Marlins bash Nats, stay ahead of Phils
MIAMI — Miguel Rojas and Garrett Cooper each had a double and a homer and the MiamiMarlins beat the Washington Nationals 7-3 on Saturday night.
With the win, Miami maintained its hold on second place in theNLEast.
“We’re close to the finish line, we’re close to something this organization hasn’t done in a long time,” Cooper said of Miami’s 17-year post-season drought. “Everyone knows that and we’re trying to keep it on an even keel.”
StarlingMarte and Brian Anderson each singled twice for the Marlins, who had14 hits againstWashington starter Patrick Corbin. Miami also got two hits from Lewis Brinson and ChadWallach.
Pablo Lopez (5-4) matched his win total from last season with his 5 1⁄ inning
3 outing. Lopez allowed two runs and three hits, struck out sevenandwalked three.
Miami struck early, with Rojas hitting a leadoff homer off Corbin (2-6) in the first.
Rojas droveCorbin’s fastball over the wall in leftcenter for his fourth homer of the season.
Cooper’s opposite field two-run blast to right-center increased the Marlins’ lead 3-0.
“Singles are great but as a big man, that’s your job, to hit some doubles and home runs,” said the 6-foot-5, 230-pound Cooper.
AndrewStevenson’s tworun single in the fourth got Washington within 3-2 before Miami responded with RBI singles from Corey Dickerson and Wallach in the bottom of the inning.
The Marlins padded their lead with an RBI single fromJesusAguilar in the fifth andCooper’s run-scoring double in the sixth.
RichardBleier retiredthe four batters he faced to set up Brandon Kintzler, who pitched a scoreless ninth.
Corbinwas lifted after six innings. The left-hander allowed seven runs and struck out seven.
“One of those days, it wasn’t very good,” Corbin said.“Theycameout swinging, they didn’t miss any of
my mistakes, hit it.”
The loss dropped theNationals to 19-31 — the same record before their 74-38 finish and eventual run to a World Series championship last season.
“I’d rather be 31-19, but hey, we just gotta keep battling, we gotta keep it going for the next 10 games or whatever it is and just try to go 1-0 (Sunday),” Washington managerDaveMartinez said . “That’s wherewe’re at right now.”
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LOPEZ OVERCOMES DIFFICULTFOURTH
After enduring a 22-pitch fourth inning, Lopez rebounded in the fifth, when he retired Victor Robles on a flyout to center and struck out Trea Turner and Juan Soto. Lopez limited the Nationals to the two-run fourth after Carter Kieboomwas thrown out at home on an attempted double steal for the third out.
“That was huge and that gave me an extra boost through the fifth and into the sixth,” Lopez said. FOR
ALFARO SITS LOPEZ’S START
Although he’s driven in nine runs and hit .318 in the current homestand, Marlins starting catcher Jorge Alfaro didn’t start Saturday. Manager Don Mattingly opted to go with Wallach because of his work with Lopez in the right-hander’s previous start. Lopez allowed a combined 12 runs over 5 2⁄ innings in starts
3 against Tampa Bay and Atlanta beforeWallach caught him in a seven-inning, onerun outing against Philadelphia on Sept. 14.
“I thought Chad was really good with Pablo the last time,” Mattingly said. “(Lopez) kind of got backon track and I wanted to leave that combination.”
TRAINER’SROOM
Nationals: RHP Aaron Barrett (right tricep tightness) received treatment Saturday. The reliever walked and hit the two batters he faced before leaving with his injury in the second game of Friday’s doubleheader.