The Philadelphia Phillies are fading quickly in the National League East race and will try to avoid a sweep Wednesday night against a team they’re still ahead of in the standings.The Phillies host the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night in the finale of a three-game set. Jake Arrieta (9-9 Enos Slaughter Jersey , 3.37 ERA) will face Nationals left-hander Gio Gonzalez (7-11, 4.35) at Citizens Bank Park.The Phillies (70-62), following a ninth inning meltdown in Tuesday’s 5-4 loss, have fallen 4 1/2 games behind the Atlanta Braves in the National League East. It ties their largest deficit in the division this season.Article continues below ...They are also 2 1/2 games out of the second wild card spot after the loss Tuesday. The Phillies are 6-13 in their last 19 games and, including the current series against Washington, have not won any of their last seven series.“It’s a super difficult loss to swallow. And we’ll be ready to come out and fight (Wednesday),” Phillies manager Gabe Kapler told reporters after Tuesday’s game. “… I don’t worry about this group at all. This group is so tenacious and so resilient, they’re going to get up (Wednesday) and we’re going to be ready to take on Gio Gonzalez. We’re already looking forward to that.”Arrieta, one of the most-seasoned Phillies’ players and a 2016 World Series champion with the Chicago Cubs, is trying to stop a personal losing streak. Philadelphia has lost all four of Arrieta’s starts in August, though the veteran right-hander has a 3.60 ERA this month and opponents are hitting .226 against him in that span.Arrieta gave up four runs on six hits, including two homers http://www.stlouiscardinalsteamshop.com/authentic-chris-carpenter-jersey , and three walks across six innings against the Toronto Blue Jays in his last start. It was Arrieta’s third straight outing in which he took a loss.Arrieta is 1-2 with a 4.89 ERA and 1.53 WHIP in 11 career starts against Washington.Gonzalez, a fellow 32-year-old, also has picked up three losses in his last three starts.Gonzalez has struggled in August with a 6.84 ERA in five starts, but he was much sharper in his last outing. Gonzalez allowed one run on seven hits and went seven innings against the New York Mets on Friday. Washington, however, was shut out 3-0.“It was just one of those games,” Gonzalez told reporters after the game. “I’m happy to turn things around, but I wish I could have been better.”Gonzalez will be making his 26th career start against the Phillies on Wednesday. He is 11-7 with a 2.69 ERA versus Philadelphia.The Nationals (67-66), who are eight games behind Atlanta, are 8-7 against the Phillies this season after taking the first two games of this series.Ryan Zimmerman has been a big part of a few of those wins, including a 3-for-4 performance with three doubles Tuesday night. Zimmerman is hitting .474 with six extra-base hits in five games against the Phillies this season.Zimmerman, though Kolten Wong Jersey , is 5-for-21 with 10 strikeouts versus Arrieta. MIAMI — Perhaps the Miami Marlins have signaled that they are not going to take it anymore. Entering Friday, the last-place Marlins had lost seven straight games to the National League East-leading Atlanta Braves.But after beating the Braves 1-0 on Friday and 3-1 on Saturday, the Marlins need a win Sunday to take a series from Atlanta for the first time this season.Overall, the Braves (72-57) lead this year’s series 13-5, but you couldn’t tell that from the past two nights. The Marlins (53-78) got great starting pitching from Dan Straily and Wei-Yin Chen — they combined for 12 scoreless innings — and also received nearly impeccable relief work.Article continues below ...Only a ninth-inning homer by shortstop Dansby Swanson on Saturday got Atlanta on the board the past two nights.“It shows you that we’re capable of beating a first-place team,” Straily said. “It really does a lot of good for the morale of our clubhouse.”On Sunday, the Marlins will start 22-year-old rookie right-hander Pablo Lopez (2-3, 4.42 ERA). The native of Venezuela began the season at Double-A Jacksonville and received a promotion to Triple-A New Orleans before beating the New York Mets 5-2 on June 30 in his major-league debut.Lopez is 0-1 with an 8.44 ERA in his one appearance against the Braves on Aug. 13. He will face Braves right-hander Kevin Gausman (8-9, 3.99 ERA), a former LSU pitcher who was the fourth overall pick in the 2012 draft by the Baltimore Orioles.Gausman is 3-1 with a 2.00 ERA in four starts since the Braves acquired him from the Orioles on July 31. He has allowed just three runs in his past 22 innings.Braves pitchers have gone at least eight innings just four times this season — twice by Gausman, who has the ability to be a staff ace.Gausman will face a Marlins lineup that lacks big names but can surprise pitchers on occasion.Case in point is rookie third baseman Brian Anderson, who has also played right field this year.Anderson hit his 10th homer of the season on Saturday and has been a standout despite being lost in the giant shadows cast by fellow rookies Ronald Acuna of the Atlanta Braves and Juan Soto of the Washington Nationals.Anderson’s home run was pulled 415 feet to left field. The exit velocity was clocked at 106 mph.Miami also got a triple and a run scored Saturday from Rafael Ortega Trevor Rosenthal Jersey , a 27-year-old from Venezuela who can best be described as a career minor-leaguer. He entered the month with just 68 games of major-league experience but now is starting for the Marlins in right field. Miami also starts a rookie in center field (Magneuris Sierra), a rookie in left field (Austin Dean), rookie Anderson at third and rookie Lopez on the mound.In addition, the shortstop, JT Riddle, is in his second year in the majors and started this season in the minors.The Braves have a much better lineup on paper with Acuna (.930 OPS) in left field, Freddie Freeman (.920 OPS) at first base and Nick Markakis (.852 OPS) in right field. Right now, though, the Braves are slumping.“You hit a roadblock sometimes in baseball,” Braves pitcher Mike Foltynewicz told the ajc.com. “It’s unfortunate, but that’s why you play 162.”