Pittsburgh, PA (Best E Casino) - Aaron Miles went 3-for-5, homered, and drove in five runs as the St. Louis Cardinals downed the Pittsburgh Pirates, 11-6, in the rubber match of a three-game set. For the second straight day the Cardinals took a 10-6 lead into the ninth inning but, unlike in Saturday's 12-11, 10-inning loss, St. Louis was able to hold on Sunday. Troy Glaus went 3-for-4 with a homer and two doubles, drove in two, and scored three times for St. Louis, which had dropped three of four prior to Sunday, and entered the All-Star break with a 53-43 mark, in second place in the NL Central. The Cardinals trail the Cubs by 4 1/2 games, with the Brewers only a half-game behind them. Russ Springer (2-0) picked up the win for getting an out in relief of Joel Pineiro, who gave up six runs on 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings. Franquelis Osoria (3-3) gave up four runs on four hits in only a third of an inning to take the loss for the Pirates. Starter Ian Snell was touched for four runs on five hits in five innings. Chris Gomez had a two-run double and scored for Pittsburgh, which split its last six games to enter the All- Star break with a 44-50 record, in fourth place in the NL Central. The Bucs trail the Cubs by 12 1/2 games, and are only a half-game ahead of last-place Houston.

Final Score: Houston 5, Washington 0

Washington, DC (Best E Casino) - Brandon Backe threw seven-plus shutout innings and had two hits, while Carlos Lee went 2-for-4 with three runs batted in, as Houston blanked Washington, 5-0, in the rubber match of a three-game series. Backe (6-9) scattered five hits, walked four and struck out five, and picked up his first win since June 22. It was also just his second win in his past nine starts. Ty Wigginton went 2-for-3 with a solo homer for the Astros, who have won two in a row and go into the All-Star break with a 44-51 record, in last place in the National League Central. Odalis Perez (2-7) threw six innings and gave up three runs on nine hits, while striking out six. He lost his second straight start and third straight decision. Wil Nieves' double was the only extra-base hit for the Nationals, who have lost nine of 11 and go into the break with a 36-60 mark -- 16 games behind NL East- leading Philadelphia, in last place.

Final Score: Philadelphia 6, Arizona 3

Philadelphia, PA (Best E Casino) - Pat Burrell hit the go-ahead three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning, and the Philadelphia Phillies scored six straight runs to rally past the Arizona Diamondbacks, 6-3, in the rubber match of a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park. Pedro Feliz went 3- for-4 with a homer for the Phillies, who enter the All-Star break with four wins in their last five games. Jimmy Rollins went 2-for-3 with an RBI double, and the Phillies (52-43) locked up sole possession of first place in the National League East at the break. They are a half-game ahead of the New York Mets, winners of nine in a row. Ryan Madson (2-0) tossed a scoreless inning to earn the win in relief of Cole Hamels, who allowed just two runs on a career- high 11 hits in seven innings. Hamels struck out eight and helped himself at the plate with an RBI double. Chad Tracy went 2-for-4 and homered for the D- Backs, who lost three of five and reached the All-Star Break atop the NL West despite a 47-48 record. Orlando Hudson and Stephen Drew each had a pair of hits, while Chris Burke went 3-for-4. Chad Qualls (2-7) allowed four runs in one-third of an inning and lost in relief of Brandon Webb, who allowed two runs on seven hits in seven frames -- striking out six without allowing a walk.

Final Score: Milwaukee 3, Cincinnati 2

Milwaukee, WI (Best E Casino) - Craig Counsell's pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth inning scored Bill Hall with the game-winning run and new addition CC Sabathia earned the win by pitching a complete game as the Milwaukee Brewers edged the Cincinnati Reds, 3-2, in the finale of a three- game series at Miller Park. Sabathia (2-0), who was making his second start with the Brewers since being acquired from the Cleveland Indians, was masterful in going nine frames. The burly left-hander gave up two runs on eight hits, while striking out nine and hit a solo homer in the win. He is now 8-8 overall and 5-0 in his last seven starts. He also improved to 4-0 over nine lifetime games against Cincinnati. It was his fourth complete game of the season and 20th of his career. Gabe Kapler went 2- for-4 with an RBI double for the Brewers, who salvaged a win in the three- game series. Milwaukee is 3-3 in its last six games and enter the All-Star break with a 52-43 record, good for third place in the National League Central, five games behind division-leader Chicago Cubs. Adam Dunn and David Ross each had a sac fly apiece to account for the Reds' runs. Despite the loss, Cincinnati has won three of its last four games and heads into the break with a 46-50 mark, in fourth place in the NL Central and 11 1/2 games out of first. Homer Bailey started in place of Aaron Harang, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Sunday with a strained right forearm. Bailey allowed two runs on five hits and struck out four in 5 2/3 innings.

