Dan Uggla set a new record for the Atlanta Braves as he took his hitting streak to 32 games.
Braves player extends hitting run to 32 games
Dan Uggla set a new record for the Atlanta Braves in grand style as his two solo home runs in a 10-4 success over the Chicago Cubs took his hitting streak to 32 games.
Uggla is on the longest hitting run by any player in the majors this season, and his homer off Carlos Zambrano in the second inning took him past Rico Carty's Atlanta record, set in 1970.
Atlanta also saw Freddie Freeman, Chipper Jones and Jose Constanza hit home runs in the trouncing, as they brought up a fifth straight win.
After giving up five home runs, 30-year-old Venezuelan Zambrano was reported to have retired from baseball.
The Philadelphia Phillies had a rare off night, losing 4-2 to the Washington Nationals for whom Livan Hernandez pitched six and two-thirds near-perfect innings and drove two key runs with RBI singles.
NL West front-runners the Arizona Diamondbacks edged the New York Mets 4-3 in Phoenix, while NL Central leaders Milwaukee crushed the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2. For the Brewers, Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder went deep in the eighth inning.
Marlins rebound
Milwaukee are four games ahead of the St Louis Cardinals who were 6-1 winners over the Colorado Rockies, while the Florida Marlins, who had been on a seven-game losing run, rebounded in fine style by beating the San Francisco Giants 2-1.
The Cincinnati Reds notched up a third straight win, defeating the San Diego Padres 5-3, aided by a three-run homer from Jay Bruce in the eighth inning.
The game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Houston Astros remained deadlocked until the 10th inning, when Matt Kemp banjoed the RBI single which secured a 1-0 success for the Dodgers.
American League Central leaders Detroit secured a 5-4 win against the Baltimore Orioles, despite JJ Hardy thwacking two big ones for the hosts.
The Cleveland Indians, three games sour, kept up the pressure on the Indians with a 3-2 success against the Minnesota Twins.
Thrashed
The Texas Rangers, top of the AL West, thrashed the Oakland Athletics 9-1, and the second-placed Los Angeles Angels overcame the Toronto Blue Jays 5-1 with a homer from former Toronto favourite Vernon Wells.
Five solo home runs steered the Tampa Bay Rays to their 5-1 win over the New York Yankees, with Casey Kotchman, Kelly Shoppach, Elliot Johnson, Evan Longoria and Johnny Damon all scoring against CC Sabathia to secure a fifth straight victory.
The Kansas City Royals prevailed by the same margin against the Chicago White Sox, with Billy Butler and Melky Cabrera both homering.
Boston hold a two-game lead over the Yankees atop the AL East following a 6-4 win against the Seattle Mariners, which contained home runs from David Ortiz, Jed Lowrie and Josh Reddick.
Reddick hit a two-run homer for the Red Sox in the sixth inning which saw the ball clatter the windows of the Hit It Here Cafe high in right field.
