Philadelphia ? Credit this big win to Jim Thome — and the winds of Hurricane Isabel.

In danger of blowing a must-have game, the Philadelphia Phillies rallied against Dontrelle Willis and beat the Florida Marlins, 5-4, Thursday on Thome’s tiebreaking homer in the eighth inning.

The Phillies pulled within a half-game of the Marlins for the NL wild-card lead, taking two of three in the series. Thome homered in each game, tying Barry Bonds for the NL lead with 43.

Thome said he wasn’t sure his last ball was gone until the gusts gave it a boost. But the key play came a few innings earlier, when Mike Lieberthal’s little popup became a tricky adventure that turned in the Phillies’ favor.

“The wind was playing havoc, but it helped us out,” Thome said. “What a great game. Awesome game.”

Said Florida manager Jack McKeon: “The wind certainly had an effect.”

Philadelphia’s victory clinched the NL East for Atlanta, the Braves’ 12th straight division title. The Phillies and Marlins, meanwhile, will meet three more times next week at Florida.

With the hurricane approaching, the start time was moved up from 7:05 p.m. to 1:05. Signs outside Veterans Stadium offered fans the opportunity to exchange their tickets if they did not want to weather the advancing storm.

A crowd of about 35,000 had been expected, and 20,915 spirited fans actually showed. Winds were gusting up to 32 mph at the beginning and there were scattered sprinkles.

Hot dog wrappers constantly whipped around the park and Phillies second baseman Tomas Perez got a big cheer when he playfully fielded a blowing newspaper.

“The wind just kept picking up,” Lieberthal said. “The conditions were unbelievable. Pitches were kind of cutting and moving much more than usual.”

After Florida’s Miguel Cabrera and Philadelphia’s Placido Polanco homered, Thome put the Phillies ahead for good. Thome pulled a full-count pitch over the right-field seats for his 43rd homer.

“When you get to this time of year, everything is magnified,” he said.

Thome tied the team record for homers by a lefty, set by Chuck Klein in 1929.

Dodgers 2, D’backs 0

Los Angeles — Wilson Alvarez and Eric Gagne combined on a seven-hitter, and Robin Ventura homered as Los Angeles defeated Arizona. The Dodgers are 2 1/2 games behind Florida in the NL wild-card race. Los Angeles plays seven of its final 11 games against NL West champion San Francisco, beginning tonight at home.

Cardinals 13, Brewers 0

St. Louis — Edgar Renteria had four hits and five RBIs, and Woody Williams rebounded from his worst start of the year to combine on a three-hitter as St. Louis defeated Milwaukee. The Cardinals won three of four against the Brewers but remained five games behind Houston, the NL Central leader, with eight games to go. St. Louis finished the season series 11-3 against Milwaukee.

Expos 1, Mets 0

New York — Javier Vazquez struck out 12, and Todd Zeile homered as Montreal defeated New York. Vazquez (13-11) allowed three hits in seven innings, outpitching Steve Trachsel to help the Expos retain their slim mathematical chance at the NL wild card. The Mets have lost five straight games and 13 of 14.

Astros 6, Rockies 0

Denver — Wade Miller and Houston handed Colorado its first shutout at Coors Field in more than four years. Miller allowed only two hits before leaving in the seventh inning, and Jeff Bagwell homered and drove in three runs as the Astros moved a game ahead of the idle Chicago Cubs. The Rockies were blanked at home for the first time since San Diego’s Andy Ashby pitched a six-hitter July 4, 1999.

Padres 7, Giants 3

San Francisco — Gary Matthews Jr. hit a two-run double and San Diego avoided a four-game sweep by San Francisco with a win over a Giants lineup of all reserves. The Giants clinched the NL West title Wednesday night and manager Felipe Alou gave all of his regulars a day of rest following a fun-filled night of celebrating. That was fine with the Padres, who ended a six-game losing streak.

Pirates 7, Reds 0

Pittsburgh — Kip Wells retired his first 17 batters and combined with Brian Meadows on a three-hitter, leading Pittsburgh past Cincinnati. Wells (9-8) didn’t allow a hit until two outs in the sixth.