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Nolasco, Marlins end Webb's impressive run

May 22, 2008 - 3:18 AM By Christopher Stock PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

MIAMI (Ticker) - Ricky Nolasco was pumped to be facing red-hot Brandon Webb - and it showed.

Nolasco threw seven strong innings and the Florida Marlins handed Webb his first loss of the season with a 3-1 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday night.

The Marlins beat the Diamondbacks for the second consecutive game behind Nolasco (3-3), who allowed one run and three hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.

Nolasco threw 73 of 110 pitches for strikes and lowered his ERA to 4.62 with his longest outing of the season to outduel Arizona's ace.

"It makes a difference knowing that a guy like Webb is the other guy," Nolasco said. "You know he is going to be good, you just have to try and be better."

Nolasco was the main reason Webb (9-1) lost for the first time since October 11, 2007.

"Nolasco was as good as you want to match up against Webb and he matched him pitch for pitch," Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "That was a good game and I'm glad we came out on the winning end of it."

The 2006 Cy Young Award winner, Webb was trying to become the first pitcher to win his first 10 starts since Andy Hawkins did so for San Diego in 1985. The righthander allowed three runs and six hits in seven innings with seven strikeouts.

"I'm not going to go 33 or 34-0, probably," Webb said. "You know it's going to happen sometime. Losing in this manner, to a guy who pitched a great game, it's probably a good way to happen. We'll just go out in five days and try to get to 10-1."

Webb retired the first 11 batters he faced before allowing a double down the left field line to Jorge Cantu in the fourth.

Stephen Drew's leadoff home run in the fourth gave Webb a 1-0 lead, but he gave it back quickly.

Florida tied the game in the fifth when Luis Gonzalez hit a one-out triple to deep center field and scored on a squeeze bunt by Matt Treanor.

Cody Ross followed Treanor with a 423-foot solo homer to left-center field. Ross' fifth home run of the season came on a 2-0 pitch.

"I was definitely sitting on the fastball and he was trying to sink it in all night on me," Ross said. "He left one out over the plate - I'm not trying to hit a home run. I'm just trying to get some good wood on it and elevate it, and luckily it went out."

The Marlins tacked on an insurance run in the seventh inning. Dan Uggla extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a leadoff double and scored on a base hit up the middle by Gonzalez.

The Diamondbacks had two on with one out in the eighth inning as Augie Ojeda walked and advanced to second when Matt Lindstrom uncorked a wild pitch.

Chris Young flied out and Drew singled, advancing Ojeda to third. However, Lindstrom struck out Orlando Hudson and Conor Jackson to end the inning.

Kevin Gregg threw a perfect ninth for his ninth save of the season.

"You have to be able to win the close ones, that's how you separate yourself from everybody else," Gregg said.

It was a matchup of first-place teams, with a pitcher on a historic run, but Gonzalez was disappointed with the dismal crowd of 11,227.

"If you have been around the game, you realize the fact that everybody is watching this game, intrigued to see what was going to happen," Gonzalez said of Webb's and the first-place Marlins' hot start.

Gonzalez said the fans may have been more interested in Tuesday's NBA draft lottery in which the Miami Heat were awarded the No. 2 pick.

"Obviously our fans didn't know that - they were worried about the draft on the radio - not to take a shot at anybody."