Athletics 3, Marlins 2: Cabrera's strong start wasted as Fish drop their 20th

MIAMI, FL—The Marlins pitching over the last week has been bad. How bad, you may ask? Dating back to April 26, here are the earned run totals allowed by each of their starting pitchers: 7, 5, 5, 7, 4, 5, 5, with the club's collective 9.71 ERA and negative-1.2 fWAR in that span both Major League worsts.

So, when Edward Cabrera worked 5 ⅔ innings of two-run ball on Sunday against the Athletics, it almost felt as if the metaphoric rock that had been crushing the Marlins' necks had slowly begun to be lifted. 

"It was a really good version of Eddie, especially with the strike throwing," noted manager Clayton McCullough following the 3-2 loss. 

After surrendering a pair of runs in the top of the second, Cabrera pitched scoreless ball from there on out, retiring 11 of the final 15 batters faced. 

Flashing pitch-to-contact meets command approach, Cabrera threw first-pitch strikes to 15 of the 23 hitters he faced, not walking his first (and only) batter of the day until there were two outs in the top of the sixth. The right-hander's four strikeouts were his fewest in a game of 5 or more innings pitched since the three he registered against the Giants back on August 31 last season.

Unfortunately for Cabrera and the Marlins' sake, JP Sears was merely a tad bit better, limiting Miami to two runs over his 6 ⅓ innings of work. The 29-year-old owns a 2.93 ERA over his seven starts this season, a mark that would have been noticeably lower had Dane Myers not tagged him for a two-run double in the bottom of the fourth.

Over his 10 plate appearances during the weekend set, Myers notched a pair of hits, including a home run in Friday's loss, before stealing a pair of bases in Saturday's walk-off victory. Though only getting limited playing time, Myers has made the most of it, hitting .351 with a .922 OPS over 69 plate appearances. 

With the loss, Miami, now 13-20, is 2-8 over their last 10 games. They currently sport a minus-54 run differential. Only the Rockies, who entered Sunday at minus-83, have been outscored by more runs thus far in 2025 among National League clubs. 

Of Note

- The club announced before Sunday's game that Otto Lopez had been placed on the 10-day injured list with a right ankle sprain. He tells Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase that he expects to miss 2-3 weeks.

- Catcher Nick Fortes, activated to fill the aforementioned Lopez's roster spot, went 1-for-3 in his first game since April 9.

- After allowing seven runs (four earned) over his first five outings, Calvin Faucher has now gone seven consecutive appearances without allowing an earned run, lowering his season ERA to 3.18. 

Looking Ahead

The Marlins will continue their hosting duties Monday when they welcome the Los Angeles Dodgers for the first of a three-game series. Sandy Alcantara (2-3, 8.31 ERA) will look to avenge his most recent start against the Dodgers on April 29, when he allowed seven runs over 2 ⅔ innings. Alcantara's lifetime 9.66 ERA is the worst mark among the 843 pitchers to make at least seven starts against Los Angeles. 

First pitch from loanDepot park is slated for 6:40 EST.