MIAMI _ For a while, it appeared Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez wasn't going to receive any help.
He did most of the early heavy-lifting, but still needed some assistance from teammates. As each inning passed, it looked like it was never going to come.
And then it happened.
An assist came in the form of right fielder Giancarlo Stanton deciding to chip in at the opportune time. With Fernandez handling things on the mound, Stanton's solo homer in the sixth was just the boost needed in a 1-0 victory against the Washington Nationals Tuesday at Marlins Park.
The Marlins have now won three straight to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. It was also the fourth consecutive defeat for the National League East-leading Nationals.
"We're hanging in there," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "We're living day-to-day, game-to-game. You win, you feel good about it. You lose, it hurts you."
The Marlins can thank their two marquee players for remaining in the race for one of the two wild-card spots. Fernandez turned in yet another nearly flawless performance, allowing three hits and striking out 12 in eight innings.
It looked like the effort was potentially going to go waste when the Marlins were unable to have any success at the plate. They had just two hits off Nationals pitcher Tanner Roark, treating the announced crowd of 17,961 to a pitchers' duel.
That was until Stanton took the batter's box in the sixth. With two outs, he crushed the second pitch over the right-field fence. It was his second consecutive game with a home run and a good sign he's reaching close to full strength after sustaining a groin injury last month.
Things got a little shaky in the eighth. A single by catcher Wilson Ramos gave the Nationals runners at first and third with one out. Fernandez responded by striking out Danny Espinosa and got Daniel Murphy to ground to second to end the inning.
Marlins closer David Phelps pitched the final inning to pick up the save, his fourth of the season. After recording the first out, he staved off being clipped by a line drive to retire the next two batters.
The victory allowed Fernandez (16-8) to continue his dominance against the Nationals this season. He has won all four starts in the series. More importantly, the Marlins are playing meaningful games this late in the season when normally looking forward to next season around this time.
"Players are playing hard," Mattingly said. "That's what we've asked. No matter what the circumstances, go out and be ready to play. At the end of the year, you really want to be able to look yourself in the mirror and say I've played as hard as I could."
