Washington Nationals' Daylen Lile watches his two run home run go over the right field fence during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Miami Marlins, Monday, Aug. 31, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)
August 31, 2026 - 7:13 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) — Daylen Lile homered twice and drove in four runs, Erik Tolman pitched out of a bases-loaded jam to earn his first major league save, and the Washington Nationals beat the Miami Marlins 6-3 on Monday night.
The Marlins dropped three of four to the Nationals and fell four games behind Arizona in the race for the final NL wild-card spot.
Lile, named the NL player of the week earlier Monday, finished 3 for 3. The second-year outfielder has five homers over his past eight games to reach 20 for the season.
Brady House was 2 for 4 with an RBI for the Nationals. Andrew Pinckney and Keibert Ruiz also had two hits apiece.
Tolman replaced Matt Waldron with the bases loaded and nobody out in the eighth. He struck out Kyle Stowers, then induced a double-play grounder from Leo Jiménez. Tolman then struck out the side in the ninth.
Waldron (2-2) allowed five hits across three scoreless innings.
Josh Ekness (1-2) replaced Tyler Zuber with one out and a runner on third in the seventh. Two pitches later, Lile hit his second homer to give the Nationals their first lead at 4-3. Washington added two more runs in the inning, with House contributing a run-scoring single.
In the fifth, Lile hit a 2-2 slider off Marlins starter Ryan Gusto 406 feet to left-center to get Washington within 3-2. It was the 23-year-old's first opposite-field homer in the majors.
Gusto allowed one run and four hits in 4 1/3 innings.
Heriberto Hernández scored on a wild pitch by Luis Perales and Stowers followed with a two-run single that made it 3-0.
Up next
Marlins RHP Tyler Phillips (3-6, 3.59 ERA) starts Tuesday to begin a series at Kansas City.
Nationals RHP Jake Irvin (2-8, 5.62 ERA) starts Tuesday in the first of two home games against Atlanta.
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