Stephenson Pitches Cardinals Past Pirates

Garrett Stephenson made another strong start by limiting Pittsburgh to five hits over eight innings, leading the St. Louis Cardinals past the Pirates, 4-3, Thursday at Pittsburgh.

St. Louis won three of four in the series to tie Houston for the Central Division lead. The Astros lost to the Cubs, who moved to within half a game of first place.

Albert Pujols singled in the first to set up the Cardinals’ first run and extend the majors’ longest hitting streak this season to 28 games.

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Chicago 7, Houston 1 -- Alex Gonzalez, with two hits in 46 at-bats going into the game, had three hits, including a homer, and drove in three runs to lead the Cubs at Wrigley Field.

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Cincinnati 3, Arizona 2 -- At Cincinnati, the Reds ended a 16-game losing streak to the Diamondbacks. They hadn’t beaten Arizona since May 21, 2001.

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Atlanta 7, San Diego 4 -- Russ Ortiz became the first 17-game winner in the majors and Javy Lopez hit two more home runs, giving him 33, to lead the Braves at Atlanta.

Ortiz (17-5) pitched into the eighth, allowing five hits for his 10th win in 11 starts.

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Philadelphia 4, Milwaukee 3 -- Placido Polanco’s solo homer sparked a three-run rally at Philadelphia. Randy Wolf (12-7) got his first victory since July 23, giving up two runs and six hits in seven innings.