NL: Ex-Ray Sosa keeps Braves rolling toward title

ATLANTA - Former Devil Ray Jorge Sosa overcame a career-high six walks to pitch 62/3 shutout innings and push the Braves closer to their 14th straight division title with a 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night.

The Phillies lost ground on two fronts, falling six games behind the Braves in the East and two behind Houston in the wild-card race. Atlanta reduced to six its magic number for adding a division title to a streak that began in 1991.

Sosa, acquired from Tampa Bay during spring training in a seemingly minor deal for infielder Nick Green, has been a major contributor. The right-hander won for the fifth time in six starts, solidifying a spot in Atlanta's possible postseason rotation.

Sosa surrendered two hits before giving way to Macay McBride, who struck out Jason Michaels to end a seventh-inning threat.

Chris Reitsma pitched a scoreless eighth, and Kyle Farnsworth allowed a run-scoring single to Jimmy Rollins with two outs in the ninth. The Phillies had only three hits.

Sosa, who entered the season with a career record of 11-26, has 13 wins, as many as Tim Hudson, the Braves' big acquisition during last offseason. He is one win behind All-Star John Smoltz. Sosa lowered his ERA to 2.45.

Rafael Furcal had three hits, two runs and an RBI and picked up his career-high 43rd stolen base. Andruw Jones added to his league lead with his 126th RBI.

ROCKIES 20, PADRES 1: Coming off three straight tight and impressive victories, West-leading San Diego took an embarrassing step backward, allowing seven runs in the first in its most lopsided loss of the season. Matt Holliday hit two homers for host Colorado, and his eight RBIs were a career high and the most in the league this season. They also tied the franchise record, as did the Rockies' runs.

ASTROS 7, PIRATES 4: Andy Pettitte made his shortest start in 21/2 months but still won his seventh in a row and kept visiting Houston in the wild-card lead. The Astros won their sixth in seven games as Brad Ausmus drove in four, three on consecutive doubles off left-hander Tom Gorzelanny, a 2003 second-round draft pick who was making his major-league debut.

METS 3, MARLINS 2 (12): Mike Jacobs delivered a two-out single in the 12th to drive in David Wright with the winner as host New York dented Florida's wild-card hopes. The Marlins led 2-1 until Cliff Floyd's run-scoring single tied it in the seventh.

GIANTS 4, NATIONALS 3: Barry Bonds turned jeers to cheers with an upper-deck homer in his 2005 road debut, then drew a walk before Moises Alou's go-ahead, three-run shot in the ninth for San Francisco. Bonds hit his 706th homer off Livan Hernandez in the fourth, and that was the only run the right-hander allowed heading into the ninth.

D'BACKS 4, DODGERS 1: Javier Vazquez allowed four hits in 72/3 innings and host Arizona clinched the season series. Chad Tracy was 2-for-3 with a double and two runs in the Diamondbacks' eighth victory in 13 games against Los Angeles.

REDS 6, CARDINALS 5: Rich Aurilia drove in three with a homer and a single, and Javier Valentin singled home the tiebreaking run in the seventh to rally host Cincinnati. The Reds won for the fourth time in 11 games this season against the Central champions.

BREWERS 5, CUBS 3: Geoff Jenkins homered in the first and Doug Davis worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the seventh for host Milwaukee.

[Last modified September 21, 2005, 00:43:02]