Desperate Twins limited to only a run by Ryan Weathers and Marlins

[Kevin Barral]

After a rough return from the IL, Ryan Weathers showed improvement during his five innings of work on Tuesday night. The Marlins bullpen sealed the upset win.

The last time Ryan Weathers took the mound, he ran out of gas toward the end of his start, surrendering six runs off of eight hits and three home runs in 4 ⅓ innings against a potent Los Angeles Dodgers lineup. On Tuesday night, Weathers looked more like himself, using his elite secondary stuff with a fastball that topped out at 97.5 mph in a 4-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins.

Weathers was enjoying a career year, posting a 3.55 ERA, 3.93 FIP, 8.49 K/9 and 2.54 BB/9 in 71 innings pitched prior to landing on the injured list with a left index finger strain. The 24-year-old spent more than three months on the IL, but was able to rejoin the Miami Marlins rotation in time to enter the offseason with some momentum.

In his second outing back from the IL, Weathers faced a Twins team that's in desperation mode after falling behind both the Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals in the AL Wild Card race. Their offense has struggled in the second half of the season, though Tuesday's lineup still featured impressive hitters like Carlos Correa, Byron Buxton and Royce Lewis who are all finally healthy at the same time.

Weathers went five innings of work, allowing one run off of six hits, two walks and struck out two. What made Weathers so good prior to his injury was the improvement of his secondary stuff and command of the fastball. He only generated four whiffs (three on the changeup and one on the sweeper).

Weathers will be on regular rest when the Marlins play their 162nd and final game on Sunday. He could become the first Marlin since Sandy Alcantara (2018/2019) to start the team's regular season finale in consecutive years. 

The Marlins offense did all of their damage off Twins starter Bailey Ober in the top of the second inning. Jonah Bride hit his ninth home run of the season, marking the longest home run of his Major League career at 409 feet. Nick Fortes' second-half success continued as he drove in Derek Hill on an RBI single. Xavier Edwards increased the lead to 4-0 with a two-run double.

Bride also had two singles later on, marking the first thee-hit game of his career. Entering the evening, Bride had been slashing .262/.359/.442/.801 with eight home runs and 25 RBI since the trade deadline. Those numbers got even better on Tuesday.

With the win, the Marlins have a 58-99 record while the Minnesota Twins are 81-76, dropping farther away from the 2024 playoffs considering that the Tigers and Royals both won their games. Edward Cabrera will take the mound for the Marlins on Wednesday, and for the Twins, it'll be Simeon Woods Richardson.

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