Miami Marlins Host New York Mets: Series Preview

After nine games, the Miami Marlins remain on track to turn in a 54-108 record this season. Miami’s opponent for the next three games, the New York Mets, are standing tall in first place of the NL East at 7-1.

The Marlins, at 3-6, have both won and lost by shutout. They’ve endured their biggest loss in history, a 20-1 setback to the Phillies. Their ERA leader is a backup catcher, and their highest batting average belongs to a relief pitcher.

Despite that, the Marlins have outperformed their expectation in a lot of ways. Especially considering the continued absence of J.T. Riddle, Martin Prado, and Wei-Yin Chen. Then at the last minute, they found out they would also lack Dan Straily, J.T. Realmuto, Magneuris Sierra, and Elieser Hernandez.

Marlins Lineup

Miami has moved Derek Dietrich to the leadoff spot, and will continue putting him in left field. He’s hitting .268 with a homer and three RBI, and has appeared in every game this season so far. He has two bases-on-balls and nine whiffs.

Miguel Rojas will bat second and man shortstop in most games. Rojas is hitting .235 so far this season, including the first home run of this season on Sunday against the Phillies. Rojas has two RBI, two doubles, a stolen base, three walks and four strikeouts.

Batting third will continue to be Starlin Castro, hitting .297. Castro has walked seven times and struck out six times, with two doubles and four RBI. His next home run will be the 100th of his career.

Justin Bour, as usual starting slow, is hitting .182 in the early going, with a double and two RBI. He’s drawn three walks and struck out seven times. He’ll man first base.

On the other corner is rookie Brian Anderson. He’s hitting .286 with seven walks and six strikeouts, and leads the Marlins with eight RBI. He has three doubles and a homer. He’ll bat fifth.

Miami’s sixth and seventh spots will be center and right field, and will be two of the three players including Braxton Lee, Cameron Maybin, and Lewis Brinson.

Miami will continue to trade off Chad Wallach, Bryan Holaday, and Tomas Telis behind the plate and batting eighth, although Telis has only come off the bench so far this season.

Pitching

Monday: Noah Syndergaard (1-0) vs. Jose Urena (0-1)

Syndergaard has started twice already and struck out 17 in just 10 innings. He’s allowed 10 hits and walked only two. He’ll face Urena, also in his third start. Urena was wild in the first inning this year and has since leveled out. In 11 innings, he’s struck out nine and given up five walks. He’s allowed six earned runs on 10 hits.

Tuesday: Jacob deGrom (2-0) vs. Caleb Smith (0-1)

deGrom has gone 2-0, and struck out 12 in 11 2/3 innings so far. He’s walked four and surrendered eight hits for three runs (two earned). His 1.029 WHIP is complemented with a 1.54 ERA. Caleb Smith followed a good start in the second game of the season with a bit of a stinker against the Phillies. He has a 4.32 ERA in 8 1/3 innings, allowing six hits and nine walks. He’s struck out 12, but owns a 1.800 WHIP after allowing six hits in three innings on Thursday.

Wednesday: TBD vs. Jarlin Garcia (0-0)

The Mets will probably rely on Steven Matz to stat against Garcia. Garcia has appeared in just two games, but has 10 innings of five hit ball to his credit. He’s walked four and struck out eight, and has a 1.80 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP.

Mets Lineup

According to the MLB.COM depth chart:

C: Travis d’Arnaud

1B: Adrian Gonzalez

2B: Asdrubal Cabrera

3B: Todd Frazier

SS: Amed Rosario

LF: Yoenis Cespedes

CF: Michael Conforto

RF: Jay Bruce

Miami’s Last

Miami salvaged a 6-3 win after getting shut out by the Phillies on Thursday and losing by a 20-1 score on Saturday.

New York’s Last

New York defeated the Washington Nationals by an 8-2 score on Thursday and by a 3-2 score on Saturday. On Sunday, they required 12 innings to complete their sweep, 6-5. They’ve now won five in a row overall.

Marlins vs. Mets History

Miami is 199-215 against the Mets through history. With this contest, their 415th against them, they’ll become their second most common opponent. The Marlins have played the Phillies 418 times and the Atlanta Braves 414 times.

Miami was 12-7 against the Mets last season, and have won their last four in a row against New York. In their most recent tilt, the Marlins put a 9-2 beatdown on the Mets on September 20th last season. Marcell Ozuna had three hits and two RBI, Giancarlo Stanton had two, including his 58th homer of the season, and Miguel Rojas and Dee Gordon both had a pair of hits.

Common Thread

A.J. Ramos played the first five and a half seasons of his MLB career with the Marlins. He ranks third on Miami’s all-time leaderboard with 92 saves. In total, he appeared in 350 contests, striking out 407 in 327 1/3 innings. He was 15-16 with a 2.78 ERA and a 1.228 WHIP.

Mets shortstop Jose Reyes spent 2012 with the Marlins. He appeared in 160 games and slashed .287/.347/.433 with 11 homers and 57 RBI. He stole 40 bases, legged out 12 triples, and drew 63 walks to 56 strikeouts.

Integrated Team Leaders

Average

Asdrubal Cabrera .333
Cameron Maybin .321
Starlin Castro .297

OBP

Brian Anderson .419
Starlin Castro .409
Cameron Maybin .406

SLG

Asdrubal Cabrera .515
Jay Bruce .485
Yoenis Cespedes .485

Hits

Starlin Castro 11
Derek Dietrich 11
Asdrubal Cabrera 11

2B

Jay Bruce 4
Brian Anderson 3
Cameron Maybin 3
Asdrubal Cabrera 3
Todd Frazier 3

HR

Yoenis Cespedes 3
Eight tied with 1

RBI

Brian Anderson 8
Yoenis Cespedes 8
Four tied with 5

ERA

Jacob deGrom 1.54
Jarlin Garcia 1.80
Steven Matz 3.00

IP

Jacob deGrom 11.2
Jose Urena 11.0
Matt Harvey 10.0
Noah Syndergaard 10.0
Jarlin Garcia 10.0

SO

Noah Syndergaard 17
Caleb Smith 12
Jacob deGrom 12
Steven Matz 12

WHIP

Jarlin Garcia 0.90
Jacob deGrom 1.03
Odrisamer Despaigne 1.10

Next: Marlins Heroes in Philadelphia

Thanks for reading today. Tune in for the first pitch, tonight at 6:10PM. In the meantime, follow us on Twitter @MarlinManiac, like us on Facebook, and keep Marlin Maniac bookmarked for all of your Miami Marlins news.