Pirates Beat Cubs to Get Back Into Wild-Card Race Pittsburgh Pirates Manager Clint Hurdle figured ending a season-high seven-game losing streak would be no easy task. Joel Hanrahan made it about as dramatic as it can get. Hanrahan allowed two runs in the ninth and then struck out Dave Sappelt with the bases loaded to preserve Pittsburgh's 7-6 victory over the host Chicago Cubs on Saturday. Andrew McCutchen homered and reached base four times for Pittsburgh, which had dropped 11 of 13 games. "If it was about everybody's comfort, you'd choose to do it differently," Hurdle said. But usually when you push through something like we're going through right now, it's going to take some drama, and it's going to take some wherewithal and some confidence and some grit. It was enough today to get us out of the direction we were headed in and headed in a new direction. Wandy Rodriguez (11-13) held Chicago to three runs, one earned, in helping the Pirates stop their free fall in the National League playoff race. Despite its recent skid, Pittsburgh entered the day just three games behind St. Louis for the second N.L. wild-card slot. Although he struggled after being acquired midseason from Houston, Rodriguez improved to 3-0 with a 1.40 earned run average over his last four starts. McCutchen launched Jason Berken's pitch off the rear fence behind the left-field bleachers leading off the third, his 28th home run of the season. He also singled and walked twice. Hanrahan allowed a run-scoring single by Alfonso Soriano in the ninth and walked in a run, but he held on for his 35th save. Neil Walker started for the Pirates for the first time since Aug. 26, having missed time because of lower back tightness. He was hitless in five at-bats. BRAVES 5, NATIONALS 4 Pinch-runner Jeff Baker scored the go-ahead run in the eighth inning when reliever Ryan Mattheus hit Andrelton Simmons's uniform with a bases-loaded pitch, and Atlanta won at home. RED SOX 3, BLUE JAYS 2 Pedro Ciriaco drove in the tiebreaking run with a two-out double in the ninth inning, and Cody Ross hit a solo home run for Boston at Toronto. Having stranded runners at third base three times in the previous five innings, the Red Sox finally broke through in the ninth. Jarrod Saltalamacchia led off with a double against Steve Delabar (4-2), Ryan Lavarnway struck out, and Saltalamacchia moved to third on Mike Aviles's fly ball. Ciriaco followed with a double to left. Boston loaded the bases with two outs in the eighth but failed to score. Delabar fell behind in the count, 3-0, against Ross but came back to strike him out. He then got James Loney to pop up to end the threat. Second baseman Dustin Pedroia returned to Boston's lineup after missing two games for the birth of his second son. He batted third but did not have a hit. WHITE SOX 5, TWINS 3 Francisco Liriano took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, Paul Konerko homered and drove in three runs, and Chicago stayed on top of the American League Central with a victory in Minneapolis. Liriano (6-11) was tremendous against his former team, allowing only a two-out homer in the seventh to Trevor Plouffe. He walked two, hit a batter and struck out nine in seven innings. Acquired from the Twins on July 28, Liriano earned his first win against Minnesota. He was not originally supposed to start, but he did to give Jose Quintana and Gavin Floyd extra rest and to allow Quintana to start Monday's makeup game against Detroit. Adam Dunn returned to Chicago's lineup for the first time since straining a muscle on his right side more than a week ago. Dunn, who missed seven games, went 2 for 3 with a walk and scored a run before being lifted for a pinch-runner in the top of the eighth. TIGERS 5, INDIANS 3 Anibal Sanchez took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, and Detroit beat host Cleveland despite losing a run on an appeal play. Carlos Santana ruined Sanchez's no-hit bid with a two-out triple in the seventh, but Cleveland was officially eliminated from the playoffs. Detroit stayed one game behind the White Sox in the A.L. Central. Detroit got only one run, instead of two, in the fifth for a 4-0 lead when Alex Avila missed touching third while trying to score from second base. With two outs, and Avila on second, Quintin Berry hit a ball into the hole at shortstop, where Asdrubal Cabrera fielded it and threw to third to try to get Avila advancing. The wild throw sent Avila home and Berry to second.