Edinson Volquez threw six strong innings and Jay Bruce homered and drove in three runs as the Cincinnati Reds ended a three-game losing skid by battering Josh Johnson in a 7-2 victory over the Florida Marlins on Friday.

Making his sixth start since returning from Tommy John surgery, Volquez (3-1) allowed one run and eight hits in six innings with six strikeouts and two walks. The right-hander improved to a perfect 4-0 with a 1.73 ERA against Florida, getting plenty of run support along the way.

Scott Rolen and Joey Votto each had two RBIs for the Reds, who were knocked out of first place in the NL Central after being swept by the rival St. Louis Cardinals earlier this week. Cincinnati bounced back by pounding Johnson, who entered with a major league-best 1.97 ERA.

Johnson (10-5) was rocked for season highs of six runs and 10 hits in a season-low 3 2/3 innings. He left after allowing an RBI double to Rolen in the fourth that made it 6-0. He had been 2-0 with a 1.65 ERA in three appearances against the Reds.

Bruce’s 11th homer of the season off Taylor Tankersley in the fifth gave the Reds a 7-0 advantage.

Mike Stanton homered twice for the Marlins, who had their season-high four-game winning streak snapped. It was Stanton's first career multi-homer game. He now has four home runs in the past three contests.