Marlins shut down by Max Scherzer, denied sweep of Nationals
MIAMI (AP) -- Even after dropping the last game of the homestand, the Miami Marlins are making good on their goal to finish a disappointing season on a positive note.
The Marlins were shut down by Max Scherzer in a 5-0 loss to the Washington Nationals, but wrapped up a nine-game homestand with a 6-3 record.
"We won three series to go 6-3, and I'm very proud of the way these guys have played over these last three or four weeks," Marlins manager Dan Jennings said. "I liked the effort and the energy and playing smart, aggressive baseball."
The Marlins, who were officially eliminated from playoff contention after dropping to 61-82, took two of three in each of their three home series against the first-place Mets, Brewers and Nationals and are 9-3 in their last 12.
Marlins starter Brad Hand (4-6) allowed three runs, five hits and four walks in 3 1-3 innings. Hand is 0-3 with a 13.97 ERA in his last three starts after pitching eight innings and allowing two runs in a win against Pittsburgh on Aug. 25.
"I felt good those first two innings, and then after that I kind of lost a feel for everything," Hand said. "I fell behind in the count. I walked too many guys and those walks will hurt you."
Meanwhile, Scherzer got the results he had been looking for over the past six weeks.
Scherzer pitched eight stellar innings to help the Washington Nationals end a five-game losing streak.
"You know you're in for a battle when you face him," Jennings said. "He's leading the league in a lot of categories for a reason. We ran into a buzzsaw."
Scherzer (12-11) allowed five hits and did not walk a batter to earn his first win since July 30 at Miami. He struck out six while throwing 74 of his 102 pitches for strikes. Scherzer lowered his ERA to 2.91.
"Overall I thought over the past month or so I have been throwing the ball well, I just haven't gotten the results," said Scherzer, who was 0-3 with a 6.08 ERA in his previous seven starts. "To be able to go out there and kind of limit the amount of mistakes I do make and have them hit the ball at people makes for a good outing."
It was the deepest Scherzer has been in a game without allowing a run since tossing a no-hitter on June 20 against Pittsburgh.
Felipe Rivero relieved Scherzer to pitch the ninth.
The Nationals lost star Bryce Harper in the first inning when he experienced dizziness after colliding with Marlins second baseman Derek Dietrich while running the bases. He passed a postgame concussion test and the Nationals will monitor him through the night and re-evaluate Monday.
"I tried to get up on my own, but I felt pretty dizzy," Harper said. "Once I rolled I just said that I didn't feel right. I was looking up into the stadium and I just didn't feel good at all. I told them I was fine to play, but once I said I was dizzy they were just like, `There's no point' and just got me out there."
Harper's replacement, Matt den Dekker, hit a solo home run, his third of the season.
Anthony Rendon, Jayson Werth, Ian Desmond, and Wilson Ramos also drove in runs for the Nationals, who won the final game of the series after losing the first two and falling nine games behind the NL East-leading New York Mets.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Marlins: RHP Jose Fernandez felt good the day after his first game since Aug. 7. He tossed five shutout innings and struck out seven in a 2-0 win over Washington. "I feel good, no issues at all today," Fernandez said. "Everything is fine. Just ready to go."
UP NEXT
Nationals: RHP Jordan Zimmermann (12-8, 3.32 ERA) takes the mound on Monday as Washington begins a three-game series at Philadelphia, which will counter with RHP Aaron Nola (6-2, 3.56).
Marlins: LHP Justin Nicolino (3-3, 3.72) gets the ball against Mets RHP Logan Verrett (1-0, 1.93) on Monday in New York.
