By Joe Capozzi

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

PITTSBURGH — Watching the Marlins coast to a 13-4 victory over the Pirates on Friday night, Jack McKeon couldn’t remember the last time he had so much fun managing in Pittsburgh.

In his last stint as Marlins manager, McKeon won just once in nine games at PNC Park from 2003-05. In his first game back Friday night, the Marlins put up an offensive showing that might have impressed the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Marlins set a franchise record with 10 hits during a nine-run third inning on their way to a season-high 22 hits.

“I’m sure the Yankees and Red Sox do it once a week, but it was good to see. It was a lot of fun,’ said Logan Morrison, who had his first career four-hit game.

Morrison hit a two-run home run and drove in three runs. Omar Infante hit two homers and went 3-for-6 with five RBI. Eleven Marlins players had at least one hit.

The Marlins did their biggest damage in that third inning. They sent 14 men to the plate (tying a club record) and scored nine runs against three Pirates pitchers. The franchise record is 10 runs in an inning – in the eighth inning July 7, 2009, at Arizona.

“We just kept saying, ‘Keep going. Keep the line moving.’ We’ve never done that before. Everybody was hitting. It was just one of those nights,” McKeon said.

“I wish we could divide those hits up for the rest of the trip. They came out swinging, I’ll tell you that.’

The Marlins had two homers in the inning. Infante hit a three-run home run on a ball that bounced off left fielder Alex Presley’s glove and into the stands. Morrison smashed a two-run shot to right field.

“He started us off,’ McKeon said of Infante, who also homered in the first inning. “He lit the fire. When he hit the three-run home run (in the third), I thought we were in pretty good shape.’

Morrison and Bryan Petersen collected two hits apiece in the third inning.

The Marlins led 13-2 after five innings but collected just two hits over the final four frames.

It was still more than enough run support for starting pitcher Ricky Nolasco, who won for the first time since Aug. 12, snapping a streak of four starts without a win.

There was a downside to the victory, as Mike Stanton and Jose Lopez both left the game with tight hamstrings after hitting singles. Stanton was in the starting lineup Friday for the first time since last Saturday, when he left with a tight hamstring.

“That’s the speed I have right now,’ Stanton said. “It’s not very fast, but I didn’t aggravate it at all.’

He wasn’t sure whether he would play Saturday night. But Morrison said he will be back, even though he banged up his right leg making a sliding catch in the eighth inning.

Morrison collided with the wall along the left-field line. He limped back to his position and then lay back on the grass while trainer Sean Cunningham examined his leg. Morrison stayed in the game.

Nolasco (10-10) allowed three runs in six innings, throwing 103 pitches. The victory gave him four straight seasons with double-digit win totals. He also helped himself at the plate by going 2-for-4 with an RBI.

When the Pirates scored a run on three hits in the second inning, it ended a string of 22 scoreless innings for Nolasco against Pittsburgh.

The Marlins have outscored the Pirates 34-9 while winning all four games in the series so far this year. The Marlins swept the Pirates at Sun Life Stadium in April under then-manager Edwin Rodriguez.

NOTEWORTHY

The Marlins set franchise records for runs (20) and hits (25) in a game July 1, 2003, against the Atlanta Braves. … Friday marked the 16th time in franchise history the Marlins have had 20 or more hits in a game. The last time was July 4, 2008, when they had 22 hits in an 18-17 loss to the Colorado Rockies.

Omar Infante and Logan Morrison both homered during a nine-run third inning and the Florida Marlins pounded out 22 hits in a 13-4 rout of the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night.

Infante drove in five runs, adding a solo shot in the first while Morrison had four hits and three RBIs. The Marlins had a club record 10 hits in the third. Morrison and Bryan Petersen each had two hits in the third as Florida broke the record of nine, which had been done four times, most recently on Sept. 17, 2001 at Montreal.

Infante got an assist on his three-run homer in the third when it bounced off the glove of left fielder Alex Presley, who was on the warning track, and into the left-field bleachers.

Petersen, Emilio Bonifacio, Gaby Sanchez, Donnie Murphy, John Buck and winning pitcher Ricky Nolasco (10-10) all finished with two hits for the Marlins.

