Cubs Win, but Garciaparra Hurt

Nomar Garciaparra took two steps out of the batters’ box, then collapsed in pain.

Garciaparra was carried off the field with an injured left groin that probably will land him on the 15-day disabled list for an extended period, tempering an impressive outing by Carlos Zambrano in a 3-1 victory that ended the St. Louis Cardinals’ five-game winning streak Wednesday night at St. Louis.

“I’ve strained my groin before but I’ve never felt anything like this before,” Garciaparra said. “It’s kind of a freak thing.”

Garciaparra was to undergo an MRI exam today. The Cubs feared the worst, a torn groin, for the star shortstop they acquired at the trade deadline last July.

“It’s not good, it’s a bad groin,” Manager Dusty Baker said. “Hopefully it’s not as bad as anticipated, but we know it’s not good -- especially for a shortstop.”

Zambrano (2-0) came within one out of a complete game and drove in a run with his first career triple, helping the Cubs overcome Garciaparra’s injury for at least one game.

Garciaparra, who was batting .157, was injured while grounding into a double play in the third.

Florida 9, New York 2 -- Juan Encarnacion homered and drove in four runs at Miami to help the Marlins win their rematch with Aaron Heilman.

Heilman (1-2), who pitched an improbable one-hit shutout against Florida last Friday, gave up 11 hits and left after four innings trailing, 7-0. The Mets managed only four hits one night after hitting a team-record seven homers at Philadelphia.

Josh Beckett (3-1) gave up four hits and two runs in seven innings. His earned-run average rose to 1.00, and Florida’s team ERA grew to 1.88, still best in the major leagues.

Washington 2, Atlanta 0 -- Zach Day gave up only three hits over seven innings and Jose Vidro hit a two-run homer for the Nationals at Washington.

Washington ended a two-game losing streak and improved to 3-1 against Atlanta, which has won the last 13 NL East titles. The Braves have lost six of eight -- and they’ve scored only six runs in the last five games.

Houston 6, Milwaukee 1 -- Adam Everett and Craig Biggio led off the first inning with consecutive home runs, and Roy Oswalt outpitched an ailing Ben Sheets at Houston.

Pitching with flu-like symptoms, Sheets (1-3) lasted only six innings and couldn’t prevent the Brewers from losing their sixth straight game.

Cincinnati 6, Pittsburgh 4 -- Wily Mo Pena hit two homers, including a tiebreaking two-run shot in the seventh inning for the Reds at Cincinnati.

Rich Aurilia also homered twice, providing more than enough for Paul Wilson (1-1) to get his first win in four starts and hand the Pirates their fifth loss in a row.

Colorado 7, Philadelphia 4 -- Rookie Clint Barmes had four hits at Philadelphia to help the Rockies end a 10-game road losing streak that dated to last season.

Jamey Wright (1-1) became the first Rocky right-handed starter to win since he beat San Francisco last Sept. 1.

Arizona 2, San Francisco 1 -- Javier Vazquez pitched seven scoreless innings at San Francisco and the Diamondbacks handed Noah Lowry the first loss of his major league career.

Lowry (1-1) had been 7-0 in 22 games, including 17 starts.