Bonds Hits 30th Homer in Giant Win

Barry Bonds hit his 30th home run Monday night, reaching the mark faster than anyone in major league history, and the San Francisco Giants defeated the San Diego Padres, 3-1, at San Francisco, handing the Padres their sixth consecutive loss.

Bonds hit No. 30 in a record 57 games. Babe Ruth reached 30 homers in 63 games in 1928.

Bonds’ solo shot against Bobby Jones (2-8) in the fourth inning sailed over the fence in center field as the crowd chanted “Barry! Barry!”

Shawon Dunston homered on Jones’ first pitch of the game. Calvin Murray, who replaced Dunston in center field in the seventh, robbed the Padres of two hits with two diving catches.

Shawn Estes (5-2) pitched eight scoreless innings, giving up three hits with four walks and four strikeouts. He did not permit a runner past second base through eight innings.

Robb Nen pitched the ninth for his 12th save.

Rich Aurilia, who leads the National League with a .373 average, was four for four. It was the fourth time he has had four hits in a game this season.

St. Louis 5, Cincinnati 2--Andy Benes rebounded from an awful outing, giving up two runs in 6 1/3 innings for the Cardinals at St. Louis.

Benes (4-4) gave up six hits, struck out two and walked none in his longest outing of the season to lower his earned-run average to 6.49. In his previous start, the right-hander gave up nine runs on 10 hits in 3 2/3 innings against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Seattle 11, Texas 6--Bret Boone drove in a career-high seven runs, hitting two home runs at Seattle to help the Mariners extend the longest winning streak in team history to 12 games.

The Mariners are 44-12, tied for the third-best start in major league history. The 1939 New York Yankees and the 1912 New York Giants each began 45-11.

Boone, who had his 12th and 13th homers of the season, took over the American League lead with 64 runs batted in in 55 games. Manny Ramirez of the Boston Red Sox is second with 62 RBIs.

Alex Rodriguez, in his second series at Safeco Field since leaving the Mariners, hit his 19th home run, tying him with Ramirez for the American League lead.

New York Yankees 7, Boston 6--Luis Sojo’s run-scoring single in the ninth inning at New York bailed out Yankee closer Mariano Rivera and gave the Yankees yet another victory in a game started by Pedro Martinez.

The Yankees scored four runs against Boston’s bullpen to win for the sixth time in their last seven games when baseball’s most dominating pitcher faced them.

This one might have been the most dramatic, coming after the Red Sox tied the score in the top of the ninth on Manny Ramirez’s two-run homer against Rivera (2-3).

Martinez, facing the Yankees for the third time in 12 days, wasn’t at his most overpowering but left the game with a 4-3 lead after six innings.

Minnesota 11, Cleveland 10--Cristian Guzman chopped his fourth infield single of the game, driving home the winning run in the ninth at Minneapolis.

In the first of 19 meetings between the teams this year, the Twins took a 1 1/2-game lead over the Indians in the American League Central. Juan Gonzalez hit two of the Indians’ five home runs.

The Twins (37-18) have won seven of nine and are off to the best start in franchise history.