San Diego, CA – Ricky Nolasco tossed seven innings of two-run ball as the Miami Marlins completed a three-game sweep of the San Diego Padres with a 6-3 victory at Petco Park.
Nolasco (4-0) scattered five hits and a walk while striking out three batters to earn his 68th career win with the Marlins, tying Dontrelle Willis' franchise record.
"It means a lot," Nolasco said. "I'm just grateful for the opportunity the team has given me to be here for this long. It means a lot knowing that I'm here helping this team and this organization win as many games as possible."
Jose Reyes and Emilio Bonifacio each had two hits and a run scored for Miami, which completed its second straight three-game series sweep.
Edward Mujica worked around a leadoff single in the ninth inning to record his second save of the year.
Andrew Cashner (2-2) allowed four runs -- three earned -- on three hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning to suffer the loss for the Padres, who had won two straight before dropping each game of this series.
Joe Wieland got the start for San Diego and gave up two runs on five hits and a walk with four strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings. He also added a two-run double.
Miami stranded a runner on second in the second inning and a man on third in the fourth as Nolasco retired the first 11 batters he faced before Chase Headley hit a two-out single in the fourth inning for the Padres first baserunner.
Yonder Alonso would fly out to left field to end the inning, but the Padres would break through in the fifth to take the lead.
Cameron Maybin reached base on a one-out single and immediately stole second. After a John Baker groundout advanced Maybin to third, Andy Parrino was intentionally walked and Wieland followed by slapping a double into the right- field corner to bring home Maybin and Parrino for a 2-0 advantage.
The Marlins would answer in the sixth inning, though, when Nolasco led off the frame with a walk and moved to second on a Reyes base hit before scoring on a ground out from Hanley Ramirez. Ramirez then came around to score on Logan Morrison's triple into the right-center field gap, knocking Wieland off the mound.
Brad Brach took the bump next and stranded Morrison on third by inducing a Giancarlo Stanton fly out after issuing a walk to Omar Infante to keep it a 2-2 game.
The score would remain tied until Miami blew the game open with a four-run eighth.
Cashner started the inning for San Diego and allowed back-to-back singles by Reyes and Bonifacio to start the frame. Ramirez then grounded out before Morrison was intentionally walked to load the bases.
It looked as if Cashner would get out of the inning when he fanned Infante, but Stanton followed by working an eight-pitch walk to bring home Reyes and a passed ball by Baker allowed Bonifacio to cross the plate before Gaby Sanchez's sinking liner to center field plated Morrison.
"I felt pretty good about our chances," Padres manager Bud Black said of letting Cashner face Stanton. "Stanton's a good player, he's young, but if you look at the stats, he strikeout-prone against a guy with a good fastball."
Miles Mikolas then took the mound and another passed ball by Baker scored Stanton. Mikolas walked John Buck before pinch-hitter Greg Dobbs grounded out to first to end the inning as the Marlins took a 6-2 lead.
Chris Denorfia scored from second on Reyes' throwing error to first on what could have been an inning-ending double play in the bottom of the eighth to bring San Diego within three, but Mujica shut the door in the ninth to seal the win for the Marlins.
Game Notes
Stanton increased his hit streak to nine straight games...San Diego fell to 77-71 all-time against the Marlins...Miami went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base, while San Diego went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and stranded six...Wieland is still in search of his first MLB win.
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