ballclub,” Tewksbury said. “Records don’t mean a thing until all the games are over. I got lucky we got a timely run to get the win.”

Willie Smith got two outs in the ninth and Rob Murphy closed for his first save.

With two out in the eighth, Lankford was hit by a pitch by Mike Hampton (1-1), went to second on Luis Alicea’s single and scored on Jefferies’ single to center.

Florida 9, Cincinnati 4--Gary Sheffield hit his major league-leading 11th home run to help the Marlins end the day with a winning record for only the second time in their history.

The Marlins are 13-12, their best record since they were 1-0 last year in their first season.

Pat Rapp (2-1) gave up seven hits, no walks and two runs in 6 2/3 innings, his longest outing of the season. Rapp had a shutout until the seventh, when Kevin Mitchell hit his seventh homer and Bret Boone hit his first.

Sheffield’s three-run homer came in the second, when Florida scored six runs, all with two out.

Sheffield has homered in his last three games and eight of the last nine at Joe Robbie Stadium. He also doubled and scored in the first, increasing his slugging percentage to .793--second-best in the National League.

Pittsburgh 4, Atlanta 1--Paul Wagner completed Pittsburgh’s three-game sweep of the slumping Braves, pitching a three-hitter and hitting a two-run double at Pittsburgh.

The Pirates, 13-6 after an 0-4 start, swept Atlanta in a three-game series at Pittsburgh for the first time since Aug. 22-24, 1986, Jim Leyland’s rookie season as manager. Wagner had a shutout until there were two out in the ninth, when David Justice homered.

The Braves have lost eight of 10 since starting 13-1 and Pittsburgh’s young pitching staff has been a major contributor to their slump. The Pirates have a 1.83 earned-run average while winning five of six from Atlanta, but their overall 4.95 ERA ranks among the bottom five in the league.

Colorado 6, Chicago 2--The loss at Chicago dropped the Cubs to 0-10 at Wrigley Field, matching the longest home losing streak in franchise history.

The Cubs are the only club in the majors that is winless at home. The only other time they lost 10 in a row at Wrigley Field was in 1974, when they did it twice.

Anthony Young (0-2) took the loss, giving up four hits in 6 1/3 innings.

Pinch-hitter Nelson Liriano and Mike Kingery each hit two-run singles during a four-run seventh for the Rockies.

Marvin Freeman (3-0) gave up five hits in six innings. Steve Reed pitched two hitless innings and Bruce Ruffin worked the ninth.

Philadelphia 6, San Francisco 4--Lenny Dykstra hit a leadoff home run for the Phillies in the first inning at Philadelphia and later left because a back injury.

Dykstra opened with his third home run of the season. He was hurt making a diving attempt to catch Matt Williams’ bases-loaded triple in the third, and came out in the bottom half because of a bruised lower back.

Heathcliff Slocumb (3-0) was the winner and Doug Jones got his fourth save.

Bill Swift (3-3) lost for the first time in six career decisions against the Phillies. He gave up all six runs and 12 hits in 3 1/3 innings.

Montreal 3, San Diego 2--Mike Lansing atoned for a key error by driving in the winning run in the 11th inning, giving the Expos a sweep at Montreal.

Lansing’s error at second base enabled the Padres to score twice in the eighth inning to pull into a 2-2 tie.

In the 11th, Sean Berry doubled with one out against Tim Mauser (1-2) and pinch-hitter Randy Milligan walked. After a wild pitch advanced Berry, Lansing grounded a ball through the legs of third baseman Keith Lockhart for a play that was first scored an error but later changed to a hit.