MIAMI (AP) - The sliding Atlanta Braves stumbled again Monday night, losing 6-5 to the Florida Marlins on Omar Infante's game-ending two-run homer.

Atlanta now has dropped three of four, and its NL wild-card lead is down to 2 1/2 games over surging St. Louis, which beat Roy Halladay and the Phillies 4-3 in Philadelphia. The Braves have eight games remaining, the Cardinals nine.

Rookie closer Craig Kimbrel came in to preserve Atlanta's 5-4 lead and retired the first two batters he faced in the ninth. But Emilio Bonifacio then hit a chopper to third baseman Chipper Jones, who could not field the infield hit.

Infante then drove a 1-0 pitch to deep left for his first game-ending homer. Infante's sixth homer of the season also came against his former team.

(© 2011 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)