Ross Ohlendorf (0-2) had his string of winless starts reach 15 as he was rocked for six runs on 10 hits in two plus innings. He needed 54 pitches to record six outs.

Pedro Ciriaco had two hits and two RBIs for the Pirates and Presley and Ryan Doumit also had two hits each.

Nolasco’s streak of 22 scoreless innings against the Pirates ended in the second inning when Doumit doubled and scored on Ciriaco’s single to draw Pittsburgh within 2-1. Florida then countered with its big third to put the game away.

Florida’s third inning did not come without a downside, though, as both right fielder Mike Stanton and first baseman Jose Lopez suffered strained right hamstrings while running out hits and were forced to leave the game. Stanton, who has been bothered by hamstring stiffness since spring training, was making his first start since Sept. 3.

Morrison, the left fielder, was shaken up when he slid into the side wall to catch Garrett Jones’ fly ball in the eighth inning but stayed in the game.

Ohlendorf has not won since July 2, 2010 against Philadelphia and is tied with Cincinnati’s Dontrelle Willis for the longest active winless streak. Ohlendorf has been limited to six starts this season because of shoulder problems.

Florida took a 2-0 lead against Ohlendorf as Infante hit a solo home run down the left-field line in the first and doubled home Nolasco, who had singled, in the second.

The Marlins’ big third inning was started by Stanton, who singled. Murphy pinch ran, went to third on Morrison’s double and scored on a throwing error by right fielder Ryan Ludwick.

Lopez, Buck, Petersen and Nolasco followed with consecutive singles, with Lopez’s and Nolasco’s driving in runs. Bonifacio then hit a sacrifice fly, Infante hit his defense-aided three-run blast and Morrison added his his two-run homer.

Florida made it 13-1 in the fifth as Murphy tripled and scored on Morrison’s single before Buck hit a run-scoring single.

Pittsburgh’s’ Pedro Alvarez tripled and scored on a single by Presley in the fifth, Andrew McCutchen doubled and came home on Derrek Lee’s single in the sixth and Ciriaco hit an RBI triple in the eighth.

Notes: Florida CF Mike Cameron missed his second straight game with tightness in his right hamstring and said he did not anticipate returning to the lineup any time soon. Pittsburgh RHP Jeff Karstens will return to the rotation Tuesday against St. Louis after missing two starts because of shoulder fatigue. Pirates LHP Jeff Locke will make his major-league debut Saturday night when he faces RHP Anibal Sanchez (7-7, 3.83) in the middle game of the three-game series. Locke, 23, was a combined 8-10 with a 3.70 ERA in 28 games with Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis. Though Sanchez has struck out a career-high 173 batters in 171 1-3 innings this season, he has only one win in his last 15 starts. Five Pittsburgh prospects have joined the club for the weekend but won’t be placed on the active roster: Indianapolis LHP Justin Wilson, 1B Matt Hague and OF Gorkys Hernandez and Altoona RHPs Kyle McPherson and Bryan Morris.

McCutchen hit his 21st and 22nd home runs, Jason Jaramillo singled home the go-ahead run in the eighth and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Astros 5-4 on Wednesday night, last-place Houston’s fifth loss in six games.

“That,” said Astros manager Brad Mills said, “was our game to win. We’ve had a few tough ones to lose, and that definitely is one of them.”

Houston hit three home runs, including consecutive shots by Carlos Lee and Matt Downs in the first inning that gave them the first of two three-run leads.

Clint Barmes also homered, but Happ gave up both of McCutchen’s shots, the second of which coming with two men on in the fourth to tie the game at 4.

Making his third start since a three-week stint in the minors during August, Happ gave up four runs on five hits and four walks in five innings. He tied a season high with eight strikeouts.

“We have seen him fight through it before,” Mills said of Happ. “He was able to make a lot of pitches when he needed, but obviously one guy hurt him.”

Happ had allowed one earned run in his two previous starts since bring promoted back to the majors. He also hadn’t allowed more than three runs in any of his previous seven career starts against the Pirates, including tossing seven shutout innings against them in his most recent outing Aug. 31.

But McCutchen tagged him for two first-pitch homers Wednesday.

“He was aggressive, obviously, today,” Happ said. “Kind of a change from the last time we played in our home series, but he is a tough out.”

