Pittsburgh ? Craig Biggio drove in three runs and Andy Pettitte pitched the surging Houston Astros to their seventh straight victory, 7-4 over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.

The win moved the Astros to 79-78, the first time the team has been over .500 since June 22 – the day Roger Clemens made his initial start of the season in a loss to Minnesota.

Mike Lamb scored three times for second-place Houston, which moved within 11â2 games of fading St. Louis in the NL Central. The Cardinals lost their seventh straight, 7-5 to San Diego.

Jason Bay and Jose Bautista homered for the Pirates, who have lost five in a row but had won eight of nine at home. Pittsburgh’s Freddy Sanchez went 4-for-5 to raise his NL-leading batting average to .346.

Padres 7, Cardinals 5

St. Louis – Mike Cameron’s two-run double capped San Diego’s four-run seventh inning against St. Louis ace Chris Carpenter. San Diego’s magic number to clinch the NL West is down to four after its sixth straight win. Ronnie Belliard homered twice and had three RBIs for the Cardinals.

Dodgers 11, Rockies 4

Denver – Los Angeles took over the NL wild-card lead. Nomar Garciaparra homered and drove in three runs. Russell Martin drove in four runs with a bases-loaded triple and a 15-foot run-scoring single, and Greg Maddux won his 332nd career game.

Nationals 4, Phillies 3

Washington – Ryan Zimmerman went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs. After Chase Utley’s RBI-single – his third hit – off Nationals closer Chad Cordero drew Philadelphia within a run with two outs in the ninth, Ryan Howard flied out to deep center to end the game. Cordero earned his 29th save.

Giants 4, Diamondbacks 2

San Francisco – Moises Alou hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth, and San Francisco ended a five-game losing streak.

Cubs 14, Brewers 6

Chicago – Henry Blanco had four hits and four RBIs to help Sean Marshall get his first win since July 5. Jacque Jones and John Mabry homered for the Cubs.

Reds 5, Marlins 3

Miami – David Ross hit two home runs into the upper deck, and Cincinnati stayed within striking distance in the NL Central. The loss eliminated Florida, which has lost four straight, from a wild-card berth.

Braves 12, Mets 0

Atlanta – John Smoltz pitched eight innings for his 15th win, and Andruw Jones became the first Atlanta hitter with consecutive 40-homer seasons. Smoltz (15-9) gave up six hits and walked two, reaching 15 wins for the first time in eight years. He struck out six.