Marlins Win 4th In A Row, Beat Nationals 8-0
Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter
MIAMI (AP) – Tom Koehler outpitched Stephen Strasburg, Giancarlo Stanton homered and the revitalized Miami Marlins earned their fourth win in a row Saturday by beating the slumping Washington Nationals 8-0.
Defending NL East champion Washington (7-11) endured its fourth consecutive defeat and fell into a tie for third place with the Marlins, who have put together their winning streak after a 3-11 start.
Stanton had three hits, including his fifth homer in nine games, and drove in two runs. Justin Bour, recalled Friday from Triple-A, had a pair of RBI singles, and Adeiny Hechavarria hit a three-run homer.
Ichiro Suzuki had two hits and scored in the eighth for his 1,968th run in the major leagues (1,310) and Japan (658), surpassing Sadaharu Oh's record for a Japanese player.
Strasburg (1-2) allowed eight hits and four runs in six innings. Opponents are batting .317 against him, and his ERA rose to 4.88. He has a 5.65 ERA in eight career starts at Marlins Park.
Koehler (2-2) gave up six hits in 7 1/3 innings. He lowered his ERA from 6.75 to 4.50, and two relievers completed Miami's first shutout of the year.
Bryce Harper went 0 for 3 and is 2 for 15 lifetime against Koehler.
Strasburg had shut out the Marlins for 17 consecutive innings dating to last July before they broke through with two runs in the fourth.
Martin Prado and Stanton hit back-to-back doubles. Bour singled for his first hit and RBI of the season.
Miami added two more in the sixth on an RBI single by Bour and a run-scoring double play grounder. The Marlins went 5 for 8 with runners in scoring position.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Nationals: RHP Max Scherzer's right thumb was still swollen, and the Nationals pushed back his scheduled bullpen session one day to Sunday. The Nationals are hoping he can make his next start as scheduled Tuesday at Atlanta. He jammed his hand while batting Thursday.
Marlins: An MRI determined that LF Christian Yelich has a slight disc bulge in his lower back. Rest and exercise are expected to resolve the problem, and Yelich said he's optimistic he'll able to come off the disabled list when eligible May 5. "It's feeling better every day, and that's encouraging," he said. ... RHP Jose Fernandez is scheduled to throw 15 pitches Thursday in his first batting practice session since undergoing reconstructive elbow surgery. ... RHP Henderson Alvarez (shoulder and elbow) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session the middle of next week, his first since going on the disabled list April 17.
UP NEXT
Washington LHP Gio Gonzalez (1-1, 3.44), a South Florida native, has won five consecutive starts against the Marlins and faces them Sunday. RHP Dan Haren (1-1, 3.32) is scheduled to pitch for Miami.
(© Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