Clint Hurdle’ 600th as a manager in the majors was earned when Jaramillo’s grounder through the hole at second drove in pinch-runner Chase d’Arnaud.

“I was just looking for a good pitch out over the plate,” said Jaramillo, who was on Pittsburgh’s opening day roster but spent most of the season in Triple-A or injured. “I know in that situation you hear that a lot, but honestly, I was just trying to stay as quiet as possible, and it worked out. I got a pitch out over the plate and just put a good swing on it.”

The Pirates’ bullpen combined for 5 2-3 innings of scoreless relief, with Tony Watson (2-2) getting the final out in the eighth and Joel Hanrahan working a perfect ninth for his 36th save in 39 opportunities.

Garrett Jones and Ryan Doumit hit consecutive pinch-hit singles with one out in the bottom of the eighth off Wilton Lopez (2-6). Jaramillo then produced the only run of the game that did not come on a home run.

Lee and Downs hit consecutive homers off Brian Burres in the first, the second time this season the Astros hit back-to-back shots.

Lee has 15 homers, but four have come in his past 14 games. Downs made it two Burres pitches, two home runs to left, when his line drive struck the foul pole.

“We went up early,” said Downs, “but there was a lot of game left when we went up.

“When you go up early, there’s a lot of game left to fight back, so it’s just one of those nights.”

Barmes 10th homer was a solo shot in the fourth.

McCutchen has four career multihomer games, two this season. McCutchen has a career-high 22 home runs.

“You don’t want to not ready until after the first pitch; you want to be ready every single pitch,” McCutchen said. “That’s my thought process — be ready. And (Happ) grooved me a couple fastballs, and I was able to hit them out.”

Making his second start since being promoted from Triple-A, Burres allowed four runs on seven hits in 3 2-3 innings.

“I had some command issues, pretty much, with all the pitches,” Burres said. “And I left some out over the fat part of the plate, and they got hit pretty hard.”

NOTES: Hurdle, who kept the ball from his milestone victory, said LHP Jeff Locke will make his major league debut when he starts Saturday’s game against Florida. RHP Charlie Morton will, in effect, have his turn in the rotation skipped as he deals with late-season fatigue. Hurdle also said the team could, at times, go with a six-man rotation the rest of the season. … Pittsburgh RHP Jared Hughes made his major league debut, allowing one hit in 1 1-3 scoreless innings. … Astros RHP Bud Norris has 34 strikeouts in 29 1-3 innings over his past five outings. He starts Friday in Washington. … The Pirates begin a three-game series against the Marlins on Friday. Pittsburgh was swept in Florida in April, and was shut out in two of the three defeats.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

PITTSBURGH – Joey Votto hit his 21st homer of the season and later scored the game-winning run in the top of the ninth inning to lead the Cincinnati Reds past the Pittsburgh Pirates 11-8 on Friday night.

Brandon Phillips went 3 for 5 with a home run and four RBIs for Cincinnati, which let a four-run lead slip away. Ryan Hanigan added a solo shot and drove in two insurance runs in the ninth as the Reds beat the Pirates for just the third time in 10 tries this season.

Travis Wood (6-5) picked up the win in relief, getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth when center fielder Drew Stubbs threw out Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen, who attempted to score from third on a shallow fly by Ryan Ludwick. Francisco Cordero pitched a perfect ninth inning to collect his 25th save.

Pittsburgh closer Joel Hanrahan (0-2) took the loss, giving up three runs while getting just one out in the ninth after entering with the score tied.

Brandon Wood broke out of a lengthy slump, going 2 for 3 with three RBIs for Pittsburgh. McCutchen, Garrett Jones, Jose Tabata and Ronny Cedeno also had two hits apiece for the Pirates but Pittsburgh ran itself out of a chance to take the lead in the eighth and Cincinnati made them pay for it in the ninth.

Hanrahan, in the midst of a dominant year, issued a rare leadoff walk to Votto to start the inning. Votto moved to third on a one-out single by Dave Sappelt. Stubbs followed with a chopper to second. Pittsburgh second baseman Neil Walker tried to get Votto at the plate but the ball deflected off catcher Ryan Doumit’s glove. Votto slapped the plate for emphasis and Sappelt and Stubbs both moved up a base as the ball rolled to the backstop.

