Fish n’ grits: Miami Marlins morning news

Another night, another Marlins victory. The team appears to be getting accustomed to winning.

The narrative might finally be starting to change for the Miami Marlins. They’re 12-6 since a series split with the Oakland A’s in May, and have only lost one series in that time. Now winners of the first two games of a four game set against the Pirates, the Fish are heating up.

After weeks of hearing that every player on the trading block was up for consideration, that might be starting to change too. Plus, a look at tonights game.

It’s your morning Miami Marlins news over breakfast. It’s Fish n’ grits.

Fish heating up

The Miami Marlins are playing better baseball. Whether its too little, too late, is for skeptics to decide when they run their headlines. As for Marlins players, fans, and the front office, you have to imagine they are thrilled.

The team is hitting better, pitching better, fielding is still top notch, and the bullpen is doing its job. Earlier this month we plotted out what the Marlins would need to do to end the month of June as a relevant National League baseball team.

The series loss to the Cubs put the team behind that pace slightly. Taking the next two games against the Pirates would right the ship along that vein. With the way the team has performed the last two nights, there is no reason to think that can’t happen.

Vance Worley got the start last night and struggled. Fortunately the Marlins lineup came out like gangbusters and put twelve runs up on the board. They scored at least one run in six different innings and received contributions from top to bottom.

It all amounted to a 12-7 victory for the Fish, who now sit at 27-33.

In case you missed it Giancarlo Stanton hit a monstrous blast that banged off the top of the batters eye at PNC Park. The ball traveled a total of 449 feet in only 5.37 seconds.

Trade narrative starting to change

One of the more exhausting aspects of the 2017 baseball season for Marlins fans has been the onslaught of trade rumors. It seemed like every player has been named as a possible trade candidate at one point. As if the Marlins roster were an open market to pick through or something.

It isn’t. It appears that might be starting to filter into the minds of some people outside of South Florida.

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Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported that the Marlins wold be willing to trade both Tom Koehler and David Phelps, but not A.J. Ramos. MLB Trade Rumors expanded on the story later that day.

Neither of these would be a devastating blow for the Marlins. Koehler is the odd man out in a rotation that is starting to find its groove. That will largely hinge on how Justin Nicolino performs when he returns from the disabled list. The lefty appeared to be putting it together prior to bruising a finger on his pitching hand.

The Phelps trade would strike an emotional chord for Marlins fans. A consistent contributor over the last several season, David Phelps is beloved in Miami. However, he isn’t an indispensable franchise cornerstone. A.J. Ramos is off limits for now, which is the right decision.

Trading Koehler and Phelps wouldn’t hinder the progress of the team all that much. How much the would return is a matter of conjecture. It’s safe to say it won’t be any top prospects around the league though.

Game three against the Pirates

The Miami Marlins send their most reliable starter to the mound in this one. Dan Straily will face off against a Pirates lineup that tallied a total of seven runs last night. They appear to be putting quality at bats together, and he will be asked to keep them quite.

Straily was a hard-luck loser in his last game. Despite going seven innings against the Cubs, the team fell 3-1 in the first game of the series. He’ll look to bounce back this afternoon. The team will need a similar performance to give the bullpen a chance to rest.

Pittsburgh counters with right-hander Trevor Williams. After starting the season in the bullpen, Williams was moved into the rotation in early part of May. His 2-2 record and 4.26 ERA is indicative of a talented player going through some growing pains.

This presents another winnable game for the Marlins against an young and inexperienced pitcher. Williams pounds the zone and doesn’t offer many walks. If the Fish are aggressive, they should be able to put up some runs today.

Next: Marlins vs. Pirates: Series preview

First pitch from PNC Park is at 4:05 pm. Make sure you don’t miss it!