Dodgers 12, Marlins 7: Stowers' career day not enough

[Nate Karzmer]

Another rough day at the office for Marlins pitching put a damper on Kyle Stowers' incredible afternoon.

Kyle Stowers put together the best performance of his MLB career, Liam Hicks had 3 RBI of his own with a double in the ninth to cap off a four-run final inning, and the Marlins racked up nine hits as a team in Tony Gonsolin's return from Tommy John surgery.

Sounds like the recipe for a Marlins win, right?

Alas, for the sixth time in six games on the West Coast, a Marlins starter allowed four or more runs before being relieved. This time, Cal Quantrill was the culprit, letting up four runs before being pulled in the middle of the fourth inning. Miami chipped away all day, but their bullpen and defense couldn't keep them in it. If it wasn't for the aforementioned big ninth inning, it would've been much uglier, but the result was the same, with the Dodgers cruising to a 12-7 win and series sweep.

Miami's premier free agent signing continues to struggle, posting a .345 batting average against with his new club. The Dodgers feasted on Quantrill's fastball all day, with the pitch being responsible for four of his six hits.

With yet another subpar performance from a starting pitcher, the bad news for Miami gets worse. Clayton McCullough's staff now sits dead last when looking at ERA as a collective and second to last in earned runs.

In all fairness to Quantrill, the bullpen wasn't much better behind him. Anthony Bender and even Lake Bachar allowed a single run, while Jesús Tinoco and Luarbert Arias let up three apiece. Both Tinoco and Arias were victims of brutal misplays in center field by Jesús Sánchez, continuing innings and allowing extra bases.

 

Stowers Puts on a Show

Four at-bats, four hits, two home runs and four RBI. If you want to talk about finishing what you started, look no further than Kyle Stowers' performance on Wednesday.

Stowers OPS'd a measly .540 in spring training and struck out 18 times. Impressively, he wiped the slate clean as soon as the regular season began. An Opening Day walk-off hit springboarded the 27-year-old into what ended up being a magnificent March and April, emphatically ending in this series finale.

Stowers enjoyed his first multi-homer and four-hit game back home in California, with the former traveling to dead center and the latter heading to right-center.

The lefty has made tremendous strides with pitch recognition and discipline. As the calendar flips to May, Stowers boasts a .323 average, .906 OPS and a .396 OBP, good enough for eighth in the National League.

Due to injuries and platoon concerns, the Marlins' outfield alignment has constantly changed through the first 30 games of the season. Stowers has been the lone constant. He has deservedly earned an everyday role for the foreseeable future.

 

Up Next

Miami, thankfully, heads back to the east coast to take on the Athletics starting on Friday. Neither team has announced a starter for the 7:10 matchup.

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