Marlins fall in regular season finale, set eyes for Tuesday

On the final day of the 2023 Major League Baseball regular season, the Miami Marlins were the only team that entered the day with less than 161 games played. On Sunday afternoon, the Marlins closed out their season with a 3-0 loss to Pittsburgh. In 161 games, they finished with an 84-77 record, good for fifth-best in the National League. With the Arizona Diamondbacks' loss to Houston on Sunday, it's confirmed that Miami will face the Philadelphia Phillies in the Wild Card Series.

Ryan Weathers

Pregame, the Marlins designated LHP Matt Moore for assignment as he was ineligible for the 2023 postseason. As the corresponding move, Miami recalled LHP Ryan Weathers from Triple-A Jacksonville to make the start on Sunday. In a possible showcase start for a postseason roster spot, Weathers provided the best start of his Marlins career. 

He went six innings and allowed only two hits, three walks, and allowed zero runs. He also struck out five. "It was nice going out and feeling relaxed and kind of under a lot more control today. Was able to take a deep breath in between each pitch and that was my biggest takeaway today," Weathers said postgame.

With the Wild Card Series being only a best-of-three, Weathers would be unavailable to pitch in the series regardless, so it's unlikely that he'll be on the roster. He could, however, be an asset in the Division Series should Miami advance. "We haven't finalized that yet, we're going over a few different options," manager Skip Schumaker said. "It's probably going to be tough for him to be a part of this round [Wild Card Series], but yeah, he had a really good outing for him to be a part of the conversation."

Weathers had struggled in his two appearances as a Marlin going into Sunday's start, as he allowed 11 earned runs in just seven innings of work. What was they key for him in the season finale? "Strike one," Schumaker said. "Getting ahead, the changeup was really effective today and he used all four quadrants of the strike zone."

Bryan Hoeing entered the game in the bottom of the eighth inning and that's where the scoring began. He allowed three doubles in the frame that equated to three runs for Pittsburgh. He was tagged with his second loss of the season.

Offensively, