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Marlins' Johnson hopes to remain undefeated vs Nationals

May 30, 2012 - 2:47 PM (Sports Network) - Josh Johnson has never lost to the Washington Nationals.

The Miami Marlins are hoping they can still say that after Johnson takes the mound in Wednesday's finale of a three-game series between the National League East co-tenants.

Johnson has been able to stay healthy through 10 starts this season and sports a 7-0 record to go along with a 3.14 earned run average in 15 career meetings, 14 of which have been starts, with the Nationals. He made only one start against them last year before landing on the disabled list with a shoulder injury and did not record a decision.

The right-hander is 2-0 with a lofty 4.40 ERA in his last five starts -- all Miami victories -- and did not factor in the outcome of a 7-6 win over San Francisco on Friday. Johnson allowed three runs and nine hits in five innings and is 2-3 with a 4.87 ERA in 10 starts this season. He has made five starts at new Marlins Park, going 1-2 with a 4.45 ERA.

Miami will shoot for a sweep tonight and made it two straight wins with Tuesday's 3-1 victory behind Anibal Sanchez's seven strong innings. He allowed one unearned run and three hits with five strikeouts and one walk. Randy Choate, Steve Cishek and Heath Bell combined for three scoreless innings of relief. Bell notched his ninth save in then process.

Hanley Ramirez homered and Giancarlo Stanton added two hits and an RBI for the Marlins, who set a new franchise record for the most wins in a month and are 20-8 in May. The 20 wins surpasses the previous mark of 19 set in August of 1997, the year the Marlins won their first World Series.

"Obviously it's a nice thing for the organization," said Miami manager Ozzie Guillen of the record.

Jose Reyes went 1-for-4 for Miami and extended his hitting streak to 10 games.

The Marlins are 6-3 on a 10-game homestand and will visit Philadelphia for three games over the weekend.

Nationals starter Edwin Jackson was dealt the loss last night and gave up two runs -- one earned -- and five hits in 6 2/3 frames.

"It was a well-pitched ballgame on both parts," Jackson said. "(It came down to) who can make the least amount of mistakes."

Ian Desmond had a team-high two hits and Bryce Harper extended his hitting streak to nine games with a triple in the sixth inning for Washington, which still leads the NL East by 1 1/2 games ahead over New York and Miami. Harper has tallied five multi-hit games during the streak, with six RBI, 10 runs scored and five walks.

Chien-Ming Wang will make his first start of the season for Washington tonight and he picked up a win in relief in Friday's 7-4 triumph at Atlanta. He took over for Ross Detwiler, who was reached for three runs in 4 1/3 frames, and managed to come away with his first win since last year. Detwiler is expected to be the club's longman and Wang will take over the fifth spot in the rotation.

"You really don't want to tax him when he is just coming back fully from the two years when he was down from the major [shoulder] surgery," Nationals manager Davey Johnson said about Wang. "It would be very hard for me to handle a [former] 19-game winner, who made a great comeback from arm surgery, to have him in the bullpen.

"Here is a guy who has been in pennant fights, too, and knows what the pressure is all about. So it's a good opportunity for him and for us, to have him be in the role he is accustomed to, and that's to start. It doesn't lessen the fact that I think Detwiler is one heck of a pitcher."

Wang held the Braves to three hits, including a home run, over three innings and will make his first start since last Sept. 24 against Atlanta. The Taiwanese right-hander, who is coming off his first relief appearance since 2009 as a member of the New York Yankees, has won both of his career starts against the Marlins, spanning 13 2/3 innings to go with a 4.61 ERA.

Washington won two games from Miami in a rain-shortened series from April 20-21 and has won five of the past eight meetings between the teams.