(Sports Network) - The Florida Marlins will close the books on a 10-game road trip tonight, when they wrap up a four-game series against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field.
The Marlins are just 3-6 on the stand, but ended a three-game losing streak with a 6-4 victory in the third test of this series on Wednesday. Florida young star Hanley Ramirez had a hot day at the plate with a pair of homers, including a two-run blast in the ninth inning to propel his team to victory. Ramirez also scored three runs, while Mike Rabelo added a two-run homer.
Justin Miller pitched two innings of scoreless relief to pick up the victory, and Florida starter Mark Hendrickson gave up nine hits and four runs over six innings of work.
The Marlins are now 14-14 on the road this season and sit 1 1/2 games behind Philadelphia for the lead in the NL East.
Florida second baseman Dan Uggla missed Wednesday's game for the birth of his child. Uggla, who is batting .302 with 18 homers and 41 RBI this season, is expected to be back in the lineup this evening.
The Marlins will hand the ball to Ricky Nolasco on Thursday, hoping he can keep his recent unbeaten streak intact. Nolasco has won three straight outings and is 4-0 over his five most recent trips to the mound.
Nolasco beat the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park his last time out on Saturday, as he gave up just two runs and four hits through 6 2/3 innings of work. The effort pushed his 2008 mark to 5-3 with a 4.48 ERA in 12 games (10 starts) this season.
The right-hander was rocked by Atlanta on April 15 of this season in Miami. Nolasco hurled 4 2/3 innings and permitted six runs and nine hits in an 8-0 setback. He is 1-2 with a 3.38 earned run average in six career appearances (5 starts) against the Braves.
Atlanta had its two-game winning streak come to an end last night and suffered its sixth loss in nine tries. Jeff Francoeur and Josh Anderson each collected two hits and drove in a run for the Braves, while Yunel Escobar and Greg Norton also knocked in a run apiece.
Braves reliever Manny Acosta took the loss and was charged with four runs on four hits while recording just one out in the ninth inning. It ruined a solid outing for starter Tom Glavine, who was in line for the win after yielding six hits and two runs over five innings of work.
The Braves are 2-1 on a seven-game homestand and 24-8 at Turner Field this season. They sit 3 1/2 games off Philadelphia's lead in the NL East.
Jair Jurrjens will handle pitching duties for Atlanta this evening, and he is coming off a poor outing at Cincinnati on Saturday. Jurrjens, who is 1-0 with three no decisions over his last four starts, did not record a decision against the Reds after he yielded six runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings.
Jurrjens is now 5-3 with a 3.45 earned run average in 12 starts this season following his team's 8-7 setback at Cincinnati.
The right-hander is an impressive 4-0 with a 2.06 ERA in six home starts this season. Jurrjens faced the Marlins for the first time in his career on April 15 at Dolphin Stadium and absorbed the loss, surrendering a pair of runs in six frames of a 4-0 defeat.
Atlanta and Florida have split eight meetings this season, while the Braves are 35-28 in the series since the start of the 2005 campaign. Atlanta is 21-11 versus the Marlins at Turner Field over that stretch.
(Sports Network) - Mike Mussina takes aim at win No. 18 this afternoon when the New York Yankees play the rubber match of their three-game series ... Full Story...
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