ATLANTA — Doug Davis received more than the usual pats on the back after he was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning.

"I don't think I remember shedding a tear, but I did give him a big hug," Arizona catcher Chris Snyder said. He wasn't alone. It turned into a group hug in the Diamondbacks' dugout.

Davis was relaxed and in control in his first start following his return from cancer surgery, giving up only one run in seven innings, and the inspired Diamondbacks hit five homers and rolled to an 11-1 win over the Atlanta Braves last night.

"When you get five runs it takes a lot of pressure off," Davis said.

"It felt great. It was kind of hard to control the emotions sometimes because I'm excited to be back and I'm anxious to throw my pitches and I got away on some of the pitches and walked a couple, but overall that was the only downside."

Manager Bob Melvin said the return of Davis, who had a cancerous thyroid gland removed on April 10, helped the Diamondbacks remember there are more important matters than the team's three straight losses at Florida this week.

"He took the mound, he had to have some goose bumps," Melvin said. "But once he got into the flow of the game, it was just another game. He's an amazing guy."

"Everybody kind of realized what they are all about today, a little more than baseball."

Davis (2-1), making his first major league start since April 8, gave up only five hits, with four strikeouts and two walks.

Doctors declared Davis cancer-free this month. He came off the disabled list after going 1-1 with a 3.72 ERA in two rehab starts for Triple-A Tucson.

"I tried to throw strikes and get my team back in the dugout as soon as possible," Davis said, adding, "Everybody gave me a hug" after his last inning.

CUBS 12, PIRATES 3

Carlos Zambrano (7-1) had four hits to go with a stellar seven innings on the mound and Reed Johnson hit a three-run home run and two doubles as visiting Chicago beat Pittsburgh. Zambrano gave up two runs and six hits, and his four-hit game was the first by a Cubs pitcher since Lew Burdette on July 23, 1964. His 4 for 5 elevated his average to .343, which is higher than any Pirates starting position player.

GIANTS 8, MARLINS 2

Barry Zito earned his first win of the season after eight straight losses and Bengie Molina and Aaron Rowand hit consecutive home runs as visiting San Francisco beat Florida. Zito (1-8) allowed one run and three hits in 6 1/3 innings. He struck out five and walked four for his first victory since Sept. 30, 2007.

ROCKIES 6, METS 5

Matt Holliday hit a tying homer in the ninth inning off Billy Wagner, then singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 13th to rally Colorado past New York. Mets GM Omar Minaya voiced support for embattled manager Willie Randolph during the game, but New York lost its fifth straight and fell to 22-24.

ASTROS 4, PHILLIES 3

Jose Valverde earned a save after getting struck in the face with a line drive and Hunter Pence hit two homers as host Houston beat Philadelphia. Valverde earned his 15th save in 18 chances after Pedro Feliz smacked a liner off the right side of his face. Houston's medical staff and all the infielders rushed to the mound after Valverde was struck, but he hopped up after a few tense minutes.

CARDINALS 2, DODGERS 1

Adam Wainwright (4-2) allowed a run and five hits in seven innings and Ryan Ludwick hit a two-run homer as visiting St. Louis beat Los Angeles.

NATIONALS 5, BREWERS 1

Host Washington turned Milwaukee shortstop J.J. Hardy's error into four unearned runs in the sixth inning en route to beating Milwaukee.

REDS 3, PADRES 2

Adam Dunn hit a leadoff homer off Trevor Hoffman (0-3) in the ninth inning to give visiting Cincinnati a win over San Diego.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANGERS 13, INDIANS 9

Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit his first career grand slam to help visiting Texas deal Cleveland its seventh loss in a row. Cleveland also lost an apparent three-run homer by Ben Francisco. The play was ruled an RBI double, the latest in a string of home run calls botched by big league umpires recently. Indians manager Eric Wedge was ejected and TV replays showed the ball clearly hit a railing above the yellow home run line atop the left-field wall in the sixth inning. Still, third base ump Damien Beal ruled the ball in play.

BLUE JAYS 7, ROYALS 1

Roy Halladay (5-5) won for the third time in four starts as host Toronto handed Kansas City its fifth straight loss. Halladay threw his major league-leading fifth complete game and his first since a run of four straight ended April 29 at Boston.

YANKEES 13, MARINERS 2

Andy Pettitte (4-5) struck out nine in six innings to win for the first time in over a month and Shelley Duncan hit a go-ahead, three-run homer as host New York put together an eight-run fifth to beat Seattle.

RAYS 2, ORIOLES 0

Matt Garza (3-1) allowed four hits, struck out four and walked four in seven-plus innings and Carl Crawford snapped a scoreless tie with a fifth-inning single as host Tampa Bay beat Baltimore.

TWINS 9, TIGERS 4

Kevin Slowey (1-4) pitched seven shutout innings to lead visiting Minnesota over Detroit. Slowey gave up four hits and three walks in six innings for his first win since Sept. 23.

ANGELS 3, WHITE SOX 1

Joe Saunders (8-1) took a shutout into the ninth inning and Torii Hunter homered as visiting Los Angeles snapped Chicago's eight-game winning streak.

ATHLETICS 8, RED SOX 3

Frank Thomas hit a two-run homer and Mark Ellis added a three-run shot as host Oakland ended Boston's seven-game winning streak.