Philadelphia, PA -- (Sports Network) - Jayson Werth hit a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning, lifting the Philadelphia Phillies to a 5-4 win over Washington in the first of three games with the Nationals. Shane Victorino finished with a triple and double for Philadelphia, which has won three of four. The Phillies got a sacrifice fly each from Greg Dobbs, Geoff Jenkins and Chris Coste to keep pace with the Mets in the NL East. First-place New York downed Atlanta 7-3 on Tuesday, and leads Philadelphia by 1 1/2 games. Werth's homer made a winner of Ryan Madson (3-1), who pitched a perfect eighth. Brad Lidge worked a perfect ninth to nail down his 31st save of the season in as many opportunities. Phillies starter Joe Blanton allowed four runs on eight hits in five innings of work. Steven Shell (0-1) took the loss after allowing the Werth homer, while Nationals starter Jason Bergmann didn't factor into the decision. He gave up four runs -- three earned -- on six hits in 6 1/3 frames. Ronnie Belliard went 4-for-4 with a double and run batted in, while Willie Harris finished 2-for-5 with a solo homer for Washington, which outhit the Phillies 11-7 but has lost 11 consecutive games.

Final Score: New York 7, Atlanta 3

Flushing, NY (Sports Network) - Carlos Delgado's two-run double was part of a five-run eighth inning, as the New York Mets took a 7-3 win over the Atlanta Braves in the opener of a three-game set at Shea Stadium. Damion Easley hit a two-run single while Ramon Castro, Fernando Tatis and David Wright each had an RBI for the Mets, who have won seven of their last eight games. Oliver Perez gave up three runs on seven hits along with five walks and three strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings of work. Aaron Heilman (3-7) got the win for pitching a scoreless eighth for New York, which remains 1 1/2 games ahead of Philadelphia for first place in the NL East. The Phillies defeated Washington, 5-4, on Tuesday. However, it wasn't all good news for the Mets on Tuesday, as the team learned that closer Billy Wagner is going to miss more time than originally expected. Wagner was set to be activated off the disabled list, which he has been on since August 5, on Monday. But after throwing around 20 pitches in a simulated game on Saturday he was still experiencing discomfort in his left elbow. An MRI on Tuesday revealed that he is suffering from additional inflammation in his throwing elbow and that there is no timetable for his return -- with the possibility that he might miss the rest of the season. Chipper Jones went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, while Jeff Bennett (2-5) got the loss for giving up three runs on one hit with a pair of walks in 1 1/3 innings of work for the Braves, who have dropped three straight and eight of nine overall. Jo-Jo Reyes, who was recalled before the game to make the start, was charged with just two runs on four hits with three walks and five strikeouts in six innings of work.

Final Score: Chicago 5, Cincinnati 0

Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - Rich Harden dominated for seven innings, and the Cubs tagged the Cincinnati bullpen for four runs in the eighth as Chicago downed the Reds, 5-0, in the opener of a three-game set. Harden (3-1) surrendered just two hits -- both singles -- and struck out 10 with no walks, combining with Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood on the three-hit shutout. Derrek Lee went 2-for-4 and knocked in a run, and Kosuke Fukudome hit a two- run single for the Cubs, who have won 17 of 21 to move a season-high 29 games over .500, at an NL-best 77-48. Johnny Cueto (8-12) took the tough loss despite holding the Cubs to one run on four hits in seven frames, with six strikeouts and two walks. Reliever Mike Lincoln surrendered four runs on three hits in the eighth, and didn't record an out for the Reds, who have dropped four of six.

Final Score: Pittsburgh 4, St. Louis 1

St. Louis, MO (Sports Network) - Ian Snell mastered the Cardinal bats for seven shutout innings and Ryan Doumit had three hits and an RBI, as Pittsburgh took the opener of an abbreviated two-game series from St. Louis, 4-1. Snell (5-10) scattered four hits with one walk and eight strikeouts, breaking out of a rough stretch in which the right-hander had just one win in his last 10 starts. Braden Looper (11-10) pitched well enough to win but was victimized by a suspect bullpen performance, allowing only one run on three hits with a pair of walks and as many strikeouts over seven frames. He did continue an impressive streak in which the right-hander has allowed three runs or less in each of his last six starts. St. Louis fell to 8 1/2 games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL- Central with the loss. The Pirates, meanwhile, won for the second straight game.

