The Marlins have the second-lowest payroll in baseball and the fourth-youngest lineup. Just six players on their active roster are homegrown, many acquired through trades or waiver claims. They were 26-34 through the first two months, but had a red-hot June where they won 20 of 26. Had it not been for a 12-game losing streak in July, they’d find themselves right in the middle of the Wild Card race. Instead, they are sitting at .500, four games out of a postseason spot.
Miami Marlins (69-69) vs. Kansas
City Royals (62-76) at Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Marlins: 4.33 runs scored/game (19th in MLB), 4.24 runs allowed/game (10th)
Royals: 4.28 runs scored/game (21st), 4.88 runs allowed/game (25th)
The Marlins don’t hit a lot of home runs, but they have the sixth-best on-base percentage in baseball and only the Nationals have stolen more bases. The team placed infielder Xavier Edwards on the Injured List yesterday – he had played in all but one game this year.
Who’s hot:
- Javier Sanoja hit .326/.367/.500 with three home runs in 27 games in August.
- Vinnie Pasquantino is hitting .341/.442/.636 with three home runs and seven walks in 12 games since returning from the Injured List.
Who’s not:
- Owen Caissie is hitting .154/.241/.250 since returning from injury on August 2.
- John Rave is batting .215/.271/.354 in 24 games since being recalled.
Interesting splits:
- Joe Mack has hit 10 of his 12 home runs on the road.
- Jac Caglianone is hitting .294/.354/.518 against right-handed pitchers.
Tyler Phillips has a 4.46 ERA as a starter in 15 games. Randy Dobnak has a 52.8 percent groundball rate, fourth-highest among starting pitchers since July 2, when he joined the Royals.
Eury Pérez missed a month with a thigh strain, but has 2.38 ERA in 12 starts since then. Noah Cameron has the lowest ERA among qualified starters since July 24 at 1.29.
Sandy Alcantara has the eighth-lowest strikeout rate among qualified starters. Michael Wacha’s 10-strikeout performance in his last start against the Guardians was just the fifth double-digit strikeout game of his career, and his first with no walks.
Marlins relievers have a 4.01 ERA and the tenth-highest strikeout rate. Only Yankees relievers have stranded more inherited runners. Closer Peter Fairbanks is on the Injured List, likely leaving Calvin Faucher to close out most leads. Faucher has the fourth-lowest home run rate of any reliever.
The Marlins have been a lousy road team, going 27-42 away from LoanDepot Park. They have lost five of their last seven, but went 13-14 in August. The series presents some pretty intriguing pitching matchups so it could come down to which bullpen can protect a lead.
