Webb baffles; D-backs snap Bucs' win streak

Arizona hung on for an 8-6 victory to avoid being swept at home.
PHOENIX (AP) -- Brandon Webb's sinker and Tony Womack's resurgence finally gave the Arizona Diamondbacks a positive result against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Webb shut down Pittsburgh for 72/3 innings and the Diamondbacks salvaged the finale of the three-game series against the Pirates with an 8-6 victory Sunday.
"It all started with Webbie," Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly said. "He was fantastic."
The 24-year-old right-hander scattered eight hits, struck out six and walked three.
"This kid's unflappable," Brenly said. "Nothing seems to bother him. He's very emotionless out there on the mound. He's just going to keep firing that sinker out there until I come out and take the ball away from him."
Webb (2-1) shut out the Pirates for six innings after Kenny Lofton's leadoff double and Amaris Ramirez's RBI single in the first. He allowed three runs, the last two of which came on pinch-hitter Reggie Sanders' three-run homer off reliever Eddie Oropesa with two outs in the eighth.
Webb has a 2.02 ERA in his six big league appearances, the last five as a starter.
"It really boosts your confidence, going out and getting solid starts in your last four starts [before Sunday]," Webb said. "You just get more confidence every time, and it makes it a lot easier to pitch."
Lofton ejected
Lofton was 2-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to a career-best 18 games, longest in the National League this season, but was thrown out by plate umpire Greg Gibson for arguing a called third strike in the seventh.
Six Diamondbacks had at least one RBI -- including an NL-record four sacrifice flies -- as Arizona scored in each of the first six innings.
"It reminds us of the D-Backs of old," said David Dellucci, who had a triple and two RBIs, "the D-Backs who came out and were aggressive, jumped on pitches and drove them in."
Ramirez added a two-run homer in the ninth off Mike Koplove, the first this season by a Pirates' cleanup hitter.
Womack, batting leadoff for the first time in more than a month, was 3-for-5 with two RBIs, one of them on a sacrifice fly. He stole a base and scored twice.
Womack had batted seventh Saturday night in his first start since May 11.
"His at-bats he had in the game [Saturday] earned him the start today," Brenly said. "He just continues to swing the bat real well. He did everything we needed him to do."
Arizona and Pittsburgh split their season series 3-3. The Pirates never have won a season series against the Diamondbacks, but did take two of three at Bank One Ballpark, scoring 22 runs in the process.
"I saw a lot of things that were very encouraging," said manager Lloyd McClendon, who takes his team back to Pittsburgh, where the Pirates are just 6-16.