Cubs 4, Brewers 2\nCHICAGO -- Corey Patterson delivered after a disputed call went the Cubs' way, and Chicago sent the Milwaukee Brewers out of Wrigley Field with their eighth straight loss.\nPatterson hit a two-out, two-run homer in the ninth inning Wednesday in a 4-2 victory, capping a rally that began on a controversial leadoff double by Mark Grudzielanek.\n"That's a good umpiring crew out there, and Mark (Wegner) missed the ball. But that didn't beat us. The home run beat us," said Milwaukee manager Ned Yost, ejected by first base umpire Mark Wegner.\nPatterson connected on a 2-2 pitch off Luis Vizcaino (4-4) as the Cubs won for the eighth time in 11 games and maintained their lead in the NL wild card race.\nGrudzielanek opened the ninth with a fly ball down the right-field line near the wall and took third when Brady Clark's relay went past second for an error. Wegner ruled it a fair ball, and replays were inconclusive.\n"He said it was right on the line. I don't know what line he was looking at. Everybody was emphatic about it," Yost said.\nVizcaino, who'd given up a go-ahead homer to Moises Alou in the eighth, then retired Paul Bako and pinch-hitter Todd Walker on popups before Patterson's 18th homer.\nPatterson worked his way out of an 0-2 hole before connecting. Moved to the leadoff spot 21 games ago, Patterson is hitting .387 with seven homers and 15 RBIs since the change.\nAlou's two-out homer in the eighth gave the Cubs a 2-1 lead and had Greg Maddux headed for career win No. 302. But LaTroy Hawkins (3-4) allowed a two-out RBI double to Chris Magruder in the ninth following Trent Durrington's leadoff single.\nMaddux, 3-0 against the Brewers this season, allowed four hits in eight innings with a walk and eight strikeouts.\nMilwaukee starter Doug Davis, who has one win in nine starts since the All-Star break, gave up one run and six hits in seven innings.\nBako, who plays primarily when Maddux pitches, hit his first homer since July 7, 2002, when he played for the Brewers against Philadelphia. His fifth-inning drive to the top row of the right-field bleachers, which tied the score at 1, was just the 14th homer of his career.\nBako made a head-up defensive play in the eighth after Chad Moeller led off with an infield single. He picked up Davis' bunt in front of the plate, tagged him and then threw to second for the double play.
Astros 7, Phillies 4\nHOUSTON -- The Houston Astros sure wish they'd play this way against everyone else.\nJeff Kent hit a tiebreaking three-run homer in the eighth inning, and the Astros beat Philadelphia 7-4 Wednesday to sweep the season series from the Phillies for the first time.\n"Hopefully, we can play everybody the way we've played the Phillies," Houston's Craig Biggio said. "If you're going to win a lot of games, this is the way you've got to do it."\nKent also connected in the second inning, and Carlos Beltran and Morgan Ensberg each homered. Houston went 6-0 against the Phillies and won for the eighth time in 10 games overall. The Astros' only other season sweep was against Montreal in 2001.\nKent's big swing in the eighth ensured another frustrating flight home for the Phillies. Manager Larry Bowa plopped down into his chair after the game, the dejected look on his face betraying the optimism in his voice.\nPhiladelphia (62-65) has lost 11 of 15 and is three games behind the Astros (64-62) for sixth place in the NL wild-card race. The Phillies are three games under .500 for the first time since April 25, when they were 7-10.\n"We've got to keep going and keep fighting," Phillies' slugger Jim Thome said. "It's been disappointing. When we do click, we just can't seem to keep it going."\nHouston can gain more ground in the NL wild-card race starting Thursday with its three-game series at Chicago. The Cubs took two of three against the Astros last week.\n"We lost everything for the past couple of months," Jeff Bagwell said. "It's nice to see us turn around. I hope it's not too late."\nThe Phillies took a 4-3 lead in the seventh on Jimmy Rollins' run-scoring triple off Mike Gallo, but the Astros rallied in the eighth, when Felix Rodriguez (5-7) opened with walks to Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell. Lance Berkman singled home the tying run, and Kent homered to left.\nWith 267 homers as a second baseman, Kent moved past Joe Morgan for second on the career list at that position, trailing only Ryan Sandberg (277).\nChad Qualls (2-0) pitched a perfect eighth and Brad Lidge, Houston's fifth pitcher, got three outs for his 17th save in 20 chances, completing a five-hitter.\nPhillies starter Eric Milton allowed three solo homers and five hits in six innings, and was denied a chance to become the first pitcher since Red Donahue in 1899 to start the season 14-2. He struck out six and walked two.
