Miami, FL (My Sportsbook) - Alfredo Amezaga drove in four runs and Jorge Cantu added a grand slam, as the streaking Florida Marlins pounded the Houston Astros, 14-2, in the middle installment of a three-game series at Dolphin Stadium.

Mike Jacobs finished 3-for-5 with two RBI and scored twice for the Marlins, who matched a season-high with their seven straight win and trail the Philadelphia Phillies by 5 1/2 games in the NL East. The Marlins also trail the New York Mets by five games in the wild card standings.

Hanley Ramirez clubbed two solo home runs for Florida before leaving after the fourth inning with a left shoulder strain. Ricky Nolasco (15-7) gave up two runs on six hits over seven innings to get the win.

"We won and we have to keep going," said Ramirez. "No matter what the other teams are doing we just got to keep winning."

Hunter Pence hit a pair of home runs for Houston, which has lost four games in a row and sit four games back in the race for the NL wild card. Brandon Backe (9-13) was tagged for five runs on six hits in a season-low 1 2/3 innings.

"Playing baseball and winning a game is tough and having all this off-field crap happen makes it that much tougher," said Backe. "We're not using it as an excuse. It's unfortunate. We live in Houston. It's unfortunate that a hurricane (Ike) hit us but we still have to figure out how to win some baseball games and get back to where we were playing earlier so we can push for the playoffs."

Florida jumped on the Astros for four runs in the first inning. Leadoff hitter Ramirez crushed his 31st home run of the season to open the frame. John Baker then walked and Cantu doubled off the scoreboard in left before Jacobs's soft fly ball fell in for a two-run single. Later in the inning, Jacobs scored on a base hit by Amezaga.

Pence's two-out blast to straightaway center field put the visitors on the board in the second, but Ramirez's second homer of the night, a one-out blast to left in the home half, gave the Marlins a 5-1 lead.

Florida added another run in the home third on an RBI single by Cody Ross, but Pence went deep again in the fourth to trim the Houston deficit to 6-2.

The Marlins had the bases loaded with two outs in the sixth, and Amezaga delivered with a three-run double off Fernando Nieve. Florida tacked on five more runs in the eighth. A bases-loaded walk to Cameron Maybin forced in a run. Two batters later, Cantu drilled a slider from Dave Borkowski over the wall in left for his second career grand slam.

Game Notes

Ramirez notched his eighth career multi-homer game and 23rd career lead-off home run...The Marlins have won six straight games in which Nolasco's pitched...Cantu's blast was his 28th of the season...Florida banged out 18 hits...Houston's Lance Berkman went 0-for-2 with a pair of walks. He is hitless in his last 19 at-bats...Pence recorded his fourth career multi-homer game and has 24 round-trippers on the year.