Sosa Shows Why He’s Most Valuable

Sammy Sosa continued his MVP encore on Wednesday in Chicago, hitting a two-run home run in the ninth inning to give the Cubs a 6-4 victory over the Florida Marlins.

The home run was the 16th for Sosa, who couldn’t keep pace with Mark McGwire in the final days of the home-run record race last season but was a runaway winner in the National League MVP balloting. He also had a two-out two-run single in the seventh to pull the Cubs within 4-3.

“The pressure is always on Sammy all the time,” Cub Manager Jim Riggleman said. “The expectations are so high but he’s able to rise above that.”

Sosa has 12 home runs and 24 RBIs in his last 21 games to help keep the Cubs from losing contact with the first-place Houston Astros in the Central Division. In three games against the Marlins, he was six for 12 with a double, two homers and five RBIs.

Rick Aguilera, recently acquired from the Minnesota Twins, pitched a scoreless ninth for the win. He gave up four runs to the Marlins in the ninth inning of a 7-5 loss in his Cub debut on Monday.

Florida’s Preston Wilson hit his 11th home run, the most among major league rookies.

New York 5, Pittsburgh 2--Orel Hershiser, roughed up for 15 runs in 17 innings in his previous three starts, allowed only two runs in six innings and had an RBI double at New York.

Hershiser (4-4) outpitched Pete Schourek (2-5) in a matchup of struggling veteran free agents. Schourek has allowed 14 runs in his last 20 1/3 innings and was unable to get out of the fifth in having his ERA rise to 5.05.

Benny Agbayani, a career minor league until the Mets brought him up late last season, led off the fifth with a home run--the 15th hit in his last 21 at-bats.

San Francisco 7, St. Louis 6--J.T. Snow and Rich Aurilia hit home runs as the West Division-leading Giants continued to pound Cardinal pitching at St. Louis. San Francisco has 24 runs and 29 hits--including six home runs--in the first two games of the series.

Kirk Rueter (4-2) allowed three runs in seven innings, giving him a 4-0 record and 2.21 ERA in six starts at Busch Stadium. Rueter is from nearby Hoyleton, Ill.

Montreal 5, Philadelphia 2--Ryan McGuire hit a three-run home run in the third inning that was decisive at Philadelphia. Carl Pavano (3-5) gave up one earned run and five hits in seven-plus innings.

Atlanta 3, Milwaukee 2--Chipper Jones hit his 11th home run off David Weathers (4-1) in the 10th inning at Milwaukee. Hideo Nomo, in his fourth start for Milwaukee, gave up eight hits and struck out a Brewer season-high nine in seven innings.

Houston 3, Colorado 2--Craig Biggio’s two-out single off Pedro Astacio (4-4) in the ninth inning scored pinch-runner Glen Barker from second at Houston. Astacio was trying to win his fifth in a row.

Arizona 3, San Diego 2--Damian Jackson’s throwing error in the 11th inning allowed the winning run to score at Phoenix.