Pirates 3, Marlins 2
Brad Lincoln pitched six strong innings and Pedro Alvarez doubled in the go-ahead run as visiting Pittsburgh ended its eight-game losing streak against Miami.
Rod Barajas belted a solo home run and Andrew McCutchen had an RBI and scored a run as the Pirates won their third straight contest to move within one game of .500 (17-18).
Hanley Ramirez hit his seventh homer for the Marlins, who lost for only the third time in 11 games and fell to Pittsburgh for the first time since Oct. 1, 2010.
Lincoln (3-0), making his first start of the season, allowed two runs on four hits in six innings. He threw 80 pitches and retired the final seven batters he faced.
Pirates reliever Jason Grilli escaped a first-and-third, one-out situation in the eighth by retiring Logan Morrison and Giancarlo Stanton before Joel Hanrahan pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save.
Marlins starter Anibal Sanchez (2-1) gave up three runs on six hits in seven innings. He struck out five and walked one.
Miami tied it at 2-2 in the fourth when Morrison doubled and scored on Emilio Bonifacio's two-out single off Lincoln, but Pittsburgh answered in the sixth when Alvarez doubled home McCutchen for a 3-2 lead.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Pittsburgh had been outscored 48-12 during its eight-game losing streak versus the Marlins. ... Bonifacio extended his club record with his major league-leading 18th stolen base in 18 attempts in the fourth. Miami led the majors in steals with 38 entering Monday's game. ... Lincoln carried an 0.64 ERA in seven relief appearances into Monday's start. His longest outing had been three innings on two occasions. ... Sanchez pitched seven innings for the fifth consecutive outing, yielding 10 runs in that span. ... Barajas' homer was his fourth hit in eight at-bats against Sanchez. ... Marlins shortstop Jose Reyes extended his hitting streak to five games.