NL Report: Pirates Win 16-Inning Game; Bonds* Homers

On a night when Barry Bonds* inched closer to the home run record, it was a bleeder through the middle by a member of his former team that provided the top highlight in National League action on Wednesday.

Adam LaRoche ended a 16-inning marathon in Pittsburgh not long after Bonds* belted No. 741 for the Giants in Los Angeles.

The single by LaRoche (pictured) capped a four-hour, 48-minute game that the Pirates won, 4-3, over the Houston Astros at PNC Park. Jack Wilson reached first base on a fielder's choice that resulted in the second out of the bottom of the 16th. Jose Bautista followed with a single and Jason Bay was intentionally walked. LaRoche then hit a grounder that just went by the glove of shortstop Adam Everett to plate Bautista for the win.

John Wasdin (1-1) got the victory by pitching two scoreless innings of relief for Pittsburgh, which paid out at -114 on the moneyline (meaning a successful $114 wager would net $100 profit).

Craig Biggio went 3-for-5 with an RBI for the Astros, who have dropped their past five games.

In other National League games on Wednesday:

San Francisco 6, Los Angeles 4: Barry Bonds* hit the 741st home run of his career, a three-run shot in the first inning for his seventh homer of the young season, as the visiting Giants got their seventh straight win. Bonds* is now 14 shy of tying Hank Aaron for the all-time lead in the category with 755, but his chase is clouded by suspicion of steroid use (hence the asterisk beside his name). There's no doubt for bettors that San Francisco is a keen play these days. The Giants paid out at +126 straight up.

Philadelphia 9, Washington 3: Chase Utley went 5-for-5 with three RBIs and Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins each hit two-run home runs to lead the red-hot Phillies at home. Utley set a career high for hits in a game as the Phillies extended their season-long winning streak to five games. Aaron Rowand upped his hitting streak to 13 games. Philadelphia paid -195 on the moneyline.

Florida 4, Atlanta 3: Miguel Olivo scored on a passed ball in the bottom of the ninth as the Marlins rallied from three down in their final at-bat. The night had belonged to the Braves' Tim Hudson, who established a career-high with 12 strikeouts and pitched a shutout through eight innings. All signs pointed to the 31-year-old improving to 4-0 on the year and 6-0 in nine career starts against Florida. He yielded three consecutive singles in the ninth, though, to load the bases before being pulled in favor of Bob Wickman (1-1). Wickman promptly gave up a double to Olivo, scoring a pair to make it 3-2. Two batters later, Alfredo Amezaga hit an infield single that brought home the tying run. Then the passed ball plated the winning run as Florida won for the fourth time in five tries and rewarded their backers with a +142 payday.

St. Louis 5, Cincinnati 2: Albert Pujols hit a go-ahead, two-run double in the eighth inning for the host Cardinals, who paid -133 straight up. Chris Duncan went 2-for-3 with a run scored and Yadier Molina and Jim Edmonds each drove in a run for St. Louis.

Arizona 3, San Diego 2: Stephen Drew's two-run home run in the ninth inning propelled the Diamondbacks to a dramatic win in Phoenix. Facing a one-run deficit in their last at- bat, Chad Tracy worked a one-out walk. After Eric Byrnes popped out, Drew drilled an offering from Trevor Hoffman over the wall in right to give Arizona backers an even-money payday.

Colorado 11, New York Mets 5: Todd Helton had a season-high four hits, drove in three runs and scored twice to help the underdog Rockies salvage the finale of a three-game set at Shea Stadium.

Chicago Cubs 9, Milwaukee 3: Derrek Lee and Cliff Floyd each went 4-for-5 with two runs knocked in as the Cubs rewarded their backers by avoiding a three-game sweep at Wrigley Field. Lee hit his first home run and scored twice while Ryan Theriot and Michael Barrett also had two RBIs.

For complete MLB lines, visit the Bodog Sportsbook.

PHOTO: Adam LaRoche's single in the 16th ended a marathon contest in the Pirates' favor. (AI Wire photo)