MILWAUKEE — It's not too often that 270-pound Prince Fielder can call himself someone's "mini-me."

It's also not too often a pitcher has a string of success like CC Sabathia.

Sabathia pitched a five-hitter to remain unbeaten with the Brewers and Milwaukee beat the Washington Nationals 5-0 last night.

"I'm like his mini-me. When he's out there, I just get excited," the burly Brewers first baseman said of the 290-pound Brewers ace. "Since he's come over here, he's been awesome. You get a pitcher like that, you want to give him everything you've got, so you can make sure he gets the win. He's doing his part."

It was the ninth straight win for Sabathia, who has not lost in 12 starts since June 5. In seven starts with the Brewers since being acquired from the Cleveland Indians on July 7, he is 6-0 with a 1.57 ERA.

Mike Cameron and J.J. Hardy homered for the Brewers, who moved two games ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals in the wild-card race and remained five games behind the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central.

Sabathia threw 77 of his 103 pitches for strikes.

"I have just been trying to pound the zone," he said. "That's usually what I try to do, go out and throw strikes. They were swinging early, and that helped me out."

CUBS 3, CARDINALS 2

Henry Blanco singled home the winning run with the bases loaded in the 11th inning, and host Chicago stayed dominant at Wrigley Field by beating St. Louis. Chicago improved to an NL-best 44-16 at home, matching its Wrigley victory total from last year. Jim Edmonds, who spent eight seasons with St. Louis before he was dealt last offseason, hit a pair of solo homers for the Cubs.

METS 3, MARLINS 0

Oliver Perez (8-7) pitched two-hit ball for seven innings, David Wright and Carlos Delgado homered and host New York took the first game of a key series against its division rival Florida. Wright followed his game-winning homer on Thursday with a two-run shot in the first off Ricky Nolasco (11-7). Delgado homered in the fourth.

ASTROS 9, REDS 5

Carlos Lee hit a two-run double, and Hunter Pence followed with a two-run homer in the 10th inning, all of Francisco Cordero (4-4), lifting Houston over host Cincinnati. Chris Sampson (6-4) allowed the Reds to tie the game in the seventh but still earned the win with three innings of relief.

PIRATES 2, PHILLIES 0

Steve Pearce broke up a scoreless game with a run-scoring double in the 12th inning, and six Pittsburgh pitchers held down host Philadelphia. Ryan Doumit started the 12th with a double off Phillies reliever Les Walrond (0-1). Pearce then smacked a ball down the left-field line, allowing Doumit to score.

ROCKIES 6, PADRES 3

Glendon Rusch (5-3) gave up two runs, seven hits and struck out three in six innings against his former team and Ian Stewart homered to lead host Colorado over San Diego. Jake Peavy (8-8) gave up three runs and walked five in six innings for the Padres.

BRAVES 11, DIAMONDBACKS 6

Chipper Jones returned from the disabled list with a pair of hits, including a home run estimated at 434 feet, powering Atlanta past host Arizona. Jones, out since July 24 due to a strained left hamstring, raised his major league-leading batting average to .371.

DODGERS 6, GIANTS 2

Brad Penny (6-9) gave up one hit and one run in five innings in his return from the disabled list with a sore right shoulder to win for the first time since May 2, and Jeff Kent drove in three runs as Los Angeles beat host San Francisco. Casey Blake and Danny Ardoin each hit a home run for the Dodgers.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

ATHLETICS 4, TIGERS 2

Rookie reliever Brad Ziegler tied the Athletics' record for consecutive scoreless innings and Oakland snapped a 10-game losing streak by beating host Detroit. Ziegler pitched the eighth and ninth innings for his first save. He extended his scoreless streak to 37 consecutive innings to tie Mike Torrez's club record, set in 1976.

WHITE SOX 5, RED SOX 3

Mark Buehrle took a shutout into the eighth and host Chicago handed Jon Lester his first loss in 2 1/2 months. Buehrle (9-10) allowed just four hits and tied a season-high with eight strikeouts while walking two for the AL Central leaders. Lester (10-4) suffered his first loss in 11 starts since May 25, allowing four runs and six hits in seven innings.

INDIANS 5, BLUE JAYS 2

Anthony Reyes (3-1) allowed one run and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings to pick up his first win since being traded to Cleveland last month, and Ben Francisco and Shin-soo Choo each had two RBIs in the win over host Toronto. Toronto left-hander David Purcey (1-3) gave up three runs and six hits in six innings. He walked two and struck out a career-high eight.

ANGELS 10, YANKEES 5

Torii Hunter had four hits with a home run and four RBIs, and Howie Kendrick tied a career high with four hits as host Los Angeles beat New York and increased its AL West lead to a season-high 13 games. Jered Weaver (10-9) allowed five runs and seven hits in six innings, including solo homers by Xavier Nady and Alex Rodriguez, who played in his 2,000th regular-season game.

RAYS 5, MARINERS 3

Carlos Pena hit his 21st home run and drove in another run and Tampa Bay beat host Seattle and increased its lead in the AL East to 3 1/2 games, its largest advantage over second-place Boston since July 7. James Shields (10-7) allowed three runs and nine hits in 6 2/3 innings and Troy Percival finished the ninth for his 25th save in 28 chances.

TWINS 4, ROYALS 1

Kevin Slowey limited host Kansas City to one run on seven hits in six innings and Joe Mauer drove in two runs for Minnesota. The Twins took advantage of eight walks while Slowey (8-8) did not walk a batter and struck out two in 5 2/3 innings.

ORIOLES 9, RANGERS 1

Jeremy Guthrie allowed one run in seven innings to win his third straight start and Kevin Millar homered twice as host Baltimore beat Texas. Guthrie (9-8) gave up five hits, walked one and had four strikeouts.