Diamondbacks 4 - 5 Marlins
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Marlins rely on Brad Penny in opener with D-backs

Aug 14, 2014 - 2:27 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - Who says you can't go home?

Veteran right-hander Brad Penny was plucked from minor-league oblivion for his first win in three years last weekend, and he'll return to his former Miami haunts on Thursday night when the Marlins host the Arizona Diamondbacks to begin a four-game series at Marlins Park.

Penny, now 36, was called up from Triple-A New Orleans on Saturday and pitched five innings of two-run ball in a 4-3 win at Cincinnati. He hadn't started a major league game since September 2011 with the Detroit Tigers, and hadn't started one for the Marlins since July 2004.

"It's been a long time," Penny said. "I'm lucky to get another opportunity to pitch at this level."

A winner of 120 games in his career, Penny is 10-3 with a 2.03 earned run average in 19 career starts against Arizona, though the most recent one came in June 2011.

He faces rookie righty Chase Anderson, who beat the Marlins, 9-1, in Arizona on July while striking out eight batters in six innings. He's unbeaten in his last five starts overall -- beginning with the defeat of Miami -- and has gone 2-0 in that stretch with a 1.74 ERA.

His most recent start was Friday in a 5-3 defeat of Colorado, in which he allowed a run and four hits in six innings.

"He's kind of been on a roll. He's had five or six games where's he thrown the ball very good, made good pitches when he's had to," manager Kirk Gibson said.

On Wednesday in Cleveland, Tuffy Gosewisch hit a go-ahead RBI single in the top of the 12th inning and the Diamondbacks beat the Cleveland Indians, 1-0, in the second game of a doubleheader. Alfredo Marte worked a leadoff walk against C.C. Lee (0-1) in the 12th and pinch-runner Xavier Paul advanced to second on Didi Gregorius' sacrifice bunt.

Gosewisch stepped up next and brought home Paul when his broken-bat bouncer snuck through the middle of the infield. Randall Delgado (2-3) tossed a scoreless top of the 11th to notch the win after taking the loss in the opening game.

Addison Reed struck out two in a scoreless bottom of the 12th to post his 28th save of the year. Cleveland took Game 1 of the doubleheader on Zach Walters' walk-off solo homer in the ninth.

In Miami, Matt Carpenter had three hits and scored twice and Justin Masterson pitched a gem as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Marlins, 5-2, to avoid getting swept in Miami.

The Marlins haven't swept the Cardinals at home since July 28-30, 1995.

Marlins starter Nathan Eovaldi (6-7) took the loss after surrendering all four runs -- two earned -- on eight hits over six innings of work.






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