Dodgers Lose, Fail To Clinch Division

National League

The Los Angeles Dodgers missed their first chance to clinch their second straight National League playoff berth.

Mark Gardner pitched a seven-hitter and rookies Bill Mueller and Wilson Delgado each had two hits and an RBI as San Francisco avoided a three-game sweep by beating the Dodgers 6-1 Thursday night at Dodger Stadium.

Los Angeles needs just one win over the Padres in its season-ending, three-game series at Dodger Stadium to clinch its second consecutive N.L. West title.

Marlins 7, Braves 1

Miami

Andre Dawson, playing in his hometown for the final time, went 3 for 4 and drove in a run as Florida won its sixth straight with a win over Atlanta.

The 42-year-old Dawson put Florida ahead 1-0 in the first inning with his 1,591st career RBI. He singled and scored in the fourth and fifth innings, giving him 2,774 career hits.

Expos 5, Phillies 2

Philadelphia

Henry Rodriguez hit a grand slam as Montreal boosted its wild-card hopes with a victory over Philadelphia.

Rodriguez homered off Curt Schilling (9-10) to reach the 100-RBI mark for the first time in his career.

Reds 12, Cubs 4

Cincinnati

Hal Morris pushed his hitting streak to 26 games and Willie Greene hit his fifth homer in three days, leading Cincinnati to a victory over Chicago.

Morris’ streak is the third longest in the majors this year. Atlanta’s Marquis Grissom hit in 28 straight games and San Diego’s John Flaherty in 27.

Astros 6, Mets 2

Houston

Derek Bell’s seventh-inning single drove in two runs as Houston beat New York.

Houston has won two in a row after ending a nine-game losing streak.

Drabek (7-9) allowed two runs on seven hits in seven innings. He likely pitched his last game for the Astros, who paid him $5.05 million this year and aren’t expected to re-sign him.

Clearing the bases

New York’s Lance Johnson increased his league-leading total of hits to 225. That represents the most hits in the N.L. since Pete Rose had 230 for the Reds in 1979. Johnson’s sixth-inning triple gave him 21 for the season, the most in the N.L. since 1930 when Adam Comorosky had 23 for the Pirates.

Montreal pitcher Pedro Martinez was suspended for eight games and Philadelphia pitcher Mike Williams for six for their roles in a bench-clearing brawl this week. … Mark Grudzielanek’s sixth-inning single for Montreal gave him 200 hits on the season. Al Oliver, the only other Expo to have 200 hits in a season, collected 204 in 1982. … The Braves’ new stadium will be named for the team’s longtime owner, broadcast executive Ted Turner.