Double steals, clutch hits lift Marlins over Nationals

Heriberto Hernandez delivered a two-run single to cap a three-run eighth and the Miami Marlins held on for a 5-2 win against the visiting Washington Nationals on Sunday afternoon in the rubber match of their three-game series.

Miami starter Sandy Alcantara went six innings, allowing two runs and five hits while striking out three and walking two.

Calvin Faucher (4-2) threw two hitless innings of relief for the Marlins, who have won three of four overall. Andrew Nardi got the first two outs in the ninth before rookie Josh Ekness got the final one for his first MLB save.

Luis Garcia Jr. tripled, doubled, scored a run and drove in a run for Washington, which lost 8-7 on Saturday to end a three-game winning streak.

Nationals right-hander Cade Cavalli allowed two runs and four hits over 5 2/3 innings. He struck out four and walked one.

Nationals reliever Gus Varland (0-1) started the eighth with the score tied 2-2 and surrendered back-to-back one-out walks to Kyle Stowers and Jakob Marsee.

Esteury Ruiz ran for Stowers and he and Marsee pulled a successful double steal before Christopher Morel dropped a soft single in front of center fielder Jacob Young, scoring Ruiz for a 3-2 lead.

After another double steal put runners back on second and third with one out, Hernandez capped a nine-pitch at-bat with his two-run single to left that stretched the lead to 5-2.

Cavalli retired six of the first seven batters he faced before walking Joe Mack to start the third. He then surrendered back-to-back one-out singles to Xavier Edwards and Liam Hicks, the latter driving in Mack from second base to give Miami a 1-0 lead.

After another run came home on a fielding error by Nationals shortstop Nasim Nunez, Cavalli avoided further damage by getting Stowers to hit into a 3-6-1 double play.

Alcantara pitched around a leadoff double in the first, but he couldn't get around a leadoff triple by Garcia in the fourth. He scored on a groundout by Brady House to cut it to 2-1.

After the Nationals put their leadoff batter on base again in the fifth, Garcia came up with runners on the corners and two outs and doubled to left to tie it 2-2.

--Field Level Media