Thursday’s results

Marlins 5, Mets 2: At New York, Pedro Martinez looked more comfortable in his latest playoff tuneup, but he was outpitched by Florida rookie Anibal Sanchez in Florida’s victory over the Mets.

Astros 6, Cardinals 5: At Houston, Lance Berkman hit a pair of two-run homers off Chris Carpenter and the Astros beat St. Louis.

Brewers 9, Giants 4: At Milwaukee, San Francisco stumbled again in the wild-card race with a loss to Milwaukee, which got three RBIs from David Bell.

Braves 6, Rockies 3: At Denver, John Smoltz scattered nine hits over seven innings and Andruw Jones hit a three-run homer to help Atlanta beat Colorado.

Padres 3, Diamondbacks 1: At San Diego, Trevor Hoffman earned his 477th career save to pull within one of tying Lee Smith’s all-time record and the Padres beat Arizona to keep their slim lead atop the West.

Dodgers 5, Pirates 2: At Los Angeles, Olmedo Saenz hit a two-run homer and the Dodgers scored the go-ahead run on a bases-loaded walk to beat Pittsburgh. The victory gave the Dodgers a half-game lead over idle Philadelphia in the wild-card race and kept them one-half game behind the Padres.