Maybin gets four hits, helps Marlins stop surging Phillies

MIAMI -- The Philadelphia Phillies' winning streak was no match for the surging Florida Marlins and their .818 hitter, newcomer Cameron Maybin. And it cost them first place in the NL East.

The rookie had four singles for the second straight game, tied a franchise record by reaching base in 10 consecutive plate appearances and helped the Marlins beat the Phillies 14-8 on Friday night.

"He looks like he has been in the league 10 years," teammate Alfredo Amezaga said.

The result snapped the Phillies' seven-game winning streak, their longest this season, and knocked them out of first place in the NL East as the New York Mets took a half-game lead over Philadelphia by beating Atlanta 9-5.

The Marlins, scrambling to climb into the playoff race with nine games left, tied a franchise record with their ninth consecutive win. They are 4 1/2 games behind Philadelphia in the wild-card race.

"They can still win," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "Stranger things have happened. It's up to us to make sure we get them."

The Phillies' Brett Myers (10-12), who pitched a two-hitter in his last start, gave up five runs in his first 17 pitches before retiring a batter. He departed with no outs in the fifth and allowed a career-high 10 runs.

Myers' biggest problem was Maybin, recalled from the minors on Tuesday. One of the top prospects in the trade that sent Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to Detroit, Maybin singled in his first four at-bats to hike his average to .900 (9-for-10).

He received a standing ovation from the crowd of 20,202 after he popped out in the eighth, ending a streak of eight consecutive hits to tie another franchise record.

"He made an out -- how about that?" manager Fredi Gonzalez said.

Maybin led off all three innings in which Florida scored, stole two bases, scored three runs and finished the night batting .818.

"It's nice," Maybin said. "Hopefully I can come out and tomorrow we can do the same and get another win."

Teammate Mike Jacobs drove in four runs, Dan Uggla hit his 31st home run for Florida, Jorge Cantu added his 29th and Amezaga drove in three runs with his third homer.

The run total allowed by the Phillies was their season high. The Marlins went 7-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

"We can score on them, but we have trouble holding them," said Manuel, whose team is 6-10 against Florida this year.

Ryan Howard briefly put Philadelphia ahead with a two-run homer in the fifth, his 46th. Shane Victorino hit his 13th homer and Gregg Dobbs hit his ninth.

Josh Johnson (6-1) won despite giving up a season-high six runs, five earned, in five innings.

The matchup between baseball's two hottest teams included a bit of gamesmanship. Manuel complained early in the game that the Marlins' base coaches were straying from their boxes, and he was concerned they might steal signs.

The Marlins then complained about a tattoo on Myers' left arm.

"They got upset because they thought I was nitpicking," Manuel said.

The umpires told Myers to cover the tattoo. He put on long sleeves but said the clothing switch didn't bother him.

The lead changed hands for the third and final time when Florida scored six runs in the fifth to go ahead 11-6. Maybin led off with a single, stole second and came home on Cantu's double. Uggla's bases-loaded single scored a run to put the Marlins up 7-6 and end Myers' night.

"One of those days," Myers said. "Everything I threw up there, they hit. They're really confident right now. They don't believe anybody can stop them."

Game notes
Florida SS Hanley Ramirez (shoulder) missed his second straight game but may play this weekend. ... The Marlins have won nine consecutive games four other times, most recently Aug. 20-29, 2006. They did not do it either year they won the World Series. ... Florida (81-72) climbed nine games above .500 for the first time since May 27. ... Myers fell to 3-8 on the road with an ERA of 6.21. ... The Phils' Jayson Werth struck out four times.