Three games to go. Two teams with playoff aspirations. One game away from a .500 season.
Whatever the past week has been for the Miami Marlins, a team that snapped a four-game losing streak Thursday night in the final game of the series with Atlanta, it has been nothing more than one of the defining roller coaster rides of this franchise’s history.
And through everything the organization has been through over the course of two months, the team’s resilience has continued to be a hallmark of the 2020 season. There is no quit in this ball club, although its heart has been tested more than a time or two.
Now, it a fitting end to the 60-game season, the Marlins face the New York Yankees in a three-game series that will either determine Miami’s postseason seeding or whether the team is playing in October at all.
After watching Pablo Lopez once again take the mound and prove he is as good as any No. 3 starter in MLB as any other arm in the game, it’s only fitting his performance serve as momentum for his teammates this weekend.
It’s the learning experience that should help the Marlins carry over its new brand of baseball into 2021. The changes Mattingly and the front office have made this season, whether it was due to a need for pitching depth or to add another bat or bring up a young prospect, this is a team that will continue to scratch and claw its way to the playoffs.
Facing the Yankees in the final stanza of the season is only fitting given the connection both Mattingly and team CEO Derek Jeter have with their former ballclub.
“These are stressful games,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said after Thursday night’s contest via MLB.com. “I don’t think there’s any getting around it. I’ve had teams that have had seven- and eight-game leads with 15 to play, and for guys, it’s different. They’re tough games to play. Again, it’s a good experience for us and for our guys to be playing this style.”
The Marlins must find momentum that lacked the previous series if they want to make a dent in the National League playoff picture.
The Marlins are batting .246 as a team, which is 15th in the Majors. They are not a hitting juggernaut. They are 24th overall in home runs hit and 19th in runs scored. Those numbers are better than last season, but they also show this team has fought adversity at the plate and has had its share of issues scoring runs.
Not bad for a team that is still learning to play with young prospects being asked to shoulder some of the brunt of the season.
“The Marlins (29-28) moved a full game in front of the idle Phillies (28-29) and reduced their magic number to finish in second place in the National League East to two,” Joe Frisaro of MLB.com added. “Miami could stamp its postseason ticket as early as Friday, with a win at the Yankees combined with a Phillies loss at the Rays. The top two teams in each division qualify for the playoffs, as well as two Wild Card teams.”
