Turner Hurls Complete Game as Marlins Down Padres 7-1

Jun 29, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Jacob Turner (33) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the San Diego Padres at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Jacob Turner threw the first complete game of his career, and the team’s first complete game of the season, as the Marlins beat the Padres on Saturday by a score of 7-1. Turner’s performance wasn’t the most dominant complete game one might expect to see – seven hits, seven strikeouts, one run and one walk on 111 pitches – but it got the job done in a big way.

The offense got going as well. With the exception of Placido Polanco, who walked twice and drove in a run, every other position player had at least one hit in the game. For Giancarlo Stanton, that hit was a home run, his eighth of the season. Stanton’s solo shot was the only extra-base hit of the game for the Marlins, but they were able to produce a total of seven runs on nine hits, with the majority of the damage coming against the Padres starter Eric Stults, who took the loss.

For Turner, the start is now the capstone of what has been an incredible turnaround over the last month. The centerpiece of the Anibal Sanchez trade last season, Turner was expected to start the season as the team’s #2 starter. But wild ineffectiveness caused the Marlins to demote him to AAA to begin the season. Since he was called up on May 31st, however, Turner has looked like the pitcher the Marlins thought they were getting in the deal. Over six starts, Turner has a 1.76 ERA, having given up 8 earned runs in 41 innings. While his strikeouts are low at 27, his walk rate is much improved, walking just 12 over his six starts. Turner is also missing bats since his call-up – his swinging strike percentage this season is 10.9%, which would be 10th in baseball if he had enough innings to qualify.

Up next: The Marlins will try to take a 2-1 lead in the 4 game series as Nate Eovaldi faces off against Andrew Cashner at 1:10 PM.