ST. LOUIS — The Los Angeles Dodgers lost their second straight game since acquiring Hanley Ramirez as the St. Louis Cardinals won 7-4 in the National League Thursday. Ramirez, obtained a day earlier from Miami, started at third base and had an infield hit, two walks and a steal, and he hit into a double-play grounder. David Freese and Matt Carpenter had three hits for the Cardinals, who fell behind 4-2 by allowing four runs in the fifth and then scored four in the bottom half. Cardinals starter Jake Westbrook (9-8) pitched seven innings, lasting at least that long for the third straight start. He allowed seven hits with six strikeouts. Dodgers starter Chris Capuano (10-6) gave up six runs in 4 1-3 innings. Nationals 8, Brewers 2: In Milwaukee, Edwin Jackson (6-6) pitched seven scoreless innings to steer Washington past Milwaukee. Steve Lombardozzi hit a three-run triple as Washington sent Milwaukee to its seventh consecutive loss. The Nationals have won six consecutive games, matching a season high, and improved to 59-39. The last time a Washington-based team was 20 games over .500 was 1933. Milwaukee starter Yovani Gallardo (8-8) gave up seven runs in five innings. Mets 3, Diamondbacks 1: In Phoenix, New York's Matt Harvey dazzled in his major league debut, holding Arizona to three hits and striking out 11 over 5 1-3 innings. Harvey (1-0) set a franchise record for strikeouts in a debut. He also doubled and singled to become the first pitcher since 1900 to strike out more than 10 and collect two hits in his first game. Scott Hairston hit a two-run double and Andres Torres tripled and scored for the Mets, who snapped a six-game losing streak. Arizona's Wade Miley (11-6) gave up nine hits in 5 1-3 innings. Pirates 5, Astros 3: In Houston, prized prospect Starling Marte homered on his first major league pitch to help Pittsburgh hand Houston its 10th straight loss. Pirates starter A.J. Burnett (12-3) shut out Houston until two solo homers in the eighth. Burnett went 7 1-3 innings, striking out five. Astros starter Dallas Keuchel (1-3) gave up five runs in six innings. 2013 WBC Organizers of the World Baseball Classic say they expect Japan to field a team regardless of a threat by the country's professional players to skip the 2013 tournament because of a dispute over the distribution of revenue. Paul Archey, Major League Baseball's senior vice president of international business operations, said in a statement: “We fully expect Japan, the winner of the first two World Baseball Classics, will field another championship-caliber team of which its fans will be proud.” Japan's players' association has threatened to boycott the 2013 tournament because calls for a larger share of tournament revenue weren't met. The tournament is organized by Major League Baseball. Organizers say Nippon Professional Baseball has already committed to field a team for the 2013 tournament. — Agencies
