HOUSTON, Aug. 7 Houston's Woody Williams struggled in the first inning, but then hog-tied the Chicago Cubs over six innings Tuesday as the Astros posted a 5-2 victory.
Craig Biggio hit the tie-breaking RBI single to highlight a four-run sixth inning and Jason Lane homered for the Astros. Carlos Lee had a two hits and drove in a run for Houston.
The Cubs scored one run before Williams (6-12) recorded an out in the first inning, but the 40-year-old right-hander escaped after allowing just that run. Williams retired the final 10 batters he faced before being replaced by Dave Borkowski to start the seventh inning. Williams was charged with four hits while striking out seven.
Matt Murton homered for Chicago, which has lost five of its last six games. Sean Marshall (5-6) gave up seven hits and five runs through 5 1/3 innings.
The Astros had five straight hits in the sixth inning, grabbing a 5-1 lead. Biggio got his 3,023rd hit, tying Lou Brock for 22nd place on the all-time list.
Copyright 2007 by UPI
