Stanton's two blasts propel Marlins in desert

PHOENIX -- Through five innings Monday, the Marlins were hitless off D-backs starter Patrick Corbin, recording just a handful of loud outs and never really making the southpaw sweat.

But as one-sided as the game appeared to be for the vast majority of the night, Miami never let the game get out of reach, giving the club -- and its star player -- a chance to come back.

The Marlins only tallied three hits Monday, but they made each one count as Giancarlo Stanton smacked two home runs, one to tie the game in the sixth and one to win it in the ninth, sending Miami to its sixth win in its last nine games with a dramatic 3-2 victory over the D-backs at Chase Field.

"It's crazy how baseball is, isn't it?" said Stanton.

Crazy indeed.

"We didn't get a whole lot going offensively, but we kept it close," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "We gave ourselves an opportunity to get a big hit and Stanton did it tonight. It was a big win for us."

Monday marked just the seventh game Stanton has played since coming off the disabled list after missing the entire month of May with a hamstring injury. The outfielder struggled mightily in April, batting .227, but since returning to the lineup he has hit .392 with four homers and 10 RBIs.

"He's going up there right now with a ton of confidence," Redmond said. "It's nice to see him like that. Every time he goes up there, you feel like there's a chance he's going to do something big."

Stanton's game-winner in the ninth on Monday came off a familiar face to the Marlins. Heath Bell, who Miami signed to a three-year, $27 million contract before the 2012 season only to trade him to Arizona after a disastrous first year, served up the opposite-field homer on a 95-mph fastball up in the zone.

"I just tried to throw him a pitch he couldn't get to and he got to it," Bell said. "Giancarlo Stanton is a great hitter, he's got incredible pop and any time he makes contact, the ball's going to go somewhere."

Trailing by two in the sixth and still searching for their first hit of the night, Juan Pierre broke up Corbin's no-hit bid with an opposite-field bloop single, extending his hitting streak to 13 games. Two batters later, Stanton picked on a 2-0 fastball over the plate and deposited it deep into the left-field stands to tie the game.

"That's the one guy that [D-backs manager Kirk Gibson] said might hurt us and the one guy to maybe pitch around a little bit," Corbin said. "I said to myself before that pitch I was going to make sure it was a ball, but I kind of left it there and he put a good swing on it."

Including Monday's bounty, Stanton now has an astonishing 25 homers and 50 RBIs in 48 career games playing in National League West parks. The 23-year-old's second long ball in the ninth marked the 100th of his career.

"That was really cool, I didn't know it until after the game when Red [Redmond] announced it and gave me the ball," Stanton said. "I knew I needed seven to start the season, but I lost track."

Making his fourth start of the year, Marlins right-hander Jacob Turner played with fire for much of his outing, but wiggled off the hook several times to keep Miami within striking distance. The 22-year-old finished his evening tossing five frames and allowing two runs on six hits and three walks.

"I didn't feel like I had my best stuff out there, but I was able to battle through some jams I got myself into," Turner said. "I think you know pretty early if everything is clicking or not, and when it's not, you just have to grind through it and make pitches when you need to."

Turner certainly accomplished that feat. The righty stranded four runners in the first two innings thanks in large part to a pair of stellar defensive plays by shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria, one snagging a short hop off a line drive and the other ranging up the middle and throwing out the speedy Gerardo Parra to save a run.

Following a Paul Goldschmidt solo homer in the third, Turner again escaped danger unscathed in the fourth, retiring two consecutive batters with a runner on third and one out. An inning later, however, he surrendered a second run on a Goldschmidt RBI single.

"Unfortunately, my pitch count was elevated quicky, but being able to limit them to two runs with all the baserunners they had was key for us," Turner said.

Once Turner left the game and Stanton delivered his first long ball, Dan Jennings, Ryan Webb and Mike Dunn each worked in relief and kept the game tied before Stanton's heroics in the ninth. Steve Cishek pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 10th save.

The win gave the Marlins their third victory over a first-place team in the last four days after they took two of three from the Cardinals in Miami.

"There's no doubt the first couple months were a rough go, but I told them we'd be better off for it," Redmond said. "I know it's tough for guys to think like that, but it's good to see guys going out there and having some success. We played well."