Philadelphia @ Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Jun 16, 2011 ) Florida 0, Philadelphia 3

THE STORY: The Florida Marlins are still in last place in the National League East, and they have a long way to go to catch the Philadelphia Phillies, but they'll try to chip away toward closing the gap on the best team in baseball by continuing their recent hot streak when the teams begin a three-game series Monday at Sun Life Stadium.

TV: 6:10 p.m ET, CSN Philadelphia, Fox Sports Florida

PITCHING MATCHUP: Phillies RH Vance Worley (3-1, 2.57 ERA) vs. Marlins RH Ricky Nolasco (5-4, 4.08 ERA)

The Phillies have won all three of Worley's starts since he was recalled from the minors June 18, and he picked up his first win since May 4, when he held the Red Sox to one run over seven innings Wednesday. He was unfortunate not to win before that — he has a 1.00 ERA in 18 innings since returning to the big leagues and took a no-hitter into the sixth on June 24 against Oakland. Worley made a relief appearance against the Marlins on May 9, allowing one run in three innings, on a home run by Gaby Sanchez.

Nolasco is coming off his best outing of the year, a five-hit shutout in a 3-0 win at Oakland on Wednesday. The win snapped a streak of four straight losses dating back to a win across the bay in San Francisco on May 24. It was Nolasco's sixth career complete game and his first since April 17, 2010, at Philadelphia. In 13 games (10 starts) against the Phillies, Nolasco is 6-3 with a 3.57 ERA.

ABOUT THE PHILLIES (53-32): The Phillies were on the brink of sweeping Toronto over the weekend until the Blue Jays hit three home runs in a four-run eighth for a 7-4 win. Philadelphia still has won five of its last seven and 16 of 23 and leads Atlanta by four games in the NL East. While most of the Phillies' regular starters have struggled against Nolasco, Chase Utley has fared well against him, going 8-for-26 (.308) with a homer and four RBIs.

ABOUT THE MARLINS (38-46): After rallying for a 6-4 win Sunday at Texas, the Marlins have won consecutive series for the first time since taking two of three from Tampa Bay from May 20-22 and sweeping a three-game series at San Francisco from May 24-26. They improved to 6-6 under interim manager Jack McKeon and are 21-20 on the road, making them the only team in the majors with a winning road record and a losing overall record. They are 17-26 at home and have lost 12 of their last 14 at Sun Life Stadium.

FINAL PITCH: Florida's Logan Morrison, whose two-run double provided the go-ahead runs Sunday, has at least one RBI in five consecutive games, a career-best streak.