Miami Marlins (76-82) at Washington Nationals (93-65), 1:05 & 7:05 p.m. (ET)
Game 2: Miami - Andrew Heaney (0-3, 5.33) Washington - Taylor Hill (0-0, 4.15)
(SportsNetwork.com) - The Washington Nationals have two chances on Friday to secure home-field advantage throughout the National League playoffs.
They might not need either.
The Nats will wrap up a stretch of four games in two days with a doubleheader against the Miami Marlins to kick off a four-game series.
Washington split a doubleheader on Thursday with the New York Mets, a situation made necessary due to Wednesday night's rainout and the fact that the Nats are battling the Los Angeles Dodgers for the best record in the league.
In winning the nightcap with the Mets, the Nationals moved 2 1/2 games ahead of the Dodgers in the standings and have a magic number of one to clinch the best record. They would do so with a victory in either game today or a loss tonight by Los Angeles to the Colorado Rockies.
Doug Fister gets the first shot at securing home field as he starts the first game for Washington. The right-hander has won three straight starts to set a new career high in victories, surpassing the 14 he won with Detroit last season.
Fister extended his run with a 3-2 win over Miami on Friday. He yielded two runs on five hits and two walks over 6 2/3 innings, retiring 10 of the final 12 batters faced to get to 15-6 on the year with a 2.55 earned run average.
"Doug was really good tonight," Nationals manager Matt Williams said.
The 30-year-old is 1-0 with a 1.72 ERA in three lifetime encounters with the Marlins, including two starts.
Right-hander Taylor Hill will make the first start of his career in the second game and just his third major league appearance. The 25-year-old pitched twice in relief for the Nats back in late June and was a solid 11-7 with a 2.81 ERA in 25 games (24 starts) this season at Triple-A Syracuse.
The Marlins concluded a 2-5 homestand on Thursday with a victory over the Philadelphia Phillies to win the three-game set. Casey McGehee drove in two runs with a double in the seventh frame for a 6-4 win.
"It was a good way to end the season at home," said McGehee. "It leaves a good taste in your mouth to win your final home series."
In Friday's doubleheader, the Marlins will start a pair of pitchers who could be key parts of next season's rotation.
Right-hander Jarred Cosart makes his 10th start since being acquired from the Houston Astros and the 24-year-old is 4-3 with a 2.29 ERA since the trade. He has not allowed more than three runs in each of his past eight starts since yielding four runs to lose his Marlins debut on Aug. 1.
Cosart is coming off a 3-2 loss to the Nationals on Saturday, charged with three runs on nine hits and two walks over 6 1/3 innings. He is 0-1 with a 3.65 ERA in two starts versus the Nats.
"He made some great pitches," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said of Cosart. "He's done a nice job."
Top left-handed prospect Andrew Heaney will get the call in the nightcap for his fourth career start and first since July 5.
Heaney, the ninth overall pick of the 2012 draft, is still seeking his first major league win, having gone 0-3 with a 5.33 ERA in six total appearances. He faced Washington in relief last Sunday and logged three scoreless innings of one-hit ball.
"He's done a good job," Redmond said on Miami's website. "I think it's the right time in the last couple games of the season to get him in there, especially having a doubleheader. It worked that the last time that he pitched was the three innings. He's available for that day. We'll let him go out there and let him pitch and get a start."
The Nationals swept a four-game set in Miami last weekend and have won 10 of the 15 meetings this season.