Daylen Lile Homers Twice as Nationals Rally Past Marlins 6-3

Daylen Lile continued his torrid stretch at the plate Monday night, homering twice and driving in four runs as the Washington Nationals rallied past the Miami Marlins 6-3.

Lile, who was named National League Player of the Week earlier Monday, went 3 for 3 and delivered the go-ahead blow in the seventh inning. The second-year outfielder has now hit five home runs over his past eight games, bringing his season total to 20.

The loss was a costly one for Miami. The Marlins dropped three of four games to Washington and fell four games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks in the race for the final National League wild-card spot.

Washington trailed 3-2 entering the fifth before Lile tied the game with his first homer of the night. He turned on a 2-2 slider from Miami starter Ryan Gusto and sent it 406 feet to left-center field.

The homer was significant for another reason: It was Lile’s first opposite-field home run in the majors.

The 23-year-old outfielder wasn’t finished. After Miami regained its footing, Lile came through again in the seventh. Josh Ekness replaced Tyler Zuber with one out and a runner on third, and just two pitches later, Lile launched his second homer of the night to put Washington ahead 4-3.

The Nationals added two more runs in the inning, with Brady House delivering an RBI single to extend the lead to 6-3. House finished 2 for 4 with an RBI, while Andrew Pinckney and Keibert Ruiz also collected two hits apiece as Washington’s offense produced enough late-game damage to secure the victory.

Miami had jumped out to a 3-0 lead earlier in the game. Heriberto Hernández scored on a wild pitch from Luis Perales, and Kyle Stowers followed with a two-run single to give the Marlins their early advantage.

Gusto kept Washington off the scoreboard for much of his outing, allowing one run and four hits over 4⅓ innings. The Nationals’ pitching staff then kept the Marlins from completing their comeback.

Matt Waldron earned the win after throwing three scoreless innings while allowing five hits. He was replaced in the eighth with Washington holding a narrow three-run advantage.

That set up one of the biggest moments of the game. With the bases loaded and nobody out in the eighth, Erik Tolman entered in relief of Waldron and immediately faced a major test. Tolman struck out Stowers before inducing Leo Jiménez to ground into a double play, escaping the inning without allowing a run.

Tolman then returned for the ninth and slammed the door, striking out the side to earn his first major league save. For Washington, it was a comeback victory fueled by a breakout performance from Lile, who has rapidly become one of the hottest hitters in baseball.

For Miami, however, the defeat represented another missed opportunity in an increasingly tight postseason race. The Marlins now find themselves four games behind Arizona for the final NL wild-card position with the margin for error shrinking.

The Nationals, meanwhile, walked away with the series victory and another reminder that Lile’s powerful recent surge has made him one of the most dangerous bats in their lineup.