Rookie Madison Bumgarner pitched into the eighth inning to guide the San Francisco Giants to a 5-2 win in the National League Friday that condemned the St. Louis Cardinals to a season-worst fifth straight loss. The Giants got home runs from Pablo Sandoval and Aubrey Huff. St. Louis led the NL Central by a game after a dramatic sweep of Cincinnati on Aug. 11, but have since dropped to 4-1/2 games behind the division-leading Reds. Buster Posey doubled twice with an RBI off Jake Westbrook (1-1) for the Giants, who remained a game behind Philadelphia in the wild-card race. Reds 3, Dodgers 1: In Los Angeles, the hosts made it seven straight wins by defeating Los Angeles. Cincinnati's Homer Bailey (3-2) pitched seven solid innings in his second start for the suspended Johnny Cueto, allowing only one run and striking out six. Brandon Phillips backed him with three hits and three RBIs as the Reds took their largest lead in the NL Central since 2002, when they held a five-game lead but finished third. They are seeking their first division title since 1995. Braves 5, Cubs 3: In Chicago, Rick Ankiel hit a bases-loaded triple off a wild Carlos Marmol with two outs in the ninth inning to give Atlanta victory over Chicago. Marmol entered with a 3-2 lead but walked three of the first four batters he faced. After strinking out one batter for the second out, Marmol served up a pitch that Ankiel lined into the right-field corner. Derek Lee, who was traded from the Cubs to the Braves on Wednesday, didn't have to wait long for a victory over the team he served for almost seven seasons. He had a poor game personally, going 0 for 4. Phillies 1, Nationals 0: In Philadelphia, Roy Halladay pitched seven scoreless innings to lead Philadelphia over Washington. The Phillies remained 2½ games behind the Braves in the NL East. Halladay (16-8) won his sixth straight while striking out five. It was the ninth time this season he hasn't allowed a run and the 25th time in 26 starts he has pitched six or more innings. The lone run came via Raul Ibanez's double off Jason Marquis (0-6) in the third inning. Brewers 10, Padres 6: In Milwaukee, Casey McGehee homered and drove in four runs, as Milwaukee piled up 15 hits against baseball's top pitching staff to snap San Diego's five-game winning streak. The Padres, owners of the best record in the National League at 73-48 and leading the NL West by five games, had won 10 of 11. The hits were the most against the Padres since May, and the 10 runs were the most against San Diego since early July. Marlins 9, Astros 0: In Miami, Anibal Sanchez pitched seven scoreless innings to guide Florida to an easy win over Houston. Sanchez (10-8) walked only one and struck out five. He is 3-0 with a 0.70 ERA in four starts against the Astros. Cody Ross and Hector Luna hit back-to-back homers for the Marlins, who have won four straight. Houston starter J.A. Happ (3-2) retired 10 straight before a 37-minute rain delay. He was charged with three runs in six innings. Diamondbacks 4, Rockies 3, 10 innings: In Phoenix, Kelly Johnson doubled in Justin Upton from first base in the 10th inning as Arizona rallied to beat Colorado. Mets 7, Pirates 2: In Pittsburgh, David Wright and Jose Reyes each had three of New York's 15 hits as the Mets broke out of a slump against lowly Pittsburgh. The loss was the 82nd this season for the Pirates.
