Milwaukee ? Sammy Sosa helped the Chicago Cubs keep pressure on the division-leading Houston Astros.

Sosa hit his 33rd home run and Juan Cruz outdueled Ben Sheets as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Milwaukee Brewers, 4-2, Friday night.

Chicago remained a half-game behind Houston, which won 5-4 at San Diego. The Cubs are 1 1/2 games ahead of third-place St. Louis.

“The whole team is motivated, excited,” Sosa said after Chicago won its fifth straight at Miller Park. “We know the only chance that we got to try to win the division is winning every day, pretty much.”

His 532nd career home run, a two-run shot off Sheets in the first, gave Cruz an early lead.

“We don’t have that much time left,” Sosa said. “So, we got to out there and be ready everyday.”

Cruz (2-5) made his second start since being recalled from Triple-A Iowa on Aug. 31. He allowed two runs and six hits.

Astros 5, Padres 4

San Diego — Jeff Bagwell hit a three-run homer to lead Houston over San Diego and keep the Astros in first place in the NL Central. With San Diego leading 3-2 in the fifth inning, Bagwell hit his 32nd homer of the season, a drive on a slow curveball from Adam Eaton (8-10). Houston remained a half-game ahead of the Chicago Cubs, who won 4-2 at Milwaukee. Third-place St. Louis dropped two games off the pace. Jared Fernandez (3-3) allowed three runs and five hits in five innings.

Reds 4, Cardinals 2 (12)

St. Louis — Wily Mo Pena tripled home the tiebreaking run in the 12th inning to cap his first three-hit game as Cincinnati rallied past St. Louis. The Cardinals, who wasted a 2-1 lead in the ninth, has lost five of six. Cardinals outfielder Jim Edmonds missed his third straight start because of a bruised right knee, and slumping Edgar Renteria was given the night off. Albert Pujols hit a two-run homer in the first for the Cardinals. Scott Randall (1-1) gained the win by allowing one hit in two innings, and Chris Reitsma got three straight outs for his seventh save in 12 chances.

D’backs 8, Giants 1

San Francisco — Brandon Webb allowed one run in seven innings to outduel fellow rookie Jerome Williams and lead Arizona past San Francisco. Webb (9-7) lowered his ERA to 2.51 by allowing only a run-scoring single by Benito Santiago in the fourth. He gave up three hits, walked five — including Barry Bonds twice — and struck out six. Webb, who has gotten little run support from the Diamondbacks this season, was locked in a 1-1 duel with Williams until the seventh — when Arizona scored seven runs off Williams and two relievers.

Braves 3-3, Pirates 2-5

Atlanta — Craig Wilson hit a three-run homer and Mark Corey struck out Chipper Jones with the bases loaded in the sixth inning as Pittsburgh beat Atlanta, 5-3, to split a doubleheader. In the opener, Jones homered off Corey with one out in the 10th inning, giving the Braves a come-from-behind 3-2 victory. Wilson’s home run off Shane Reynolds (11-8) capped a four-run first for the Pirates in the second game, and they hung on.

Phillies 1, Mets 0

Philadelphia — Vicente Padilla kept up his mastery over New York, striking out a season-high 10 in eight innings to lead Philadelphia past the Mets. Marlon Byrd drove in the only run in the eighth inning with a single just off the outstreched glove of shortstop Jorge Velandia, scoring Nick Punto. The Phillies, who entered the game tied for the NL wild-card lead, have won four straight and seven of eight after a miserable August.

Rheal Cormier got three outs for his first save with the Phillies. Manager Larry Bowa said Jose Mesa has lost his closer’s job again after blowing two save chances in four days.

Expos 6, Marlins 2

San Juan, Puerto Rico — Todd Zeile hit two home runs and Montreal opened its final homestand in Puerto Rico by beating Florida in a game delayed more than an hour by a power outage. Zeile became the first player in major league history to homer for 11 different teams. His shots helped drop Florida one game behind Philadelphia in the NL wild-card race, while Montreal remained 5 1/2 games back.

A crowd of 11,509 watched at Hiram Bithorn Stadium. The Expos are playing 22 games at the park this season — after this three-game series, they play three games against the Chicago Cubs.

Dodgers 8, Rockies 7

Denver — Adrian Beltre went 4-for-5, homered twice and drove in three runs, helping Los Angeles rally past Colorado. Los Angeles rebounded from 6-1 and 7-2 deficits and sent Colorado to its sixth straight loss. The Dodgers have won six of their last eight games and remained three games behind Philadelphia in the NL wild-card race.