Marlins at Phillies
It could have turned out worse for the Miami Marlins, facing two of baseball’s better teams in the Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox to open the season. The Marlins begin their first road trip of the season Thursday against the Philadelphia Phillies after winning twice in a six-game homestand that featured three extra-inning contests, a six-game hitting streak for new second baseman Starlin Castro and a bit of confidence from a Miami team picked to finish last in the National League East.
“We know we can stick with any team out there,” Miami outfielder Lewis Brinson told the media after Tuesday’s 4-2, 13-inning loss to the Red Sox - a game in which the Marlins had the winning run thrown out at the plate in the 11th. “Two of the best teams in the league, not just the American and National League, in all of baseball. We stuck right with them.” Philadelphia comes home having dropped four of its first five games and three in a row, losing 4-2 Wednesday to the New York Mets. The Phillies offense has struggled mightily during the losing streak, scoring just four runs on 14 hits in a loss to Atlanta and two against the Mets. One Philadelphia player off to a good start is left fielder Rhys Hoskins, who went 2-for-3 Wednesday to raise his average to .471 and his OPS to 1.374.
TV: 3:05 p.m. ET, FS Florida (Miami), NBC 10 (Philadelphia)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Marlins LH Caleb Smith (0-0, 1.69 ERA) vs. Phillies RH Nick Pivetta (0-0, 6.75)
Acquired from the Yankees in the offseason, the 26-year-old Smith held the Cubs to one run on four hits with eight strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings Friday. He made his major-league debut with New York last season, posting a 7.71 ERA in nine appearances (two starts). Smith allowed 11 earned runs in 19 innings this spring and will face the Phillies for the first time.
Pivetta lasted four innings in his season debut Friday at Atlanta, giving up three runs on five hits with two walks and three strikeouts. The 25-year-old went 8-10 with a 6.02 ERA in 26 starts last season with Philadelphia, starting the year with a 4.73 ERA in the first half before that number ballooned to 7.05 across his final 15 starts. Pivetta made four starts against the Marlins last season, going 1-1 with an 8.66 ERA and 24 hits allowed in 17 2/3 innings.
WALK-OFFS
1. Phillies RHP Pat Neshek will miss at least the next two weeks with a right shoulder strain, but a MRI showed no significant damage.
2. Miami RF-1B Garrett Cooper missed both games against Boston after being hit in the right wrist with a pitch in the second game of the Cubs series.
3. Philadelphia won the season series 11-8 in 2017, averaging 5.6 runs per game.