PHILADELPHIA — Jamie Moyer reached a rare mark for a pitcher, becoming the 44th to win 250 games. The veteran Phillies left-hander would have been just as happy if it was his first.

Moyer went six strong innings to lead the Phillies to their third straight victory, 4-2 over the bumbling Washington Nationals yesterday.

The 46-year-old Moyer is only the 11th left-hander to join the exclusive 250-win list. And despite his teammates' postgame champagne toast, Moyer's words lacked the excitement one might expect after such a rare achievement.

"It's not about the personal things, I'm more excited about us winning," Moyer said. "I really haven't thought about (winning 250). It takes so much effort to prepare and play. I was taught to play the game as a team, not as an individual. When you play 20-some years, some of these things can happen."

Moyer is pitching his 23rd season for his seventh club. It was his sixth try at 250 after going winless in his last five outings while allowing 38 hits and 26 earned runs in 24 1/3 innings.

Moyer (4-5) had one his best starts of the season yesterday, striking out four and walking none while registering a season-low hits allowed with three. It was Moyer's first win since April 26. He is 250-190 in his career.

"It's impressive how much he's persevered in this game," Nationals manager Manny Acta said. "He's been written off several times. It's remarkable and he sets a great example. I'm happy for him."

ASTROS 2, PIRATES 1:

Mike Hampton (3-4) allowed only one run in seven innings to improve to 12-3 lifetime against host Pittsburgh, and Miguel Tejada and Humberto Quintero each went 2-for-4 with an RBI as the Astros took two of three from the Pirates.

PADRES 5, ROCKIES 2:

Adrian Gonzalez hit his major league-leading 20th home run, Chad Gaudin (2-3) struck out a season-high nine and San Diego salvaged the final game of the three-game series at Colorado. Brad Hawpe and Yorvit Torrealba had two hits each for Colorado.

BREWERS 5, REDS 2:

Mike Cameron homered and Yovani Gallardo (5-2) lasted 5 1/3 innings and allowed seven hits, while striking out nine as host Milwaukee swept the three-game series from Cincinnati. The Brewers touched Reds starter Micah Owings (3-4) for two runs in the first, one in the second and two in the third.

METS 3, MARLINS 2:

John Maine (5-3) pitched six shutout innings before leaving with a stomach virus, David Wright made a diving grab to start a rally-killing double play in the sixth inning, and host New York took two of three from Florida. Missing injured regulars Jose Reyes, Carlos Delgado and Ryan Church, New York got RBI doubles from Omir Santos, Fernando Martinez and Angel Pagan.

GIANTS 5, CARDINALS 3:

Rich Aurilia hit his first home run of the season to give host San Francisco the lead in the seventh, Aaron Rowand doubled and scored twice and the Giants took the rubber game from St. Louis. The victory gave the Giants a winning month of May at 15-14 and a 5-1 homestand.

BRAVES 9, DIAMONDBACKS 3:

Chipper Jones homered and drove in four runs, and Garrett Anderson hit his first home run with Atlanta as the Braves split a four-game series at Arizona. Kris Medlen (1-2) allowed one run over six innings for his first career win. He struck out eight.

DODGERS 8, CUBS 2:

Eric Milton (2-0) pitched into the sixth inning for his second straight win, and Los Angeles backed him with a five-run first while beating host Chicago to salvage a four-game split. Matt Kemp hit his sixth homer and finished with two hits.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

INDIANS 5, YANKEES 4:

Jhonny Peralta drove in three runs, including the winning single with one out in the ninth inning, to help host Cleveland defeat New York. Peralta lined a 3-1 pitch from David Robertson past third baseman Alex Rodriguez on the backhand side to score Trevor Crowe from second base.

RED SOX 8, BLUE JAYS 2:

Kevin Youkilis homered twice, Dustin Pedroia hit a three-run shot and Jon Lester struck out a career-high 12 as Boston avoided a three-game sweep at Toronto. Jason Bay also homered for Boston.

TIGERS 3, ORIOLES 0:

Edwin Jackson (5-3) allowed two hits over eight innings with seven strikeouts, Curtis Granderson homered, and Detroit beat host Baltimore to earn a split of the four-game series. Fernando Rodney got three outs to complete the two-hitter and earn his 10th save in 10 tries.

TWINS 3, RAYS 2:

Brendan Harris homered and Justin Morneau and Carlos Gomez also drove in runs to help Minnesota avoid a weekend sweep with a victory over host Tampa Bay. Nick Blackburn (5-2) pitched six strong innings, allowing two runs and seven hits. Carlos Pena hit his AL-leading 17th homer for the Rays.

ATHLETICS 5, RANGERS 4:

Adam Kennedy homered twice, including a one-out tiebreaker in the ninth for the first run allowed by Texas reliever Frank Francisco this season, and visiting Oakland ended a four-game skid with a victory over AL West-leading Texas. With the score tied, Kennedy hit a 1-0 pitch off Francisco (1-1) into the right-field seats.

WHITE SOX 7, ROYALS 4:

Chris Getz hit a tiebreaking two-run single off Juan Cruz in the ninth inning, and Chicago rallied for its first three-game sweep in Kansas City since 2005. The Royals bullpen squandered another respectable start by Zack Greinke, who allowed four runs — three earned — in seven innings.

ANGELS 9, MARINERS 8:

Kendry Morales capped a three-run ninth inning with a bases-loaded RBI single and host Los Angeles overcame a seven-run deficit to avoid a three-game sweep by Seattle. Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki extended his hitting streak to 24 games with four hits, including a home run.