MLB: Houston 8, Los Angeles Dodgers 1

LOS ANGELES, July 18 (UPI) -- Miguel Tejada and Ivan Rodriguez hit solo homers as part of a 16-hit attack Friday, leading the Houston Astros to an 8-1 whipping of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Astros have won three in a row and moved into a second-place tie in the National League Central with Milwaukee and the Chicago Cubs -- three games behind St. Louis.

Houston took control by scoring four times in the first after two were out. After Tejada homered off Chad Billingsley (8-5), Carlos Lee and Geoff Blum singled and Hunter Pence doubled both runners home -- and then scored on a single by Rodriguez.

Blum doubled home two more runs in the second and Rodriguez delivered his homer in the third.

The offensive surge allowed Roy Oswalt (6-4) to coast to a complete-game victory. He allowed just four hits and struck out five in going the distance for the third time this season.

The Dodgers have scored just one run in the first two games of the series with the Astros.