Troy Glaus stayed hit a three-run homer and Tim Hudson pitched six strong innings around a rain delay as the Atlanta Braves extended their lead in the National League East with a 7-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies Tuesday. The Braves moved to 1 1/2 games ahead of two-time reigning NL champion Philadelphia with their 17th win in the last 21 games, including seven in a row. They haven't been in first this late in the season since 2005, the last of their record 14 straight division titles. Philadelphia is heading in the opposite direction. The Phillies have lost eight of 10 and are really struggling at the plate, though Ryan Howard's two-run homer prevented them from being shut out for the sixth time in the last 10 games. Reds 9, Cardinals 8: At St. Louis, Scott Rolen homered twice as Cincinnati overcame a rough outing by Johnny Cueto to beat St. Louis. Jonny Gomes' RBI single and Drew Stubbs' go-ahead sacrifice fly off Blake Hawksworth put the Reds ahead to stay in the seventh inning after Brendan Ryan's two-run double put the Cardinals ahead 8-7 the inning before. Joey Votto homered and had four hits and helped the Reds rally to reclaim first place in the NL Central. Pirates 3, Cubs 2: Neil Walker hit his first major league home run to put the Pirates ahead in the eighth as Pittsburgh beat the Chicago Cubs for the seventh time this season, 3-2 Tuesday. Astros 8, Nationals 7: At Houston, Lance Berkman singled in two runs with two out in the ninth against NL saves leader Matt Capps as Houston answered Washington's late rally with one of their own. Mets 4, Padres 2: At San Diego, David Wright and Ike Davis homered to lead the New York Mets to a win over San Diego. Dodgers 1, Diamondbacks 0, 10 innings: At Los Angeles, Matt Kemp greeted reliever Juan Gutierrez with a leadoff home run in the 10th inning to give the Los Angeles Dodgers a victory over Arizona. Rockies 2, Giants 1, 11 innings: At San Francisco, Clint Barmes hit a two-out RBI double in the 11th inning as Colorado won its season-high fourth straight road game by beating San Francisco.
