Astros Win One for Dierker

With Manager Larry Dierker scheduled to undergo brain surgery early this morning, the Houston Astros used his No. 49 jersey for inspiration and won their fourth in a row Monday night, defeating the Atlanta Braves, 10-4, at home.

Craig Biggio hit three doubles, Derek Bell drove in three runs and Jeff Bagwell hit his 21st homer for Houston. The Astros sent Atlanta to its fourth straight loss in a matchup of NL division leaders.

“The rest of this season is for him,” Biggio said. “We put his a jersey in the dugout and we’ll keep putting it there until he’s back. Larry has done a lot of good for a lot of people.”

Dierker had a seizure in the dugout in the eighth inning of Sunday’s game against San Diego.

Mike Hampton (8-2) won for the eighth time in his last nine decisions and extended his record to 4-1 against the Braves in the Astrodome. He went seven innings and allowed three runs.

Arizona 2, Florida 0--Despite a stomachache, Randy Johnson pitched two-hit ball for seven innings and the Diamondbacks opened a 13-game homestand with a shutout victory over the Marlins at Phoenix.

Johnson (9-2) won his fifth consecutive decision, striking out eight and walking none before being lifted for a pinch-hitter in the seventh because of a stomach virus that was bothering him.

Colorado 5, San Francisco 4--Todd Helton’s three-run double broke a tie in the eighth inning and the Rockies defeated the Giants at Denver.

Helton fouled off three pitches with two strikes and two outs before making it 5-2 with a line drive into the left-center field gap off Alan Embree.

Montreal 7, St. Louis 5--Wilton Guerrero went four for five with three doubles, and his brother Vladimir went two for three with two RBIs as the Expos kept the Cardinals reeling at St. Louis.

Montreal has won six of its last seven games. The Cardinals are 10-16 at Busch Stadium and have dropped three of four to begin their 13-game homestand.

Milwaukee 5, Chicago Cubs 1--Geoff Jenkins and Dave Nilsson homered, and Jeff Cirillo had two RBIs to lead the Brewers to a victory at Milwaukee despite Sammy Sosa’s 22nd home run.

Chicago placed Lance Johnson on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to June 10, with an abdominal strain and purchased the contract of left-hander Doug Creek from triple-A Iowa.

Cincinnati 8, New York Mets 4--Aaron Boone hit a tiebreaking three-run homer and an RBI double at Cincinnati, leading the Reds to a victory over the Mets.

Cincinnati catcher Brian Johnson will undergo arthroscopic surgery today to remove loose bodies from his right knee and is sidelined indefinitely. To replace Johnson, the Reds recalled rookie Jason LaRue from triple-A Indianapolis.