Greg Swindell pitched a five-hitter and became the latest Cincinnati starter to stop Pittsburgh, the Reds winning 5-2 for their third straight victory in the matchup of NL division leaders Saturday.
Swindell (8-2) won his fifth straight and improved to 8-1 in his last 14 starts. He struck out four and walked none in pitching the Reds' first complete game since May 23, when Swindell blanked Philadelphia 10-0.Cincinnati starters Jose Rijo, Tim Belcher and Swindell have limited the National League East leaders to five runs in 19 innings so far in the four-game weekend series. The Reds, 2-10 against Pittsburgh last season, have won four of seven against them this year.
Barry Bonds had one of the Pirates' four doubles, scored a run and hit a sacrifice fly in his first game since straining a rib cage muscle June 14, but the Pirates' offense continued to struggle. They have scored just 10 runs while losing five of their last seven.
The Reds, who have never trailed in the series, got a run-scoring single from Joe Oliver in the second and an RBI double in the fifth by Barry Larkin against Pittsburgh starter Victor Cole (0-2).
Pitching on America's Independence Day, Cole - the first Russian-born pitcher in the majors in 75 years - allowed five hits and two runs, walked three and struck out three in 4 1/3 innings.
Bonds doubled and scored on Don Slaught's sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth, but the Reds made it 5-1 in the sixth against reliever Bob Patterson.
Hal Morris walked and Bill Doran doubled before Oliver was intentionally walked to load the bases. Swindell struck out, but Bip Roberts singled home two runs and Patterson's wild pitch allowed Oliver to score.
Andy Van Slyke doubled in the Pirates' seventh and scored on Bonds' sacrifice fly.
Braves 4, Cubs 2
At Atlanta, Jeff Blauser and Brian Hunter hit home runs that gave Atlanta an early lead, and the Braves went on to beat the Chicago Cubs.
The Braves beat Chicago for the seventh straight time in Atlanta. Charlie Leibrandt (7-3) extended the Cubs' scoreless streak at Fulton County Stadium to 46 innings since last July 17 before Chicago scored in the eighth.
Atlanta won for the 16th time in its last 18 home games. The Braves have won 23 of 30 overall.
Otis Nixon led off the Braves' first with a single and Blauser followed with his fourth home run. Hunter led off the second with his eighth homer, connecting against Danny Jackson (4-9). Jackson had allowed only three home runs in his last 101 innings.
Mets 5, Astros 3
Astros 3, Mets 1
At New York, Dwight Gooden, still mending from offseason arm surgery, pitched one of the better games of his comeback, leading the New York Mets over the Houston Astros 5-3 in the opener of a rare July 4 doubleheader.
Eric Anthony's run-scoring single off Anthony Young (2-9) led Houston to a 3-1 victory in the second game.
Bobby Bonilla homered in each game for the Mets, giving him three consecutive games with home runs.
Gooden (6-7) gave up three runs and five hits in seven innings, struck out five and walked one. Two of the runs came on Anthony's seventh-inning homer.
"It's three, four games in a row, where you feel you're getting stronger and two, three games where you feel you're maintaining it," Gooden said. "As long as you're maintaining it, going forward."