Miami Marlins have Done 1 thing well in August, despite mixed results

The Miami Marlins August schedule has been full of challenges.  Series after series this month is filled with playoff contending teams and division leaders, and so far the Marlins have held their own, despite many pundits predictions.  As a result of the Marlins have been doing the best they can and are hanging in the playoff race.  

The Marlins to date have faced the Phillies, Texas, Cincinnati, the Yankees, and the Astros and most people would have bet on a large losing streak.  The Marlins on the other hand have won 2 of the 5 series and they were only swept by the Rangers.  

That might sound like grasping at straws to some fans but to beat both the Yankees and Reds in their series and to have the ability to beat both the Phillies and Astros, yet falling short on both chances does show the Marlins can indeed hang with the best.  The Marlins have shown competition that they belong in the playoff conversation, and any that leave them out of it are really failing at their job.  They have had a pretty decent month so far and they are doing 1 particular thing well. 

The Miami Marlins have produced with their new players Jake Burger and Josh Bell; better still, their older players are coming into form again. The Marlins have averaged over 4 runs a game, which is closer to where they need to be in general. The most impressive part is they averaged just 4 runs a game in June against inferior competition, and in July they averaged about the same as in August, but they did not have to run through the gauntlet.

Both June and July's averages were saved by 2 big games where they scored huge amounts of runs, so if you take those games out they are well below 4 runs per game. If you can average 4 runs a game against all playoff teams in a month, you are doing something right, and I expect to see their run totals go even higher in September when they don't have such a bear of a schedule. The Marlins got the trade deadline bats right, that is for sure.