This Thursday the (49-60) Miami Marlins and the (61-48) Philadelphia Phillies will play their final game of this three-game series. The first pitch will be thrown out at 1:05 PM EST inside Citizens Bank Park. This is the fourth series between these two teams this season, as the Marlins swept the Phillies the last time they faced off. Philadelphia did win the first game of this series, though.
The Miami Marlins are coming into this one after losing their previous series to the Chicago Cubs. The Marlins struggled at the plate in this series, as they only scored one run in their two losses. They must be better at the plate if they want a chance in this one.
The Philadelphia Phillies are entering this series after sweeping the Washington Nationals. Philadelphia looked great at the dish and in the field, as they completely dominated the Nats in that series. They will need their pitching to stay light s out if they want to walk away from this game with a W.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The Miami Marlins are not having the season that they originally hoped for, but they still have some time to turn it around. In their last 10 games, they are (2-8) and they are still in fourth place in the NL East. At the plate, the Marlins have been one of the worst teams in the league. They are scoring 3.88 runs per game and they are hitting .235 as a team. This is the 27th least amount of runs scored per game and the 23rd lowest overall team batting average. They have struggled to reach base consistently and they struggle to drive in men when they are in scoring position. Miami has also realized that they don't have as much home run power as they thought. They are only hitting .94 bombs per game, which is the 21st lowest average in the MLB. They have stayed one-dimensional at the plate this season, as they will have to string together multiple base hits if they want to score in this one. I do expect the Marlins to be extremely aggres sive once they have reached base safely, though. They have already swiped 90 stolen bases this season, which is the most in the league. They will do whatever it takes to get their base runners closer to home plate.
In the field, the Marlins also still have some work to do. They are allowing 4.24 runs per game and they have the 11th highest overall team fielding percentage. This is the 13th most runs allowed per game, as the Marlins have done a solid job supporting their starting pitching this season. They have only recorded 55 errors this season, as well. This is the 13th least amount of mistakes made in the field this season, as they have been limiting their mistakes as of late.
According to MLB.com, the Marlins will start Edward Cabrera on the mound in this one. He is currently (2-1) with a 2.61 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He looked solid in his first few starts and he has shown that he can sit batters down. He looked great in his last start, as well. He pitched for 5.0 innings but didn't give up a hit or a run. He kept the Cubs off the scoreboard and he will be looking to do the same in this one.