Marlins Straily Set To Face Pirates In Road Opener

The Miami Marlins will send veteran pitcher Dan Straily to the mound in the series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates Friday night. The Pirates will counter with Chris Archer. Game time is 7:05 PM.

The Miami Marlins may want to continue to evaluate the young arms in its minor league system, but the veterans on the staff have been pretty solid of late. The Marlins get set to face the Pittsburgh Pirates in a three-game series which begins Friday night, sending Dan Straily to the mound. Straily has been the team’s most consistent pitcher the second half of the 2018 season.

Veteran Chris Archer, who came over from the Tampa Bay Rays at the MLB Trade Deadline, will take the mound for the home team.

Despite starting the season on the disabled list with a forearm strain, Straily has proven he can be an innings eater. He is second on the team in innings pitched with 117 2/3. He also has proven to be consistent of late, going eight innings of one-hit ball in his last outing, which was a no-decision against Toronto.

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The road has not been kind to the 29-year-old as he is 2-5 this season with a 4.31 ERA. By contrast, he is 3-1 at home. Straily has a 5-6 record, overall and a 4.13 ERA. Should he get the victory here, it could help his cause in remaining with the ballclub after this season.

Straily’s place in the Marlins rotation is potentially an “X-factor” for the organization. An outspoken veteran who has become the team’s top pitcher. While others were traded or disgruntled about the process the organization laid out over the offseason, he essentially stated the Marlins did not need malcontents on the roster.

He has been in favor of the blueprint team owner Derek Jeter has preached all offseason and throughout this year.

The problem is Straily may be caught in a numbers game. He could still provide a veteran presence on the mound and in the clubhouse, Performances by Sandy Alcantara, Pablo Lopez, Trevor Richards and lately Jose Urena have shifted the balance of the rotation.

He and veteran Wei-Yin Chen figure to be two arms that could play elsewhere in 2019.

Chen starts the second game of the series on Saturday afternoon. He will be opposed by Ivan Nova.

Rookie call-up Jeff Brigham, who had a disastrous start in his first game with the parent club, will get the ball on Sunday. The Pirates will send Trevor Williams to the mound in the finale.