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Major League Baseball

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Howard hits NL-leading 45th home run NEW YORK (AP) – Ryan Howard hit his NL-leading 45th home run and made a key diving stop as the Philadelphia Phillies ended the New York Mets’ seven-game winning streak with a 4-3 victory Friday night.

Randy Wolf and the Philadelphia bullpen also stopped the Mets’ 11-game winning string at Shea Stadium, their best streak at home since September 1995.

The wild-card hopeful Phillies won minus manager Charlie Manuel, who was ejected in the sixth inning. Howard drove in three runs, giving him a league-leading 117 RBIs. He had a sacrifice fly in the first inning and hit a two-run homer in the third.

Carlos Beltran hit his 37th homer, doubled and drove in three runs for the NL East-leading Mets.

Marlins 6, Brewers 5

MIAMI – Mike Jacobs drove in three runs, reliever Brian Moehler pitched four shutout innings and the Marlins rallied for their fifth consecutive win.

Jacobs doubled home a run in the first, then hit a bases-loaded double in the third to help the Marlins overcome a 5-2 deficit. Moehler (7-8) limited the Brewers to one hit after starter Ricky Nolasco lasted only two-plus innings. Milwaukee got only one hit in the final 6 1-3 innings.

Milwaukee pinch-hitter Jeff Cirillo popped out with two on to end the eighth inning, and Joe Borowski pitched a perfect ninth for his 30th save in 33 chances.

Nationals 7, Braves 6

ATLANTA – Austin Kearns hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning to lead Washington and hand the Braves another home loss in a miserable season at Turner Field.

Trailing 4-2, Washington put up four runs on the Braves’ bullpen. Chad Paronto failed to retire anyone, giving up three straight hits that included Ryan Zimmerman’s run-scoring single. After Macay McBride got a grounder that led to Nick Johnson being tagged out in a rundown between third and home, Tyler Yates was called in to face Kearns.

Big mistake for the Braves. Kearns sent a 1-1 pitch screaming down the right-field line, the ball ricocheting off an outer wall just a few feet inside the foul pole for his 20th homer of the season.

Washington outfielder Alfonso Soriano became the 40th player in major league history – and the fastest ever – to reach 200 homers and 200 steals for his career. He walked in the third and stole second to reach the milestone, then added his 201st steal in the eighth to go along with 203 career homers.

Cardinals 2, Cubs 0

ST. LOUIS – Jeff Suppan pitched shutout ball into the eighth inning, overcoming three balls that rookie left fielder Chris Duncan misplayed into doubles.

Scott Rolen drove in a run and made a running, juggling catch for the Cardinals, who began the day leading the second-place Reds by less than one percentage point in the NL Central.

The Cardinals have won only two of their last six games, winning both times when Juan Mateo started for the Cubs. St. Louis won despite going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and stranding 15 runners.

All-Star center fielder Jim Edmonds struck out four times in his first start for the Cardinals since leaving a game Aug. 15 because of post-concussion syndrome.

Indians 4, Tigers 2

CLEVELAND – Rookie Jeremy Sowers won his third straight start with six solid innings, leading the Cleveland Indians to a win over the suddenly staggering Detroit Tigers.

Sowers (6-3) gave up two runs in the second inning, but blanked baseball’s best team for the next four as the Indians snapped a four-game losing streak to Detroit. Cleveland is just 5-12 against the Tigers this season.

Detroit, which entered the weekend leading the AL Central by 51/2 games, has lost three straight, six of eight, and is just 5-12 since Aug. 8 – when the Tigers led their division by 10.

Blue Jays 6, Royals 3

TORONTO – Rookie Shaun Marcum rebounded from the worst start of his young career with six strong innings, leading Toronto.

Marcum (2-3), who allowed nine runs in a 15-0 loss to Baltimore in his last start on Aug. 19, won for the first time in six games. He allowed just one run and seven hits, while striking out four and walking two.

Kansas City dropped to 46-84 with the loss. Earlier Friday, the Royals said outfielder Reggie Sanders will undergo knee surgery, ending his disappointing first season with Kansas City.

B.J. Ryan got the final out for his 29th save in 33 chances.

Kansas City starter Luke Hudson (6-5) gave up six runs – five earned – and 10 hits in six innings.

Orioles 4, Tampa Bay 0

BALTIMORE – Daniel Cabrera pitched seven innings of five-hit ball, and Baltimore dealt Tampa Bay its eighth straight road loss.

Ramon Hernandez drove in a run and scored twice for the Orioles, who have won six of nine.

Cabrera (7-8) struck out seven, walked three and allowed only one runner past second base. He has thrown 16 straight scoreless innings, including a five-hit shutout of Toronto on Saturday.

Twins 5, White Sox 4

CHICAGO – Jason Bartlett had a two-out RBI single in the top of the ninth as the Minnesota Twins took over the AL wild-card lead.

Minnesota finished off its eighth win in 11 games when a fan interfered with first baseman Justin Morneau’s attempt to catch Jermaine Dye’s foul pop. First base umpire Andy Fletcher made the call for the final out.

Athletics 9, Rangers 3

ARLINGTON, Texas – Barry Zito took a no-hit bid into the eighth inning and earned his 100th career victory.

Mark DeRosa led off the eighth with a clean single to center field for Texas’ first hit. Zito was trying to pitch the majors’ first no-hitter since Randy Johnson threw a perfect game for Arizona at Atlanta on May 18, 2004.

Zito (14-8) left after giving up his second hit, Carlos Lee’s two-run triple with one out in the ninth. The subject of trade rumors earlier this season, the 2002 Cy Young winner struck out two and walked two.

The Rangers dropped a season-high eight games behind the AL West-leading Athletics.

Texas rookie Edinson Volquez (1-3) allowed three runs and seven hits over four innings. The A’s broke it open by scoring six times in the ninth, with Nick Swisher hitting a three-run double and Milton Bradley adding a two-run double.

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