Schmidt Bests Wood, Cubs

Jason Schmidt’s no-hitter was gone in the sixth inning and so was his stuff. By then, so were the Chicago Cubs’ chances.

Schmidt combined with five relievers on a four-hitter in the San Francisco Giants’ 6-3 victory over the Cubs on Wednesday at Chicago. It was his first start since stiffness in his right forearm forced him to sit out a turn in the rotation.

“I got [tired] a little bit. It felt like I haven’t been out there in a couple weeks,” Schmidt said. “I was just trying to throw the ball over the plate like I normally do and let them hit it.”

The Cubs didn’t do much of that.

Schmidt (11-4) gave up two hits and two runs and struck out seven in six innings to win for the sixth time in seven starts.

Edgardo Alfonzo staked the Giants to a 4-0 lead in the second inning with his second career grand slam. Schmidt and the bullpen did the rest for the Giants, who won for the 11th time in 13 games.

San Francisco loaded the bases with one out in the second against a wild Kerry Wood (10-8), who gave up a single to Andres Galarraga and walks to Barry Bonds and Jeffrey Hammonds. Alfonzo then hit a 2-and-1 pitch deep into the left-field bleachers for his first grand slam since Aug. 14, 1997.

“I was looking fastball, no doubt about it,” Alfonzo said. “He threw a ball that he didn’t want to put in that particular spot. I just got a good swing on it.”

Schmidt retired his first 12 batters -- needing only four pitches to get through the fourth inning. The string ended when he walked Moises Alou to lead off the fifth.

Kenny Lofton broke up the no-hitter with one out in the sixth with his 10th homer -- a two-run shot that brought Chicago to within 4-2. It was Lofton’s first home run since being traded to the Cubs from Pittsburgh on July 22.

Schmidt’s dominance was nothing new to Chicago Manager Dusty Baker, who managed the Giants’ ace in San Francisco the last two years. Watching Schmidt shut down the Cubs made it less pleasant, though.

“He was unhittable for six innings,” Baker said. “You give a guy like Jason Schmidt four runs, you don’t have a very good chance of coming back because he has a lot of weapons he can throw against you.”

*

Houston 7, Atlanta 3 -- Adam Everett singled in two runs to cap a four-run first inning at Atlanta.

After going 13 for 15 in the previous three games, including nine consecutive hits, Marcus Giles of the Braves was hitless in four at-bats.

Giles flied out to the warning track his first time up to come up one short of the National League record for consecutive hits.

Houston’s Ron Villone (3-1) walked six in five innings but gave up only two runs -- one earned -- and three hits. The Braves stranded 12 runners.

The Astros have scored 101 of their 509 runs in the first inning.

*

New York 2, Milwaukee 0 -- Al Leiter gave up five hits in seven innings and the host Mets ended a four-game losing streak.

Rookie Jose Reyes tripled and scored, and Jason Phillips had three hits.

Leiter (10-5) extended his scoreless streak to 15 innings, a team high this season. He’s 2-0 with a 0.95 earned-run average in three starts since coming off the disabled list July 20.

Wes Obermueller (0-2) lost for the fourth time in four big league starts.

*

St. Louis 11, Montreal 1 -- Rookie Dan Haren (2-2) gave up four hits in seven shutout innings and hit a run-scoring double that capped a seven-run first inning at Montreal.

Albert Pujols extended his hitting streak to a team-high 14 games in the top of the ninth with a run-scoring single

St. Louis is 5-0 against Montreal this season, outscoring the Expos, 30-6.

Seven consecutive batters reached against Claudio Vargas (6-7), who retired only one batter and was charged with the seven runs in the first inning.

*

Cincinnati 3, Colorado 2 -- Jason LaRue led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a score-tying homer against Justin Speier, and Adam Dunn singled with the bases loaded in the 10th against Jose Jimenez (0-6).

The Reds, who lead the majors with 24 victories in their last at-bat, got their first victory under interim Manager Dave Miley, who was presented with the ball from Dunn’s winning hit.

*

Pittsburgh 7, San Diego 2 -- Reggie Sanders homered twice and drove in five runs at Pittsburgh in what might have been his next-to-last game with the Pirates.

Sanders, who could be traded today, hit a three-run homer in the fourth and a two-run homer in the sixth against Brian Lawrence (5-13), who has lost four consecutive decisions and six of seven.

Sanders played for the last two NL champions, Arizona in 2001 and San Francisco in 2002, and is being looked at by several contenders.