LOS ANGELES — Injuries have made it difficult for Nomar Garciaparra to contribute much for the Los Angeles Dodgers this season.

Back in the lineup after a third stint on the disabled list, the 35-year-old six-time All-Star made the biggest contribution in perhaps the Dodgers' most significant win so far this year last night.

Garciaparra, playing in just his 29th game, hit a one-out, solo homer in the bottom of the ninth, lifting the Dodgers to a 7-6 come-from-behind victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Garciaparra lined a 2-1 pitch from Clay Condrey (3-3) just over the fence in left field for his sixth homer and first since July 26.

"I'm just trying to drive the ball there," said Garciaparra, playing in his second game after coming off the disabled list. "I'm just glad it kept going."

By winning their third straight over Philadelphia and fifth in seven games overall, the Dodgers moved into a first-place tie with Arizona in the NL West. The Phillies, who have lost five of seven, dropped into a first-place tie with New York in the East.

Manny Ramirez and Andre Ethier homered for the Dodgers.

Jonathan Broxton (3-3) pitched a perfect ninth to earn the victory.

The Dodgers, who trailed 6-1 after 1 1/2 innings, tied the game 6-all in the eighth on Jeff Kent's two-run double off Chad Durbin. Kent had a season-high four hits.

Ryan Howard hit his major league-leading 33rd homer for the Phillies, and Greg Dobbs and Jayson Werth also homered.

"They shut our offense down and they kept coming at us and we couldn't hold them," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said.

BREWERS 7, PADRES 1

CC Sabathia allowed one run and nine hits in seven solid innings to remain perfect with Milwaukee, which extended its winning streak to eight games by beating host San Diego. Sabathia (7-0) has made eight starts for the Brewers since being acquired from Cleveland in a trade on July 7. The reigning AL Cy Young winner won his 10th straight decision to extend his career high.

METS 12, NATIONALS 0

Daniel Murphy homered and drove in three runs to help New York rout host Washington. John Maine (10-7), making his first start since July 28 after being on the disabled list with a mild right rotator cuff strain, allowed one hit in five innings. He struck out six and walked four.

cubs sweep braves: Rich Harden (2-1) allowed two hits in five innings and Kosuke Fukudome drove in two runs with two hits in the second game and Chicago beat host Atlanta, 10-2, to sweep its first road doubleheader since 1992. Geovany Soto and Jim Edmonds homered in the Cubs' 8-0 win in the first game.

CARDINALS 6, MARLINS 4

Troy Glaus went 4 for 4 and Jason LaRue hit a two-out, two-run double with the bases loaded to break a 2-2 tie in the seventh to lead St. Louis over host Florida. Braden Looper (11-9) gave up one earned run and five hits in seven innings.

PIRATES 5, REDS 2

Paul Maholm (8-7) allowed seven hits, didn't walk a batter and struck out five in eight innings and Jason Michaels and Brandon Moss homered to lead host Pittsburgh over Cincinnati. Corey Patterson and Jay Bruce homered for Cincinnati, which has lost 15 of 18 games.

ASTROS 6, GIANTS 2

Mark Loretta walked and was hit by a pitch during a wild six-run, sixth inning, and host Houston beat San Francisco to win its season-high seventh straight. San Francisco tied a major-league record by hitting three batters in the inning, and issued four walks.

ROCKIES 6, DIAMONDBACKS 5

Colorado reliever Brian Fuentes issued an intentional walk with two outs in the ninth to load the bases, then retired Adam Dunn on a grounder to preserve the win over visiting Arizona. Taylor Buchholz (5-3) pitched the eighth and Fuentes held on for his 22nd save.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RED SOX 8, RANGERS 4

Kevin Youkilis had three doubles and host Boston beat Texas. Jon Lester (11-4) held the top-hitting team in baseball to seven hits in 7 1/3 innings. He left shortly after Ian Kinsler's solo homer, and Mike Timlin allowed Milton Bradley's 20th homer in the eighth.

TWINS 4, YANKEES 2

Delmon Young hit a three-run homer for the second straight day as host Minnesota beat New York. Kevin Slowey (9-8) pitched six innings, surrendering three hits, one run and one walk against a lineup minus Derek Jeter, who sat out after fouling a ball off his foot Tuesday.

WHITE SOX 4, ROYALS 0

Ken Griffey Jr. hit an RBI single in the first inning and Mark Buehrle (10-10) allowed five hits in seven innings to lead host Chicago over Kansas City. The AL Central-leading White Sox played without Carlos Quentin (left forearm) for the second straight game.

RAYS 3, ATHLETICS 2

Eric Hinske had three hits, including a home run, and Ben Zobrist doubled in the go-ahead run in the seventh for Tampa Bay, which beat host Oakland. Carlos Pena hit a home run for the first-place Rays, who maintained their three-game lead over Boston in the AL East.

MARINERS 10, ANGELS 7

Seattle's Wladimir Balentien hit a three-run homer off Justin Speier (1-5) with two outs in the 12th inning after striking out four times against host Los Angeles. Roy Corcoran (3-0) allowed one hit over three innings to get the win.

BLUE JAYS 4, TIGERS 3

Vernon Wells hit a grand slam and David Purcey pitched six shutout innings as Toronto beat host Detroit. Purcey (2-3) gave up two singles and three walks. He struck out four.

ORIOLES 6, INDIANS 1

Jeremy Guthrie went seven innings to win his fourth straight start and visiting Baltimore snapped Cleveland's five-game winning streak. Guthrie (10-8) allowed four hits and struck out four.

NOTES

Replay on deck: Major League Baseball is working out technical issues to start instant replay for boundary calls such as home runs, hoping to institute the system later this year. "We've got lots of time in August," Bob DuPuy, the sport's chief operating officer, said. Replay was among the topics discussed at the two-day owners' meeting yesterday but doesn't require a vote because it is not a rule change.