Hanigan followed with a sharp single up the middle to provide the final margin and chase Hanrahan, who stalked to the dugout after the worst outing of his All-Star season.

Cincinnati’s late surge spoiled a furious rally by the Pirates, who trailed 6-2 after Phillips drilled a three-run homer to left in the fifth.

Pittsburgh started chopping away after manager Clint Hurdle was ejected for the third time this season for arguing with home plate umpire Brian Knight moments after Jones was called out on strikes.

Hurdle, who was well out of eyesight in the dugout when Knight tossed him, appeared to be a little stunned by the early exit. He walked onto the field and engaged in an animated discussion with Knight before crew chief Jerry Layne came in to calm things down.

Hurdle’s passionate plea seemed to spark his club as the Pirates slowly got back in it as Cincinnati’s bullpen faltered following starter Homer Bailey.

Bailey gave up three runs and six hits in five innings, walking three and striking out six. He needed 96 pitches to get 15 outs but the Reds appeared to have things well in hand with a 6-3 lead.

Pittsburgh, however, kept chipping away but got too greedy in the eighth.

The Pirates eventually tied the game at 8-all on a single by McCutchen off Cincinnati’s Nick Masset. Jones, not exactly the fleetest runner, was out by a good 10 feet trying to score from second on the play. Pittsburgh kept the pressure on, however, loading the bases with one out.

Wood came on and induced Ludwick to hit a fly ball to shallow center that Stubbs ran down and his perfect throw to Hanigan at the plate easily beat the speedy McCutchen to keep the score tied and give Cincinnati the boost it needed to put the Pirates away.

Pittsburgh’s rally allowed Kevin Correia to avoid picking up his first-ever loss against the Reds as a starter. Still, he was far from sharp, giving up six runs and eight hits — including three home runs — in six innings, walking one and striking out one to continue his Jekyll-and-Hyde season.

Correia is among the best starters in the baseball on the road. His 10 victories away from home lead the majors.

Things don’t go quite so well when he starts the day waking up in his own bed. His ERA rose to 7.75 in his 12 games on the hill at the quirky ballpark along the Allegheny River.

NOTES: The game started after a 41-minute rain delay. … Wood snapped an 0-for-18 slump with a single to lead off the sixth. … The series continues on Saturday. Charlie Morton (9-6, 3.43 ERA) gets the start for Pittsburgh. Morton is 3-0 with a 0.39 ERA against the Reds this year. Dontrelle Willis (0-3, 4.08) starts for the Reds. Willis left his last start against San Diego with a sore left forearm but was OK’d to pitch after an MRI revealed no significant injury.

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Joey Votto hit his 21st homer of the season and later scored the game-winning run as the Reds beat the Pirates for just the third time in 10 tries this season.

Brandon Phillips went 3 for 5 with a home run and four RBIs for Cincinnati. Ryan Hanigan added a solo shot and drove in two insurance runs in the ninth off Hanrahan (0-2).

“The way it kept going back and forth, it was like a tennis match out there,” Phillips said. “I’m just glad we came out on top.”

It was a wild end to an eventful day for Cincinnati. Storms knocked out the electricity at the team’s hotel on Thursday night, rattling the normally unflappable Phillips.

“It was crazy when we first got in,” Phillips said. “You’re going to a hotel where you have no AC and no lights. I could have sworn somebody was in my room at one point. I’m not going to lie to you, I was scared.”

Travis Wood (6-5) picked up the win in relief, getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth when center fielder Drew Stubbs threw out Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen, who attempted to score from third on a shallow fly by Ryan Ludwick.

“’’Stubby saved the game,” Cincinnati manager Dusty Baker said. “That’s one of best center fielders around right there. He gets good reads and breaks on balls and he gunned down one of the quickest men in this league.”

Francisco Cordero pitched a perfect ninth inning to collect his 25th save.

Brandon Wood broke out of a lengthy slump, going 2 for 3 with three RBIs for Pittsburgh. McCutchen, Garrett Jones, Jose Tabata and Ronny Cedeno also had two hits apiece for the Pirates but Pittsburgh made outs at the plate twice in the eighth.