Final Score: San Francisco 4, Chicago 2

Chicago, IL (Best E Casino) - Tim Lincecum tossed eight brilliant innings and helped himself at the plate with an RBI triple as the San Francisco Giants avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs with a 4-2 win at Wrigley Field. Lincecum (11-2) allowed a run on six hits and struck out nine for the Giants, who snapped a six-game losing streak and reached the All- Star break with a 40-55 record. Brian Wilson allowed a run in a rocky ninth inning but held on for his 25th save. Jim Edmonds and Geovany Soto knocked in the runs for the Cubs, who won five of their final seven games before the midseason break. Despite the loss, the Cubs enter the All-Star break with the National League's best record at 57-38. Ryan Dempster (10-4) allowed four runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 frames -- striking out six and walking three -- and lost for the first time this season at Wrigley Field. Dempster had gone 10-0 over his first 11 starts at home.

Final Score: Los Angeles 9, Florida 1

Los Angeles, CA (Best E Casino) - Chad Billingsley struck out a career-high 13 in seven innings and the Dodgers scored six runs in the first and pounded the Marlins, 9-1, to salvage the finale of a four-game set. Billingsley (9-8) gave up only one run on five hits and didn't walk a batter for the Dodgers, who dropped four of six to enter the All-Star break with a 46-49 record. Despite their sub-.500 record, LA is in second place in the NL West, and trails Arizona by only a game. Matt Kemp, Nomar Garciaparra and James Loney each knocked in a pair of runs in the winning effort. Andrew Miller (5-9) was pounded for seven runs on five hits with five walks in 1 2/3 innings to take the loss for the Marlins, who saw their four-game winning streak come to an end. Luis Gonzalez drove in the lone run for Florida, which entered the break with a 50-45 record, 1 1/2 games behind the first-place Phillies in the NL East.

Final Score: Atlanta 12, San Diego 3

San Diego, CA (Best E Casino) - Brian McCann went 3-for-3, homered, doubled, drove in three runs and scored three times, as the Atlanta Braves thrashed the San Diego Padres, 12-3, in the rubber match of a three-game series. Mark Teixeira doubled twice, knocked in two runs and scored twice for the Braves, who enter the All-Star break on a two-game win streak. Atlanta finished the first half with a 45-50 record and sits fourth in the National League East, 6 1/2 games behind first-place Philadelphia. Jorge Campillo (4-4) allowed two runs on five hits in six innings to pick up the win. Tim Hudson, who came in to get work before the break, tossed a perfect eighth inning in his first major league relief appearance after 301 starts over 10 seasons. Kevin Kouzmanoff went 3-for-4 with a homer and two RBI for the Padres, who have lost three of four overall and reached the All- Star break last in the NL West with a 37-58 mark. Chase Headley also homered in the losing effort. Randy Wolf (6-9) was tagged for six runs on six hits in five-plus innings, while Cla Meredith allowed two runs in one-third of an inning in relief.

Final Score: New York 7, Colorado 0

Flushing, NY (Best E Casino) - Mike Pelfrey threw eight shutout innings to win his career-best sixth consecutive start, and the New York Mets hit the All-Star break with a nine-game winning streak, crushing the Colorado Rockies, 7-0, at Shea Stadium. Carlos Beltran had three hits, including a three-run homer, and Carlos Delgado added a two-run shot for the Mets, who have posted their longest winning streak since a nine-game run from April 16-25, 2000, the year they reached the World Series before losing to the Yankees. The current string is two shy of a franchise record, as the Mets last won 11 in a row during the 1990 season. With Sunday's victory, the Mets (51-44) remained a half-game behind Philadelphia for first place in the NL East. The Phillies beat Arizona, 6-3, earlier Sunday. This was New York's fourth shutout in six games, the best stretch for the team since 1969, the year of their first World Series championship. Interim manager Jerry Manuel has engineered a big turnaround for the Mets, who have posted a 17-9 record since the firing of Willie Randolph. During the sweep of a six-game homestand against the Giants and Rockies, the Mets outscored their opponents, 31-4. Pelfrey (8-6) allowed six hits and fanned five without walking a batter. He exited after throwing 119 pitches, 81 for strikes, and remained unbeaten in his last nine outings, last losing May 26 to Florida. Omar Quintanilla doubled to record the lone extra-base hit for the defending National League champions, who have lost four in a row and stand at 39-57 at the All-Star break, 8 1/2 games behind first- place Arizona in the NL West. Brad Hawpe had two hits for the Rockies, who have been outscored 23-2 during their current skid. Mark Redman (2-5) was touched for five runs on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings to suffer the loss. The lefty is 0-4 over his last seven appearances.