Nats bust out vs. Marlins; magic number at 2

MIAMI — The Nationals have been searching for offense during a four-game losing streak that slowed their march to secure the National League East. They had managed just eight runs during the stretch without second baseman Daniel Murphy, who was out of the starting lineup for a fourth consecutive game with a left leg injury.

But Washington’s offense broke out in Wednesday night’s 8-3 victory over the Marlins at Marlins Park, including a three-run homer from Ryan Zimmerman and a solo blast from Trea Turner, to back a strong start from right-hander Max Scherzer, who won No. 18. The victory lowered the Nationals’ magic number for clinching the NL East to two after the Mets fell to the Braves, 4-3.

Scherzer cruised through the first six innings before serving up a pair of homers in the seventh. Marlins outfielder Christian Yelich started the inning with a homer, his 20th, and Derek Dietrich added a pinch-hit two-run blast to knock Scherzer out of the game. But the Nationals’ offense responded with a pair of runs in the eighth inning to extend the lead back to five.

The Marlins were unable to overcome a short start from right-hander Tom Koehler, who lasted only four innings, as they fell back to .500 and are struggling to keep pace with the trio of contenders ahead of them in the NL Wild Card race.

MOMENTS THAT MATTEREDMuch needed: Zimmerman nearly homered during his first at-bat in the second inning, driving the ball 406 feet with 106-mph exit velocity, as projected by Statcast™, before it was tracked down in center field by Yelich.

But Zimmerman did not miss during his next at-bat, …

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