Miguel Olivo tripled and Mark Loretta doubled in a three-run sixth inning and San Diego beat Florida 4-2 on Tuesday night.
Brian Lawrence (7-12) allowed six hits and a run in five innings for San Diego, escaping a two-on, no-out jam in his last inning.
"There's no relaxing with their lineup," Lawrence said. "I was glad we were able to take it to a win."
PHOTO: AFP
The Padres trailed 1-0 when Brian Giles walked to lead off the sixth. He advanced to third on Loretta's double and scored on Xavier Nady's groundout. Olivo tripled to center to drive in Loretta and make it 2-1. Olivo scored on pinch-hitter Mark Sweeney's single.
Lawrence got out of the jam by striking out Carlos Delgado and then getting Juan Encarnacion on a groundout and Paul Lo Duca on a pop up.
Trevor Hoffman earned his 31st save to tie John Franco for second on the career list with 424. Hoffman gave up an RBI double to pinch-hitter Jeff Conine in the ninth.
PHOTO: AP
"I think it is congratulations this time -- anytime you have an opportunity to share a record with John Franco," Hoffman said. "He's a guy that I respect."
Justin Vargas (3-1) allowed three runs and four hits in 5 1-3 innings, striking out a career-high seven.
Mets 6, Pirates 2
At New York, Kris Benson recovered from a shaky start and hit a two-run single against his former team, pitching New York to a victory over Pittsburgh.
Cliff Floyd hit his 27th homer for the Mets, who hung right fielder Mike Cameron's jersey in their dugout during the game. Cameron is recovering from facial surgery after a head-to-head collision with teammate Carlos Beltran in San Diego last week.
Benson (9-4) gave up two early runs and five hits in the first three innings. His two-run single in the second keyed a four-run rally against Mark Redman (5-13), who lost for the ninth time in 10 decisions. Benson allowed seven hits in seven innings for his second consecutive win.
Cardinals 8, Diamondbacks 2
At St. Louis, So Taguchi matched career highs with four hits and three RBIs, and Jeff Suppan pitched seven strong innings to win for the third time in four starts for St. Louis.
Jim Edmonds had two run-scoring singles and Albert Pujols had two hits and an RBI to help the Cardinals beat the Diamondbacks for the 11th time in 13 games over the last three seasons.
Luis Gonzalez hit a two-run homer for Arizona, a season-worst eight games below .500.
Suppan (12-8) allowed five hits, walked none and matched his season best with seven strikeouts.
Taguchi, playing regularly because of injuries to outfielders Larry Walker and Reggie Sanders, had his second career four-hit game. He has six three-RBI games, five this season, and is batting .424 (25-for-59) with runners in scoring position.
Brad Halsey (8-9) lasted 5 1-3 innings and gave up five runs, four earned, and nine hits.
Giants 10, Reds 8
At Cincinnati, Deivi Cruz and Pedro Feliz set career highs with five hits, and San Francisco came from behind to overpower Cincinnati.
Cruz fell a triple short of the cycle and tied a career high with five RBIs, while Feliz scored four runs and was a home run shy of the cycle. San Francisco's Randy Winn hit for the cycle in Monday night's victory.
San Francisco overcame two two-run homers by former Giant Rich Aurilia and a ninth-inning solo shot by Ken Griffey Jr.
Feliz led off the seventh with his fourth hit, a triple to center field, off Jason Standridge (2-1) and scored on Edgardo Alfonzo's bloop single down the right-field line to give San Francisco an 8-7 lead.
Jeff Fassero (3-6) got the win with 2 1-3 innings of one-hit relief. Tyler Walker got three outs for his 22nd save.
Dodgers 6, Braves 4
At Atlanta, Olmedo Saenz drove in two runs with a pinch-hit single in the ninth and Los Angeles rallied for the win.
The Dodgers trailed 4-3 heading to the ninth but erased that deficit against Braves closer Chris Reitsma, who failed to get an out.
Jason Werth hit Reitsma's first pitch off the wall for a double, and moved to third when Hee-Seop Choi slapped a single to left. Ricky Ledee walked to load the bases.
Saenz, who has a .368 average with runners in scoring position, singled to left, bringing home the tying and go-ahead runs.
Reitsma (3-4) has blown seven of 22 save chances. For the second straight time, Reitsma's woes in the ninth cost John Smoltz his 13th win.
Giovanni Carrara (7-4) got the win and Duaner Sanchez worked a perfect ninth for his first career save.
Chipper Jones, Brian McCann and Rafael Furcal all hit solo homers off Dodgers starter Derek Lowe in the first two innings.
Cubs 4, Astros 1
At Houston, Greg Maddux outdueled Andy Pettitte for seven innings, and Aramis Ramirez homered and doubled twice to help Chicago snap a six-game road losing streak.
Maddux (10-9) allowed three hits -- his fewest since May -- and shut down the Astros who scored 12 runs on 16 hits the previous night.
Kerry Wood pitched a perfect eighth for his sixth scoreless relief appearance, and Ryan Dempster worked the ninth for his 17th save in 19 chances.
