MIAMI -- The return of Vince Velasquez provided a boost to Philadelphia on Tuesday night, but it was a homer by Maikel Franco in the eighth inning that pushed the Phillies to a 5-2 win over Miami at Marlins Park.
Franco, who was a triple shy of a cycle, blistered a one-out home run off Dustin McGowan in the eighth that snapped a tie.
"That's great, isn't it? I was really encouraged by not only his BP, but obviously the game," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He looked like he made major adjustments to his approach, so let's see where it goes from here."
Velasquez, reinstated after being on the disabled list since May 30 with a right elbow flexor strain, gave up two runs (one earned) in six innings.

"I felt really good," Velasquez said. "Right from the get-go, just pretty much pitching to contact and trying to get early outs."
• Velasquez flashes velocity in return

For the second straight game, Giancarlo Stanton went deep in the first inning. The slugger is on a home run rampage. His no-doubt shot to left-center was the four-time All-Star's third tater in two days, and eighth in July, which ties a franchise record for most in the month.
The Marlins managed just five hits and lost for the fourth time in five games on the homestand.
"We kind of got shut down offensively," Miami manager Don Mattingly said. "[Stanton] hits the home run early. … We didn't really do anything else, offensively, pretty much the rest of the night."
In the eighth inning, Ichiro Suzuki passed Rickey Henderson for sole possession of 23rd place on Major League Baseball's all-time hits list, according to Elias, with a pinch-hit single for hit No. 3,056. Next up is Craig Biggio, who is 22nd at 3,060.

Miami welcomed Adam Conley back to the rotation, after the left-hander spent more than two months at Triple-A New Orleans following a slow start. Conley showed signs of improvement, giving up two runs on eight hits in six innings.

The Marlins claimed a 2-1 lead in the third inning, scoring an unearned run after JT Riddle reached on an infield single and advanced all the way to third on Velasquez's throwing error. Riddle scored on a passed ball.
"One of the impressive things about him is when he made that mistake throwing the ball down the right-field line," Mackanin said, "he regrouped and didn't lose his composure. He settled down and pitched well."
Nick Williams made it a three-run game for the Phillies with his two-run homer off Jarlin Garcia in the ninth inning.
"You don't see many home runs hit by a left-hander hit to that part of the ballpark," Mackanin said. "He really crushed that ball. He's got well above-average power. Good to see that. He's just on a high."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Franco finds Clevelander: The Clevelander club beyond the left-field wall at Marlins Park was hopping when Franco's home run briefly stopped the party. Franco's one-out shot in the eighth inning was his third hit of the game. According to Statcast™, the home run projected at 410 feet, with an exit velocity of 102 mph.
"He had a different approach in batting practice, which was obvious to me," Mackanin said. "I was asking Matt [Stairs] about that. Really concentrating on staying above the ball and leveling off his swing, and it paid off that game."

Rupp shuts down running game: The Marlins didn't manage much all night, but they had a couple of chances on the bases cut short by catcher Cameron Rupp, who caught two runners trying to swipe second.
After Riddle scored in the third, Dee Gordon singled but was thrown out trying to steal. Stanton struck out to end the inning. In the fifth, Miami tried to make things happen again on the bases after Derek Dietrich singled. But with Riddle at the plate, the Phillies converted a double play. Velasquez fanned Riddle, and Rupp erased Dietrich on the bases as he attempted to reach second.

QUOTABLE
"It's funny. I thought in the back of my head, 'What if I throw this halfway up the backstop?' What I did wasn't too far off that. I don't look much into it. I kind of laughed at it myself." -- Conley, on his first pitch of the night, which skipped to the backstop
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
With 237 career home runs, Stanton is already the Marlins' all-time leader. The 27-year-old is now also tied for the most homers by a Marlin in the month of July. It has been done four times, with Stanton reaching the mark twice, also in 2011. The other two with eight homers in July are Jose Cabrera ('07) and Dan Uggla ('10). There wasn't much doubt about the slugger's drive off Velasquez. Statcast™ projected it at 442 feet, with an exit velocity of 111 mph.

CALL OVERTURNED
Gordon led off the first by rolling a soft grounder to second. Gordon was initially ruled safe, but the Phillies challenged the call and it was overturned. The next batter, Stanton, homered.
"I don't think it turns really any true momentum in the game," Mattingly said. "We get momentum right away with the G homer."

WHAT'S NEXT
Phillies: Rookie Nick Pivetta (2-5, 5.63 ERA) faces the Marlins for the first time as the two teams close out a three-game set at 12:10 ET on Wednesday at Marlins Park. He surrendered a career-high nine runs to the Brewers his last time out.
Marlins: Miami closes out its six-game homestand and three-game series with the Phillies at 12:10 p.m. ET on Wednesday at Marlins Park. Dan Straily, who bruised his right thumb in his last start, says he is good to go in the series finale. The right-hander is 7-4 with a 3.32 ERA in 19 starts.
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