Washington ? St. Louis pitcher Jeff Suppan broke one of baseball’s cardinal rules: Touch a ball in foul territory to prevent it from rolling fair.

Suppan’s momentary indecision on Jose Guillen’s swinging bunt in the fourth cost the Cardinals as the Washington Nationals went on to score two runs in the inning in their 4-1 victory Friday night.

“Suppan thought it was foul and let it roll,” Washington manager Frank Robinson said. “That’s the first time I’ve seen that.”

Esteban Loaiza took a shutout into the seventh, and Brad Wilkerson hit a leadoff homer for the Nationals, who won their 67th game of the season, matching the Montreal Expos’ total from 2004.

The Nationals, who had lost six of nine games, trail Philadelphia by 21â2 games in the NL wild-card race.

Suppan (12-10) had a five-start road winning streak snapped as the Cardinals lost for only the sixth time in 15 road games. But he didn’t help his own cause when he failed to corral Guillen’s foul chopper that rolled back into fair territory.

Guillen, who never stopped running, was past first base before Albert Pujols reached down and picked up the ball.

“It kind of sets the tone. … Take nothing for granted – run hard, play hard,” Robinson said.

Suppan said he waited for a second – then didn’t react.

“By the time I got to the ball, I was parallel with (Guillen). I kind of waited for a second, and as I waited, it kept rolling in,” he said. “I went after the ball hard, and I wasn’t going to let it roll back fair, but …”

Loaiza (9-9) allowed one run and three hits over seven-plus innings, walked four and struck out seven. He won for the third time in four starts. At one point, he fanned five straight hitters and six of seven.

Phillies 11, Diamondbacks 3

Phoenix – Bobby Abreu capped Philadelphia’s six-run seventh inning with a grand slam, and Philadelphia beat Arizona to win for the fifth time in six games. Chase Utley hit two solo homers for Philadelphia, which moved within 21â2 games of Atlanta, the NL East leader.

Rockies 4, Padres 3

San Diego – Rookie Jeff Francis threw 62â3 solid innings, and last-place Colorado beat San Diego, dropping the NL West-leading Padres one game under .500. With the Padres at 63-64, this is the latest in a season a team has led a division with a losing record. The Rockies (50-78), who have won five of six, are 131â2 games back in baseball’s weakest division.

Astros 2, Dodgers 1

Los Angeles – Andy Pettitte outdueled former AL East rival Derek Lowe with eight stellar innings, and Craig Biggio hit a tiebreaking home run in the eighth to lead Houston. Pettitte (12-9) allowed one run and six hits while striking out seven and walking one.

Mets 1, Giants 0

San Francisco – Steve Trachsel made a triumphant season debut, allowing two hits in eight innings in his first start since back surgery in March to lead New York to its fifth straight victory. David Wright homered off Kevin Correia (2-5) for the only run for the Mets. The streak has moved the Mets (68-60) eight games over .500 for the first time since 2000.

Brewers 3, Braves 1

Milwaukee – Ben Sheets strained his right shoulder and left the game in the eighth inning of Milwaukee’s victory. Chipper Jones was batting with two outs in the eighth and behind in the count 0-2 when Sheets bounced a pitch behind the batter, then came off the mound in obvious pain, holding his right shoulder. Sheets (10-9) was to be evaluated again today, and the Brewers said he was day-to-day.

Reds 6, Pirates 1

Pittsburgh – Ken Griffey Jr. hit two homers, giving him three in two games, and winning pitcher Aaron Harang ended the longest hitless streak by a major leaguer in 14 years (0-for-49) with an RBI single, leading Cincinnati over Pittsburgh.

Marlins 7, Cubs 5

Chicago – Jeff Conine had three hits with two RBIs and three runs scored, and Miguel Cabrera knocked in two runs to help Florida. Marlins rookie left-hander Jason Vargas (5-1) pitched five scoreless innings before the Cubs rallied with five runs in the sixth to cut into a 7-0 lead.