WASHINGTON -- There will be plenty of raw emotion at Nationals Park on Friday when the Miami Marlins begin a three-game series against the Washington Nationals.The series opener comes a day after a memorial service in Florida for Jose Fernandez, the ace of the Marlins who died in a boating accident Sunday.Among those on hand for the Thursday service was Washington pitcher Gio Gonzalez, who grew up in the Miami area and like Fernandez has Cuban heritage.Gonzalez started at home Wednesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks and was tagged with the loss.The starting pitchers Friday will be Nationals right-hander A.J. Cole (1-2, 5.09 ERA) against Marlins right-hander Andrew Cashner (5-11, 5.13).Cole has never faced Arizona. Cashner, who last opposed the Nationals in 2015, is 2-4 with a 4.03 ERA in 11 games (six starts) against them.Washington (93-66) enters play Friday with a two-game edge over the Los Angeles Dodgers (91-68) in the race for the home-field advantage in the National League Division Series. The NL East and NL West champions will face off beginning Oct. 7. The Dodgers own the tiebreaker after going 5-1 against Washington this year.The Nationals beat the Diamondbacks 5-3 Thursday in a light rain. If the game had been rained out, Arizona may have had to return to play Monday if the game had a bearing on the home-field edge.We just feel fortunate we got the game in, Washington manager Dusty Baker said. Im glad we got the game in. It was a blessing we got the game in.Cole was ejected Sunday in Pittsburgh when he threw a pitch behind Pirates third baseman Jung Ho Kang. That led to Major League Baseball suspending Cole for five games, but he appealed the penalty.Cole will be making his eight major league start of the year. He made his big league debut in April 2015 but spent most of the 2016 season at Triple-A Syracuse, where he went 8-8 with a 4.62 ERA in 22 starts.Washingtons Bryce Harper is 4-for-6 in his career against Cashner. Harper has been out since Sunday with a sore thumb but could see action this weekend. Nationals outfielder Jayson Werth is 6-for-10 against Cashner.Washington MVP candidate Daniel Murphy (buttocks strain) is not slated to start during the series, though he could see action off the bench. Baker said he hopes to get Murphy healthy for the postseason.Miami (78-80) was eliminated from playoff contention with home loss to the New York Mets on Wednesday. The Marlins were off Thursday as they attended the Fernandez service.It was tough to have a lot of emotion out there, Marlins manager Don Mattingly said after the Wednesday defeat. I know our guys were trying. We owe that to the Cardinals and Giants (who are chasing the Mets in the NL wild-card race). Our guys did the best they possibly could, but it was a tough game to play.Marlins standout Martin Prado echoed those thoughts.Its going to take a long time for our Fish family to recover from this, he said of losing Fernandez. Its a devastating loss for everybody. I feel sorry for his mother and family because Jose was one of the biggest reasons why they came to America. Antonio Callaway Browns Jersey . "Four now," Carl Gunnarsson told the Leaf Report proudly following a 5-2 victory over New York on Tuesday night, the clubs fifth straight at home. Baker Mayfield Browns Jersey . 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YORK -- John Higgins fended off Mark Allen to set up a UK Championship quarterfinal showdown with world champion Mark Selby.The modern era giants of the game will go head to head in York on Friday after Higgins came from 3-2 behind to see off Allen 6-3 at the York Barbican.Higgins has won the China Championship and Champion of Champions events over the last month, scooping ￡300,000 in prize money, and has his sights on the ￡125,000 top prize this weekend.The 41-year-old Scot was in trouble, by his own admission, when Allen forged ahead after the interval in their absorbing battle, but he capitalised on the Northern Irish left-handers misses to swing the momentum his way.Allen had a top break of 105, but runs of 85, 101, 68 and a closing 90 from Higgins kept alive hopes of a fourth UK title for the Wishaw cueman.Im delighted to win but Mark will be kicking himself, Higgins said. When he went 3-2 in front he had a couple of good chances to make it 4-2 and he looked as if he was playing well and I was struggling at that time.Higgins pinpointed a tough red to the middle pocket in frame eight as the key ball in the contest, saying: I was going to play safe but I told myself to go for the match, go for the win. It maybe wasnt the shot to go for but I managed to get it.Such balls go in for players riding the crest of a wave, as Higgins admitted.He told the BBC: Im definitely still riding it. Mark was missingg a couple when in previous matches against him he wouldnt have missed them, and thats what happens when youre on a roll.ddddddddddddBut if youre struggling out there, the other guy doesnt miss those chances.Youve got to run with it while it happens because your luck will change sooner or later.Selby earned his quarterfinal berth on Wednesday, and Higgins forecasts their afternoon clash on Friday will be a feast for the eyes.Hes world No. 1 for a reason. Every credit to him, Higgins said. Hes such a tough competitor and I look forward to it, itll be a good game Im sure.Higgins is a regular presence in the latter stages of snookers top events, but Welshman Jamie Jones has barely made his presence felt since surprisingly reaching the World Championship quarterfinals four years ago.That has changed this fortnight, though, and the 28-year-old world No. 39 from Neath earned his last-eight place by brushing aside David Gilbert 6-2, earning a shot at Hong Kongs Marco Fu on Friday evening.Jones, guaranteed ￡22,500 already, said: I feel I can relax more now because I know Im getting paid. Ive got a couple of quid to take the pressure off me.Luca Brecel will tackle Shaun Murphy in the last eight after the 21-year-old Belgian beat Scotlands Stephen Maguire 6-3 in the evening session. ' ' '