Clutch hits from García, Cooper, and Hampson give Miami huge come-from-behind win to take series.
2023 has been an emotional rollercoaster for Marlins fans, with their 8-6 victory Sunday not straying from that theme.
Playing in Miami for the final time in his accolade-filled career, Miguel Cabrera gave the fans that embraced him for the first five seasons of his career one final reminder of why he will be a sure-fire Hall of Famer when he becomes eligible. With two outs in the bottom of the third, and with the Tigers having already plated two runs in the inning, Cabrera capitalized on a hanging slider from fellow Venezuelan Jesús Luzardo for a two-run double. The Tigers would exit the inning with a commanding 4-0 lead.
The aforementioned Luzardo would fail to make it through the fifth, lasting just 4 2/3 innings, and coughing up 7 hits and 3 walks.
Tigers starter Tarik Skubal made quick work of the Fish early, facing the minimum through the first 4 innings.
Miami would, however, storm back in the bottom half of the fifth with a four-run rally kickstarted by recently returned Avisaíl García. His first triple since September 5, 2019 was the first of five straight Marlin hits. The coup de grâce of them all, a Garret Hampson two-run double, tied the score at 4-4.
That short-lived tie would soon become a 1-run Marlins lead thanks a strange string of events. After reaching on an error from newly inserted third baseman Zack McKinstry, Jon Berti, having just stolen second base on a ball that got away from catcher Jake Rogers, made for third before getting caught in a rundown. Berti would have easily been tagged out were it not for second baseman Zack Short running into the Marlins shortstop, triggering a defensive interference that gifted Berti third base. Two pitches later, again struck Avisaíl García, this time by way of an RBI single.
But, in keeping with the back-and-forth series of events this game had already gifted the 18,207 fans in attendance, the Tigers would regain the lead in the 7th. Facing a struggling A.J. Puk, Kerry Carpenter laced a single to right, scoring two to make it a 6-5 Detroit lead. For Puk, now with 6 blown saves this season, his July ERA now sits at 11.42 across 8 2/3 innings pitched.
“I think he’s going to be fine, but we do have to get him right, because we’re really good when he’s right,” noted Schumaker.
A tandem of Tanner Scott and the recently acquired Jorge López and David Robertson would shut the Detroit bats down from that point forward, authoring 2 2/3 perfect frames the rest of the way. Scott, who suffered a mild calf strain during Friday’s appearance, evidently will not require an injured list stint.
In the midst of the bullpen finding its form came arguably one Garrett Cooper‘s biggest swings in his parts of six seasons as a Marlin. Sitting 1-2 against reliever Tyler Holton, Cooper hit a hanging curveball just far enough to clear the left-center wall for his thirteenth home run of the season. Miami 7, Detroit 6.
One inning later and looking for some insurance, Jean Segura did just that, sending his third home run of the year into the ivy in center field, setting the scene for David Robertson’s inaugural appearance as a Marlin.
Of Note
- Before his 7th-inning home run, Cooper owned a career .365 OPS in 1-2 counts, the worst such-mark for any count in his career.
- Sunday marked the 12th time in his career and first time this season that Garrett Hampson collected at least 3 hits.
Looking Ahead
Following Detroit, the Marlins will immediately have their work cutout for them, as they’ll welcome the Phillies for a four-game set. Miami will turn to Edward Cabrera (5-6, 4.74 ERA) in Monday’s series opener. In what has been a bit of a topsy-turvy season for Cabrera, his lone start against Philadelphia this year proved among his better outings, allowing just 2 runs over 5 innings on April 12.
First pitch from loanDepot Park is slated for 6:40 EST.
Leave a Comment