Final Score: Houston 5, Milwaukee 2

Milwaukee, WI (Sports Network) - Geoff Blum's sixth-inning three-run home run made the difference, as the Houston Astros beat Milwaukee, 5-2, in the second of three games with the Brewers. Brian Moehler (9-4) took the win after limiting Milwaukee to two runs -- one earned -- despite giving up nine hits in 5 1/3 innings. He also walked one and struck out four. Michael Bourn finished with a triple and two runs batted in, while Darin Erstad and Humberto Quintero each collected two hits for Houston, which has won two of three. Ben Sheets (11-7) continued his struggles after giving up all five runs on five hits in six innings. He walked just one and struck out seven, but lost his second consecutive start, and has now dropped four of his past five. Jason Kendall had three hits, while Mike Cameron and J.J. Hardy each drove in a run for the Brewers, who have lost four of six.

Final Score: Arizona 7, San Diego 6

Phoenix, AZ (Sports Network) - Adam Dunn hit a two-run homer in his home debut and Conor Jackson chipped in two RBI, as Arizona held off San Diego for a 7-6 victory, in the opener of a three-game set. Chris Snyder, Chris Burke and Mark Reynolds had an RBI each and Augie Ojeda had a pair of hits and as many runs scored for the D'Backs, who broke a tie atop the NL West and moved ahead of Los Angeles by one game. The Dodgers lost, 8-3, to Colorado on Tuesday. It was Arizona's fourth win in the last five games. Doug Davis (5-7) was effective over six innings, surrendering two runs on seven hits while walking two and fanning six to get the win. Davis was winless over his previous three outings. Adrian Gonzalez was 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored while Chase Headley had two hits with an RBI and a run scored for San Diego, which has dropped five of its last seven games. Josh Banks (3-6) struggled with his command from the outset in allowing six runs on four hits, while walking a season-high seven with three strikeouts in four frames.

Final Score: Colorado 8, Los Angeles 3

Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Ian Stewart hit a three-run homer and finished with a career-high five RBI while Brad Hawpe continued his recent strong offensive play with a two-run homer, as the Colorado Rockies defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-3, in the opener of a three-game series at Dodger Stadium. Hawpe, who finished 1-for-3 with three runs scored, is batting .478 with four home runs and nine RBI during his current six-game hit streak for the Rockies, who have won four straight games. Matt Holliday was 4-for-5 with a solo home run in the win. Ubaldo Jimenez (9-11) earned the win after he tossed five innings and allowed three runs on eight hits with seven strikeouts. Jeff Kent finished 3-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI for Los Angeles, which has dropped two of three following a five-game win streak and fell one game back of the NL West-leading Arizona Diamondbacks. Matt Kemp registered an RBI and a run scored in the loss. Hiroki Kuroda (7-9), who started and yielded four runs on six hits over six innings, suffered the loss.

Final Score: Florida 6, San Francisco 0

San Francisco, CA (Sports Network) - Ricky Nolasco was dominant, fanning 11 in a two-hit shutout as the Marlins cruised to a 6-0 win over the San Francisco Giants in the opener of a three-game set. Nolasco (12-7) walked one in his first career shutout, and his first career complete game. The 25-year-old nearly threw what could have been a controversial one-hitter, in the process ending the longest complete-game drought for a team in major league history. A Marlins pitcher had not tossed a complete game since Anibal Sanchez in a 2-1 loss to the Atlanta Braves on September 16, 2006. In the 301 games since no Florida hurler has gone the distance, but that came to an end on Tuesday night, thanks to Nolasco, who also clubbed a two-run double. Jorge Cantu hit a solo homer for Florida, which had dropped four of five entering this series. The Marlins kept pace in the NL East, where they trail the first-place New York Mets by four games, and the second-place Phillies by 2 1/2 games. Both Philadelphia and New York also won on Tuesday. Kevin Correia (2-7) gave up five runs -- three earned -- on seven hits with three walks and no strikeouts to take the loss for the Giants, who had won three of four entering play.