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Marlins-Nationals Preview

May 7, 2010 - 3:43 AM By JON PALMIERI STATS Editor

Florida (13-14) at Washington (14-13), 7:05 p.m. EDT

Florida Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez didn't get the desired results after tinkering with his lineup.

Perhaps facing a pitcher his team has dominated will do the trick.

The Marlins try to avoid a season-high fourth straight loss Friday night when they open a three-game road series against the Washington Nationals.

With his team having lost two straight and five of seven, Gonzalez benched slumping Cameron Maybin and moved struggling Chris Coghlan into the leadoff spot Thursday against San Francisco.

The altered lineup didn't produce much, failing to record a hit for the first five-plus innings en route to a 6-3 loss and giving the Giants a three-game sweep.

"We probably faced the toughest pitching staff as a whole, starters and bullpen," Gonzalez said. "The old saying that good pitching beats good hitting - you saw it this series."

Coghlan, the 2009 NL rookie of the year, singled with two outs in the sixth for the Marlins' first hit, but he remained without an extra-base hit in 93 at-bats this season. Jorge Cantu went 0 for 4 and is hitless in his past 17 at-bats.

Florida (13-15) went 3-6 on its homestand, and fell two games below .500 for the first time this season.

"We need to get back on the winning track," second baseman Dan Uggla said. "We're going to bear down this road trip and fight and compete and scratch and claw."

The Marlins took two of three from Washington at home last weekend, scoring 17 runs in the series. One of those wins came against Craig Stammen (1-1, 6.75 ERA), who was roughed up for four runs - three earned - and seven hits in four-plus innings of the Nationals' 7-1 loss Saturday.

Stammen has never fared well against Florida, going 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA in three starts while yielding 20 hits in 11 innings. His biggest problem is dealing with Hanley Ramirez, who is 6 for 7 with a homer and two doubles against the right-hander.

Washington (15-13) fell short of history but beat Atlanta 3-2 on Thursday. Scott Olsen took a no-hitter into the eighth inning and pinch-hitter Willie Harris delivered the winning RBI single in the ninth.

Olsen's stellar outing came at an opportune time for the Nationals, who had compiled a 6.17 ERA in losing three of four games this month.

Adam Dunn homered for the second time in three games Thursday, and could be poised for another productive performance. He has a 16-game hitting streak against the Marlins in which he's batting .368 with four homers and 11 RBIs.

Dunn is 6 for 11 with a pair of doubles against Friday's scheduled starter, Chris Volstad.

Dunn and the Nationals couldn't do much with Volstad (2-2, 4.45) last Saturday, as the 6-foot-8 right-hander rebounded from his worst start of the season by pitching a four-hitter. He stuck out eight, walked one and threw 114 pitches.

Washington's Ivan Rodriguez went 0 for 2 in the loss.

"He's very tall," Rodriguez said. "Sometimes when you see a guy like that, it feels like the ball is coming from a building."

Volstad is 0-2 with an 8.68 ERA in his last four road starts dating to last season. He is 2-1 with a 4.56 ERA in five starts against the Nationals.