“We kept fighting, we kept scratching and clawing,” said Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle, who was ejected in the fifth for arguing balls and strikes. “We kept finding a way to get back in it to tie it up. We were one punch away from creating some serious separation.”

Hanrahan, in the midst of a dominant year, issued a rare leadoff walk to Votto to start the inning. Votto moved to third on a one-out single by Dave Sappelt. Stubbs followed with a chopper to second. Pittsburgh second baseman Neil Walker tried to get Votto at the plate but the ball deflected off catcher Ryan Doumit’s glove. Votto slapped the plate for emphasis and Sappelt and Stubbs both moved up a base as the ball rolled to the backstop.

“It just boils down to a leadoff walk right there,” Hanrahan said. “You can’t have that in a situation like that. You’ve got to get the first out and go from there.”

Hanigan followed with a sharp single up the middle to provide the final margin and chase Hanrahan, who stalked to the dugout after the worst outing of his All-Star season.

MILWAUKEE — Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder hit back-to-back homers and Zack Greinke remained perfect at Miller Park to lift the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers to a 7-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night.

Braun and Fielder homered in the eighth after the Pirates had chased Greinke (11-4) with two runs earlier in the inning. Milwaukee won its 10th straight at Miller Park against Pittsburgh and is a major league best 42-15 at home this year.

The 2009 AL Cy Young winner struck out nine and retired 11 straight at one point as Milwaukee maintained its four-game lead over St. Louis in the division race.

Milwaukee built a 4-0 lead off Paul Maholm (6-13) before the Pirates rallied, only to have Braun and Fielder answer right back.

The Pirates are 11 games back in the NL Central and continue their skid out of contention with their 14th loss in 17 games. Pittsburgh finally figured out Greinke with run-scoring doubles by Michael McKenry and Andrew McCutchen in the eighth.

But Braun, who also hit a sacrifice fly in the fifth, led off the bottom of the inning with a homer and Fielder hit another fastball from Joe Beimel to right field for his 28th home run the season.

Jonathan Lucroy added a two-out RBI single off Jose Veras and reliever Francisco Rodriguez followed with his first career hit in his second at-bat on an infield single that caused the Brewers bullpen to celebrate wildly.

It may cost Milwaukee.

Rodriguez warmed up for the ninth, but left after talking to trainer Roger Caplinger. The Brewers said Rodriguez exited with a right leg cramp, but he was stretching his left leg after he awkwardly stepped on the bag to beat Garrett Jones to first for his hit.

Greinke is 8-0 with a 3.36 ERA in 10 starts in Milwaukee this year. He allowed a first-inning single to Xavier Paul before retiring 11 straight — including five consecutive strikeouts to finish two short of the franchise record set by Steve Woodard in 1999.

After allowing three hits in the first seven innings, Greinke began to tire in the eighth and left with two outs after McCutchen’s double. Rodriguez got the final out before Braun and Fielder’s fireworks and then was later forced to hit.

Milwaukee is now 14-2 in a stretch of 16 straight games against NL Central opponents after the Pirates and Cardinals led the division just over two weeks ago.

Josh Wilson singled in Milwaukee’s first run in the second. The veteran infielder is one of three Brewers filling in for the injured Rickie Weeks. Weeks is expected to miss two to four more weeks with a badly sprained left ankle, even though the Brewers are 12-2 without the All-Star second baseman in the lineup.

Casey McGehee tripled in two more in the third before Braun’s sacrifice gave Milwaukee a 4-0 lead and put the Brewers on their way to their 34th home win in the last 37 games against the Pirates.

Notes: Maholm lost his fourth straight. … The Pirates activated RHP Ross Ohlendorf from the 60-day disabled list and immediately optioned him to Triple-A Indianapolis. Ohlendorf has been out since April with a strained shoulder. … Brewers RHP Marco Estrada (2-8, 4.80 ERA) faces RHP Kevin Correia (12-10, 4.78) in Saturday’s game. Estrada is starting after LHP Chris Narveson was placed on the 15-day DL after cutting his thumb and needing eight stitches. … Narveson said he hopes he can resume throwing in the next few days and return as soon as he can on Aug. 22.