The Miami Marlins dropped a second straight game on Tuesday with a 5-0 loss to the Washington Nationals.
Henderson Alvarez fell to 0-2 on the year but looked better than he did in his first start of the year. Alvarez allowed three runs in his 5.2 innings of work on six hits and two walks. The right-hander also struck out four hitters along the way falling one out short of a quality start. Dan Jennings entered in the sixth to pick up the final out of the inning on a strikeout. A.J. Ramos worked the seventh inning perfectly with two strikeouts included. Mike Dunn had a tough outing in the eighth when he allowed two runs on a walk and a pair of hits. The reliever now has a 10.13 E.R.A this season and has allowed runs in two of his three appearances.
Offensively, the Marlins were shut down by the Nationals’ pitching staff in this one. As a team, Miami had four hits and all were singles. The Marlins were 0-4 with runners in scoring position combined and left a total of six men on base. The singles came from Giancarlo Stanton, Adeiny Hechavarria, Marcell Ozuna, and Garrett Jones. The latter was an interesting one as Jones laid down a bunt to the right side to counteract a defensive shift that was set by Washington.
The Marlins will try and get back in the win column on Wednesday with Brad Hand scheduled to start. Jacob Turner was the original starter set but has been scratched with a strained right shoulder per a release from the Marlins.