Ramirez was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, his last a high-arching solo homer to left in sixth. It was his 30th of the season.
It was just the second loss since June for Pettitte (10-9), who allowed eight hits and tied his season high with eight strikeouts.
Brewers 6, Rockies 4
At Denver, Victor Santos earned his second win in 14 starts, and Wes Helms homered and drove in two runs for Milwaukee.
Rickie Weeks also homered and the Brewers roughed up Jeff Francis (11-9) to win for the second time in nine games. Milwaukee has won seven of eight against Colorado dating to last year.
Matt Holliday of the Rockies had two hits and drove in a run, boosting his average to .359 in 27 games since coming off the disabled list with a broken finger. Colorado had nine hits after getting 17 in an 11-2 win the previous night.
Santos (4-11) allowed three runs and six hits in 5 2-3 innings to win for the first time since July 23.
Derrick Turnbow pitched the ninth for his 25th save.
Kansas City's losing streak reached a club-record 17 games Tuesday when the Royals lost 4-3 to Seattle on Yuniesky Betancourt's go-ahead infield single in the eighth inning.
The Royals are four defeats from tying the American League record for losses set by Baltimore at the start of the 1988 season.
The losing streak is the longest in the major leagues since Baltimore's slump in '88. The 1961 Philadelphia Phillies dropped 23 straight from July 29 to Aug. 20, according to the Elias Sports Bureau -- the longest skid in the big leagues since 1900.
With the score tied at 3, Jeremy Affeldt (0-2) gave up a two-out single to Jeremy Reed in the eighth and walked Mike Morse. Reed stole third, then scored when Betancourt hit a grounder deep in the hole at shortstop. Angel Berroa fielded the ball and threw to second base, but Morse beat the play.
Joel Pineiro (5-7) won his second straight decision, pitching eight innings and giving up three runs and six hits. Eddie Guardado worked the ninth for his 29th save.
Kansas City finished with six hits, two by Matt Stairs.
The Royals' skid started on July 28 with a 10-5 loss at Tampa Bay. Four of the defeats have been by one run, including two losses in a doubleheader Sunday at Detroit.
Red Sox 10, Tigers 7
At Detroit, David Ortiz and Jason Varitek both homered twice and drove in four runs, and Boston scored seven times in the 10th inning to beat Detroit.
Pinch-hitter Bill Mueller snapped a 3-3 tie with an RBI groundout off Chris Dingman (1-2) in the 10th. Ortiz and Varitek connected later in the inning for the Red Sox, who have won seven of eight.
Varitek homered from both sides of the plate, the first time he has done that. Ortiz's homer in the ninth off Fernando Rodney tied the score at 3-3.
Craig Monroe hit a grand slam with two outs in the bottom of the 10th against Mike Remlinger, but the left-hander retired Brandon Inge to end Detroit's three-game winning streak.
Chad Bradford (2-0) pitched a scoreless inning for the win.
Indians 8, Rangers 2
At Cleveland, Ronnie Belliard hit a three-run double to snap a seventh-inning tie and Jhonny Peralta homered twice for Cleveland, which broke a three-game losing streak by handing Texas its eighth straight loss.
C.C. Sabathia (9-9) gave up two runs and eight hits over seven innings in winning his third straight start for the Indians, who rebounded from a three-game sweep at home by Tampa Bay.
Texas dropped to 3-12 since a four-game winning streak from July 27-30.
Belliard lined a 3-2 pitch to left-center off Kenny Rogers (11-6), who was making his second start since serving a 13-game suspension for shoving two cameramen.
Rogers, winless in three starts since July 16, gave up three earned runs and six hits over seven innings.
Devil Rays 4, Yankees 3, 11 innings
St. Petersburg, Florida, Eduardo Perez tied it in the bottom of the ninth inning with his second homer of the game and Jonny Gomes walked with the bases loaded with two outs in the 11th to give Tampa Bay the victory.
The Devil Rays rallied from a 3-0 deficit against Randy Johnson and Mariano Rivera to force extra innings, then loaded the bases in the 11th with Carl Crawford's double off Alan Embree (1-5) and two walks, including Scott Proctor's intentional pass to Aubrey Huff.
Proctor, whose balk sent Crawford to third base after the reliever replaced Embree, walked Gomes on four pitches to end the game.
Chad Orvella (2-2) threw two scoreless innings for the win.
Johnson, who skipped a scheduled start last Thursday because of a bad back, allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings. He struck out seven and walked two, leaving with a 3-2 lead that Rivera could not protect.
Perez's fourth homer against the Yankees this season made it 3-all with one out in the ninth. The blown save was Rivera's second in three outings following a stretch in which he earned 31 in a row.
Twins 9, White Sox 4, 16 innings
At Chicago, Shannon Stewart hit a go-ahead RBI single in a five-run 16th inning and Minnesota extended Chicago's losing streak to a season-high four games.
It was the second-longest game in the majors this season: Toronto beat the Los Angeles Angels 2-1 in 18 innings on July 28.
