Rockies Capture 9th Straight Win

Ellis Burks hit two home runs as the Colorado Rockies extended their winning streak to a franchise-high nine games by defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 11-4 Friday night in Denver.

Burks had three RBIs along with Neifi Perez, and Vinny Castilla added two more for the Rockies.

Mark McGwire went 4 for 4, hitting a pair of tape-measure homers (478 and 462 feet) and driving in four runs for the Cardinals, who lost for the third time in the last nine games. He has 12 homers for the Cards, 46 overall.

Dodgers 7, Marlins 4

Los Angeles

Eddie Murray, making the first appearance of his return to the Dodgers, hit a pinch-hit, two-run single to give Los Angeles some breathing room in a victory over Florida.

Giants 4, Astros 1

San Francisco

Brian Johnson’s tie-breaking homer in the seventh gave San Francisco a win over Houston.

Despite the loss, the Astros maintained their 3-1/2-game lead over second-place Pittsburgh in the N.L. Central. The Giants remained two games behind West leader Los Angeles.

Expos 7, Phillies 1

Montreal

Rookie Vladimir Guerrero hit a two-run homer for the second time in as many nights and rookie Mike Johnson allowed one run in a career-high seven innings, leading Montreal to a win over Philadelphia.

Padres 6, Braves 2

San Diego

Andy Ashby came within three outs of the first no-hitter in San Diego history before allowing Kenny Lofton’s leadoff single in the ninth as the Padres defeated Atlanta.

Reds 8, Pirates 6

Cincinnati

Jon Nunnally hit a two-run single up the middle in the eighth inning as Cincinnati defeated Pittsburgh.

Cubs 8, Mets 3

Chicago

Manny Alexander, traded from the Mets to the Cubs last month, scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch during a six-run rally in the seventh inning that sent Chicago past New York.

Clearing the bases

The Atlanta Braves acquired catcher Greg Myers from the Minnesota Twins for a player to be named. … Houston Astros shortstop Tim Bogar will undergo surgery today to repair a forearm bone broken when he was hit by a pitch last Thursday.

Montreal’s Mark Grudzielanek hit his major league-leading 48th double with two out in the third, tying the N.L. record for two-base hits by a shortstop in a season. … Barry Bonds reached the 30-30 mark - 30 homers and 30 stolen bases - for the fifth time in his career when he stole a base in San Francisco’s game against Houston, joining his father, Bobby Bonds, as the only major leaguers to accomplish the feat five times.