John Lannan won for the first time in seven starts and Pete Orr hit his first home run of the season, leading the Washington Nationals over the Florida Marlins 7-2 in a rain-shortened game Sunday.
The game was called after a 53-minute delay in the bottom of the ninth inning. The Marlins had a runner on base with nobody out.
Rain also halted play for 2 hours, 10 minutes in the sixth.
Lannan (9-11) allowed one run and six hits in five innings. He did not return after the first delay. It was his first win since Aug. 5, also against Florida.
The Marlins, who had won four of five, remained 5½ games behind Colorado for the NL wild card. The Rockies lost 7-3 at San Diego.
Washington won for the third time in four games.
Florida starter Chris Volstad (9-12) gave up five runs — four earned — and five hits over three innings. It was his 28th start of the season, but first since being recalled from Triple-A New Orleans on Tuesday. It also was his third consecutive loss at the major league level.
The Nationals scored three runs in the first, aided by a Marlins defensive gaffe.
Willie Harris walked and Ian Desmond singled to put runners on first and second with no outs. Cristian Guzman hit a soft grounder and second baseman Dan Uggla missed the tag on Desmond before making a high throw to first for an error.
Harris scored on a wild pitch, and Elijah Dukes’ two-run single made it 3-0.
Jorge Cantu singled in Hanley Ramirez, who had singled and stole second, in the bottom half.
The Nationals stretched their lead to 5-1 on Orr’s two-run homer off Volstad in the third. Orr, who played for Washington in 2008, was called up from Triple-A Syracuse on Aug. 28.
Guzman singled in Harris in the fourth off reliever Andrew Miller to make it 6-1. Orr scored on a groundout in the fifth.
Cody Ross singled in Uggla in the eighth to make it 7-2.
Tyler Clippard pitched two scoreless innings and Jason Bergmann allowed one run in one-plus inning of relief for Washington before the game was called.
NOTES » Dukes has reached base safely in 17 consecutive games. He returned to the lineup after missing Saturday’s game with a stiff lower back. … Justin Maxwell hit two solo homers as Duke’s replacement Saturday and remained in the starting lineup Sunday. … Ryan Zimmerman and Josh Willingham were both given Sunday off “to clear their heads,” Nationals manager Jim Riggleman said. … Ramirez needs one RBI for his first 100-RBI season.
