Peter Diana, Post-Gazette photos
	Adam LaRoche singles against the Marlins last night. LaRoche went 3 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs.

By Paul Meyer
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The script that Pirates manager Jim Tracy would love to be able to author every night was there to be followed again last night.

	Reliever Matt Capps reacts after giving up a double to the Marlins' Josh Willingham, putting the Marlins ahead, 4-3, in the eighth inning last night at PNC Park.. Click photo for larger image. More Coverage: Pirates Notebook: Marlins also put pressure on Armas Pirates Q&A with Dejan Kovacevic Gene Collier: Better pitching needs to start with Duke Today Game: Marlins (RHP Ricky Nolasco, 1-1, 6.06) vs. Pirates (RHP Tony Armas, 0-3, 8.76), 7:05 p.m., PNC Park. Radio: WPGB-FM (104.7) Key matchup: Florida's Miguel Cabrera against Armas. Cabrera lifetime is 7 for 10 with a home run and four RBIs against Armas. Of note: Nolasco, an 11-game winner as a rookie last season, pitched 7 1/3 innings, allowing four hits, in Florida's 5-0 win against the Pirates July 22. He also worked 1 2/3 scoreless innings in relief against the Pirates May 12.

The Pirates' starter got the team through the seventh inning with a lead. Matt Capps would pitch the eighth inning, then turn the ball over to Salomon Torres to finish it.

One problem ...

The Florida Marlins had a chance to edit the script.

And this play had a tough ending for the Pirates.

The usually reliable Capps, scored on in only three of his previous 22 appearances, yielded three consecutive one-out hits in the eighth inning, including run-scoring doubles by Miguel Cabrera and Josh Willingham that sent the Marlins to a 4-3 victory at PNC Park.

"They went against the best we have to offer in the eighth inning, and they beat us," Tracy said.

Starter Zach Duke weathered eight Florida hits -- he leads the major leagues with 69 hits allowed -- and held the Marlins to two runs in his seven innings. Torres pitched a perfect ninth.

Had the Marlins permitted Capps to deliver his lines in the usual manner, Torres' strong inning would have resulted in his 12th save.

As it was, this production ended with Capps getting his first loss since May 18 of last season and with Duke failing to get his first win since April 8.

"Duke threw the hell out of the ball," Capps said. "He deserved to win. That's what kills me the most. I hate for that to happen to him and to the team."

Capps began his inning impressively, striking out Dan Uggla but, Hanley Ramirez followed with a single to center.

Capps got ahead of Cabrera 1-2, but Cabrera drove the next pitch -- on the outside edge of the plate -- to the wall in right-center field. Uggla scored easily.

"That pitch was the right pitch and right where I wanted it," Capps said. "He's a good hitter, so you tip your hat."

Capps also zipped ahead of Willingham 1-2, but, again, it did not matter. Willingham lined an elevated slider into the left-field corner to give the Marlins the lead.

"That's the one pitch I'd want back," Capps said.

"To Matt's credit, he went after them and made good pitches," Tracy said. "They put some good at-bats on him. We had no room for error."

For the 21st time in their 39 games, the Pirates failed to score more than three runs.

They managed only six hits --three by awakening Adam LaRoche, whose two-out home run into the bullpen in the second inning was their only extra-base hit.

LaRoche shot a run-scoring single through the middle in the fourth and hit a hard-ground ball single into right to set up the third run in the seventh.

"It's slowly coming back to me," said LaRoche, hitting .360 over his past 11 games. "The key is getting good pitches to hit instead of being down 0-2 or 1-2 every single at-bat."

LaRoche got his hits last night on counts of 3-1, 2-0 and 1-0.

His third hit followed a scorching line drive by Xavier Nady that shot off left-hander Scott Olsen's right heel. LaRoche singled Nady to second.

Ronny Paulino tried to bunt until he had two strikes, then struck out swinging.

Jose Castillo singled through the middle on a 1-2 pitch to break a 2-2 tie and finish Olsen.

LaRoche coasted to third when Castillo's hit caromed off second base, but the Pirates couldn't get him home. Jose Bautista, nursing a sprained left ankle and available only to pinch-hit, flied to short center against left-hander Taylor Tankersley. Chris Duffy, who lined out his first two times up, put down a bunt, but Tankersley threw him out.

Duke yielded a game-beginning home run to Reggie Abercrombie, just up from Class AAA Albuquerque. Abercrombie drove a 2-1 pitch deep into the bleachers in right-center field, ending a streak of 11 consecutive scoreless first innings for the Marlins.

"He kind of surprised me," Duke said. "He jumped on what I thought was a pretty good pitch."

Duke yielded his second run in the third , when two walks gave Cabrera a chance. The third baseman lined a double off the right-field wall, ending his 0-for-16 dip.

Duke had only one perfect inning -- the seventh -- but a couple of double plays and some other good defense helped him.

"Duke did a fine job -- he really did," Tracy said.

Switch-hitting Ryan Doumit last night was the odd-man out in the nightly four-players-for-three-lineup spots musical chairs game which also features LaRoche, Nady and Paulino.

Doumit, who pinch-hit in the ninth, didn't start against Olsen because he's 4 for 16 batting right-handed.

"It makes sense because of the majority of his damage has been [hitting] left-handed," Tracy said. "If you're going to choose a day to give him a breather, this is a good day to do it."