Miami Marlins at Pittsburgh Pirates: Three stories to watch

Was It About Bour or Wrigley?

Well, the streak had to end eventually. What matters now is that the Miami Marlins do their best to ensure the Cubs series goes down as bump in the road to recovery and not another derailment.

For the most part, the Marlins were a different team offensively in this series. Which begs the question, was this all about the absence of Justin Bour from the lineup? Or was it just a matter of having to play the defending World Champions at home?

The answer will go a long way towards determining how this series will play out for Miami.

And as indicated in the last series preview, it will also say a lot about what to expect the rest of the season. Losing to the Cubs, even with a healthy Bour, is forgivable. The Pirates, even with some hotter hitting of late, have lost six of their last ten.

They’re a sub-500 team. The only thing they really share in common with the Marlins is that they have both failed to live up to expectations.

If you compare the clubs on paper, this should be a split for Miami at worst. The Pittsburgh advantage in pitching is slight for the season, but lopsidedly in Miami’s favor the past week. Hitting flips the script, with Miami decidedly winning the year long battle and coming just short lately.

Basically, the Marlins can’t come up short in this one.

If they can ride Pittsburgh out, they’re looking at a week with five games against weaker competition. Add a pair of off days before their next test and things are looking up. Plenty of time to get Bour back, maybe even Martin Prado.

Let’s hope the Marlins have it in them.