Michael Ryan singled to start the 16th and was forced at second on Michael Cuddyer's bunt. Jon Adkins (0-1) then walked Brent Abernathy before Stewart, who entered the game in an 0-for-16 slump, singled past third for his third hit of the game. Joe Mauer's RBI double gave the Twins a two-run cushion, Terry Tiffee added a two-run single and Lew Ford another RBI single.
Minnesota finished with 20 hits.
J.C. Romero (3-3) pitched two innings for the win. Joe Nathan, the fifth Twins reliever, pitched the bottom of the 16th.
Cuddyer tied it 4 in the ninth with a homer off Chicago closer Dustin Hermanson, who had saved 15 straight games.
Orioles 4, Athletics 3
At Oakland, California, Brian Roberts scored the go-ahead run in the seventh for Baltimore on a controversial error and Oakland lost its third straight game.
Rafael Palmeiro, facing constant boos in his second game back in the lineup following a 10-game suspension for steroids, had a double and a single and scored a run.
Baltimore scored three unearned runs in the seventh against Jay Witasick (1-1). With two outs, Melvin Mora hit a sharp grounder to third and Eric Chavez had to dive to make the stop. He threw a one-hopper to first baseman Dan Johnson, who had to come off the base to field the ball but appeared to get his heel back in time. Umpire Chris Guccione signaled that Johnson's foot was off the bag.
Bruce Chen (10-6) took a four-hitter into the seventh inning and won his third straight start after going winless in his previous five outings. B.J. Ryan escaped a difficult ninth for his 27th save.
Blue Jays 4, Angels 3
At Anaheim, California, Los Angeles closer Francisco Rodriguez walked Corie Koskie with the bases loaded in the ninth inning to force in the tying run and pinch-hitter Frank Catalanotto followed with a sacrifice fly for Toronto.
Joe Saunders pitched 7 1-3 innings in his major league debut for the Angels and left with a 3-2 lead. But Rodriguez couldn't hold it and was charged with his fifth blown save in 32 attempts as the Angels had a four-game winning streak snapped.
The Blue Jays loaded the bases against Rodriguez (2-3) on Shea Hillenbrand's single, a walk and a bunt single up the third base line by Gregg Zaun. Koskie worked the count to 3-2 before the next pitch missed the outside corner, allowing Hillenbrand to score. Pinch-hitter Eric Hinske scored on Catalanotto's fly to right.
Brandon League (1-0) pitched 1 1-3 hitless innings of relief for the win and Miguel Batista got three outs for his 22nd save.
Takayuki Shimizu doubled home two runs in the eighth inning Tuesday as the Yomiuri Giants beat the Chunichi Dragons 4-1 in Japanese baseball's Central League.
Left-hander Hisanori Takahashi (7-6) threw a six-hitter, struck out seven and walked one in his seven sharp innings at Nagoya. Masanori Hayashi struck out the side in the ninth for his ninth save.
Carp 6, Swallows 3
At Hiroshima Stadium, Koichi Ogata hit a tie-breaking bases-loaded two-run single and Koji Yamasaki followed with an RBI single in the sixth inning, handing the Hiroshima Carp a 6-3 victory over the Yakult Swallows.
Starter Kan Otake (7-8) worked six innings to pick up the win, while John Bale got his 15th save.
Tigers 1, BayStars 1, 12 innings
At Osaka Dome, the Hanshin Tigers and the Yokohama BayStars ended up in a 1-1 tie after 12 innings.
Tatsuhiko Kinjo put Yokohama ahead with a solo homer in the fourth, but Atsushi Fujimoto singled home a run to tie the game in the bottom half.
Hanshin southpaw Kei Igawa and Yokohama right-hander Daisuke Miura each pitched eight strong innings in a duel.
Hawks 7, Buffaloes 2
In the Pacific League, Nobuhiko Matsunaka blasted a two run homer in the first inning as the front-running Softbank Hawks beat the Orix Buffaloes 7-2.
Matsunaka connected off Jeremy Powell (11-10) for his league-leading 39th homer in the first and added another run on an RBI single in the third for a 3-for-4 night.
Saito (13-0) allowed four hits in eight innings, with five strikeouts and two walks for his 13th straight decision Tuesday.
Fighters 6, Golden Eagles 2
At the Tokyo Dome, Fernando Seguignol belted a three-run homer in the bottom of the first inning and Atsunori Inaba added an RBI single in the fifth, handing the Nippon Ham Fighters a 6-2 victory over the Rakuten Golden Eagles, who have now lost seven games in a row.
Hisashi Takeda (1-0) collected his first win in two years after working two scoreless innings of relief for Naoyuki Tateishi, who gave up a two-run homer to Takeshi Yamasaki in the top of the first.
Marines 8, Lions 4
At Invoice Seibu Dome, Val Pascucci blasted a crucial homer in the third as the Chiba Lotte Marines beat Seibu Lions 8-4.
Shunsuke Watanabe (13-3) won his third start in a row after allowing 10 hits, while striking out 10 in 8 2/3 innings.
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