3 Takeaways from the Miami Marlins vs Boston Red Sox Series
The Miami Marlins showed up in 3 big ways on the road in Boston that should have opponents fearful
Miami Marlins fans and MLB pundits were predicting a tough road series and often followed that statement by saying don't expect the same success going forward. In typical 2023 Marlins fashion, that sentiment was nothing further from the truth for the first series of the predicted 'tough stretch'. This is not to downgrade those thoughts at all but rather to say, look out for the Miami Marlins on your schedule, rather than the traditional powerhouse teams, like the Boston Red Sox. Here are three takeaways from that first series that show how good this team is in 2023.
Miami Marlins pitching is really that good
Uh oh, Sandy is back! The league should really take notice as Sandy Alcantara and the rest of the starting pitching for the Miami Marlins took over the Red Sox series and shut down the eighth-best team in baseball with regards to both runs scored and OPS. Sandy led the way and had a vintage performance going seven innings and giving up just one run on six hits.
Alcantara's start was followed by arguably the best Marlins pitcher this season Braxton Garrett, who pitched five innings of one-run ball giving up only three hits. The series finally was another classic performance, where Jesus Luzardo went six and a third innings and shut out the Red Sox on only three hits while striking out nine.
Just to emphasize how good the Marlins starters were, their three starts combined for the following stats:
18.1 innings
2 earned runs
12 hits
4 walks
16 Ks
The Miami Marlins' best starter numbers-wise, Eury Perez, did not even pitch in the series. That just goes to show how well this starting rotation is performing. For the series, the Marlins starters had a 0.98 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. Take that to the bank.
Jazz Chisholm is back!
Jazz Chisholm, jr. is back and he didn't miss a beat. Chisholm had an amazing series versus the Red Sox hitting cleanup every night. The Miami Marlins' star centerfielder racked up the stats going 5 for 12 with 2 home runs. Most importantly, however, Jazz was the middle of the lineup bat that keeps the stress up on opposing teams' pitchers. Jazz created runs both by driving them in or by scoring himself. He is such a valuable asset to the team and lineup and he showed why this series in Boston.
Miami owns Boston this year
The Miami Marlins swept the Boston Red Sox in Boston for the first time in their history, which goes to show again how special this year is for Miami sports. The Florida Panthers held a 3-1 record in Boston and the Miami Heat had a 3-1 record in Boston in both of their recent playoff series, both eliminating the city from the playoffs.
The Marlins are on a roll, emphasized by their series sweep in Boston, as they claimed their franchise record for wins in the month of June at 19 this month. Now onto Atlanta where the Marlins can truly turn some heads if they can take two out of three from the Braves. Right now the National League championship runs through Atlanta, but the Miami Marlins can make their case this weekend why that might not be as sure of a thing as MLB pundits and fans think.