Sep 2, 2005 5 min read

ATLANTA (AP) – Andruw Jones gave his MVP campaign another boost, leading off the bottom of the 10th inning with a towering homer that gave the Atlanta Braves an 8-7 victory over the Washington Nationals on Thursday night. The Braves squandered a 7-1 lead before salvaging a split of the four-game series with their NL East rival.

The crowd chanted “MVP! MVP! MVP!” as Jones led off the 10th. Luis Ayala (8-7) got ahead in the count 1-2, then tried to blow a high fastball by him.

Jones sent a drive toward the seats in left-center, the ball seeming to hang up forever as he trotted down the first-base line, watching its flight. Brad Wilkerson and Marlon Byrd both leaped at the wall, but the ball settled in the first row for Jones’ 44th homer and 110th RBI of a career season.

Kyle Davies (7-3), called up from the minors earlier in the day, got the win with three scoreless innings.

Jeff Francoeur hit a three-run homer and Chipper Jones added a two-run shot for the Braves.

Vinny Castilla had four RBIs for Washington.

Astros 3, Reds 1

HOUSTON – Roy Oswalt remained perfect against the Cincinnati Reds and the Houston Astros swept the three-game series.

The right-hander improved to 15-0 in 19 appearances against the Reds, the most wins without a loss by any pitcher against one team in major league history.

Oswalt (16-11) is 4-0 against the Reds this season and the Astros remained one-half game behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL wild-card race.

He went 5 2-3 innings and had a season-high 11 strikeouts. Ken Griffey Jr. singled and Adam Dunn walked with two outs in the sixth. Mike Gallo relieved and got Sean Casey to fly out to end the inning.

Oswalt, who allowed five hits and one walk, is 2-3 with two no-decisions in his last seven starts.

Brad Lidge pitched the ninth for his 32nd save in 35 opportunities.

Cincinnati had won 14 of its previous 16 road games before this series.

Padres 6, Brewers 5

MILWAUKEE – Khalil Greene hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning and San Diego crept back above .500 with a victory over Milwaukee.

Joe Randa hit his career-high 37th double with one out in the eighth. After Xavier Nady grounded out, Greene hit a foul ball that fell into the stands, three rows beyond the reach of Brewers first baseman Lyle Overbay. On the next pitch, and an 0-2 count, reliever Kane Davis (1-1) left a fastball over the middle of the plate, and Greene hit his 11th homer of the season.

It was the third straight win for the Padres (67-66), who are above .500 for the first time since Aug. 12. They remain in first place in the NL West – 5½ games in front of Los Angeles – and have gained two games in the standings since last being above .500.

Rudy Saenz (6-1) earned the win with one inning of relief. Padres starter Adam Eaton hasn’t won in his last three starts after winning eight in a row. He gave up three runs and three hits in six innings.

Phillies 3, Mets 1

NEW YORK – Jon Lieber allowed four hits over seven innings, and David Bell blooped a two-run single in the first to lead Philadelphia over New York.

Ryan Howard added a ninth-inning homer for Philadelphia, which began the day with a half-game lead in the wild-card race and has won two straight.

Lieber (13-12) gave up his only run in the sixth when Jose Reyes led off with a triple and scored on Kaz Matsui’s groundout. Coming off losses in consecutive outings in which the Phillies were shut out, Lieber allowed two runs or fewer for the fifth time in his last six starts.

Ugueth Urbina pitched a perfect eighth and Billy Wagner got three outs for his 32nd save in 34 chances.

Tom Glavine (10-12) gave up three hits and four walks in seven innings, but his misplay of a comebacker with two on and one out in the first set up the Phillies’ first two runs.

Red Sox 7, Devil Rays 4

BOSTON – John Olerud homered twice and drove in six runs as Boston came from behind for the third consecutive game, beating Tampa Bay to complete a four-game sweep.

The Red Sox have won 19 of 20 at home and scored at least seven runs in their last 14 games at Fenway Park. They’ve won five in a row overall.

Bronson Arroyo (11-9) allowed four runs and nine hits. He struck out six in seven innings for his first win since Aug. 10. Jonathan Papelbon worked a scoreless eighth before giving up consecutive singles to start the ninth. Mike Timlin got three outs for his fifth save.

Doug Waechter (5-9) allowed six runs – five earned – and eight hits in 6 1-3 innings.

Mariners 5, Yankees 1

SEATTLE – Miguel Ojeda’s first home run with Seattle helped the Mariners defeat New York.

Yankees starter Jaret Wright was knocked out of the game by Raul Ibanez’s line drive in the sixth inning. Wright left after being hit on the right collarbone and the right side of his neck. X-rays were negative.

Wright pitched 5 1-3 innings, allowing one run and three hits. It was his fourth start since coming off the 60-day disabled list on Aug. 15 following a shoulder injury.

White Sox 12, Tigers 3

CHICAGO – Jose Contreras won his third straight start and A.J. Pierzynski went 3-for-3 with a homer and three RBIs to lead the White Sox over Detroit.

Jermaine Dye and Carl Everett also homered for the White Sox, who broke the game open with six runs in the eighth inning.

Contreras (10-7) was perfect until the fifth, when former White Sox All-Star Magglio Ordonez led off with a single. The Cuban right-hander allowed only one hit until the seventh, when the Tigers got three straight hits.