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CINCINNATI - Eric Milton finally pitched like a pricey and prized acquisition Saturday, leading the Reds to a 3-2 victory that ended a 12-game losing streak against the Astros.
Cincinnati had not beaten Houston since July31, the sixth-longest streak in club history.
Milton gave up three hits in seven innings, his first good showing in three starts for the team that made him the centerpiece of its offseason overhaul. The left-hander got a $4-million bonus as part of a three-year, $25.5-million deal in December.
"I felt strong until the end," said Milton, who was recovering from the flu in his last start, a 5-2 loss to Houston on April10. "I felt a hundred times better than I did last week. I wasn't at the top of my game, but I felt pretty good."
The Reds' three-run fourth opened with Ken Griffey walking and moving to second on Sean Casey's single. Casey, one of the Reds' slowest runners, rounded second on Joe Randa's flyout, leaving him easy prey for a double play. But Austin Kearns walked. Wily Mo Pena singled home a run and Rich Aurilia hit a two-run single.
METS 4, MARLINS 3: Ramon Castro singled home the winning run with two outs in the ninth for New York's sixth consecutive win. The Mets' Pedro Martinez struck out nine in seven innings but threw a career-high three wild pitches and left his home debut trailing 2-1.
Carlos Beltran tied it with a two-out single in the eighth, and Mike Piazza followed with a go-ahead double. Braden Looper, though, gave up three hits in the Marlins' ninth, including Juan Encarnacion's tying double with two outs, his second blown save in three chances.
But Victor Diaz, who also singled to start New York's eighth-inning rally, doubled off Guillermo Mota with two outs in the ninth and scored when Castro lined a pitch to right-center.
PHILLIES 2, BRAVES 1: Second baseman Chase Utley had a tiebreaking single and game-saving catch for host Philadelphia. Jon Lieber allowed one run and seven hits in eight innings to win his third consecutive start since joining the Phillies during the offseason.
Down 1-0, the Phillies tied it in the sixth with Jimmy Rollins' homer to right on John Smoltz's first pitch. Kenny Lofton and Bobby Abreu followed with walks. Smoltz struck out Jim Thome and retired Pat Burrell on a popup. But Utley lined a single to right to score Lofton. Raul Mondesi bobbled the ball for an error, allowing Lofton to score.
Phillies closer Billy Wagner allowed two hits, two long fly outs and threw a wild pitch. But Utley made a diving, backhanded catch on Brian Jordan's liner to end it with runners at second and third.
NATIONALS 9, D'BACKS 3: John Patterson pitched seven shutout innings and Vinny Castilla went 3-for-3 and drove in four runs for the second straight game for host Washington's fourth consecutive win. As the Expos last season, it did not win four in a row until May 14-18. Castilla has yet to make an out at RFK Stadium. In his other two plate appearances, he was hit by a pitch Thursday and walked Saturday. During Washington's seven-run seventh, he singled and hit a two-run double.
CARDINALS 5, BREWERS 3: Scott Rolen ended a slump with a two-run homer and two singles for visiting St. Louis. Rolen, who entered hitting .125 (4-for-32), homered in the first for a 2-0 lead and singled in the fifth and seventh. Albert Pujols' second homer in two nights made it 3-0 in the third. It became 4-0 in the fourth when catcher Damian Miller tried to pick off Hector Luna from third. But his throw sailed high for an error.
CUBS 4, PIRATES 3: Neifi Perez doubled in the go-ahead run in the seventh for Chicago. He has nine hits in four games. Pittsburgh's Kip Wells started the seventh despite throwing 102 pitches through six. He immediately walked pinch-hitter Mike Fontenot. After Corey Patterson sacrificed, Perez doubled to left to chase Wells, who is 0-5 at home since beating Philadelphia 2-1 on April 5, 2004.
ROCKIES 5, GIANTS 4: Joe Kennedy outpitched Jason Schmidt and had two hits to help host Colorado end an eight-game losing streak. Rookie Clint Barmes led the Rockies from the No. 2 spot, driving in a run with a push bunt, stealing two bases and tying a team record by getting hit twice by pitches. Kennedy, a former Devil Ray, allowed two runs in 62/3 innings.
DODGERS 8, PADRES 3: Scott Erickson pitched six sharp innings for his first NL victory, Ricky Ledee homered and Jason Phillips had a pair of RBI singles. The Padres, who already have center fielder Dave Roberts and backup second baseman Eric Young on the disabled list, lost shortstop Khalil Greene after he fractured the ring finger on his right hand while trying to field a poor throw by catcher Ramon Hernandez on a steal by Cesar Izturis in the first inning.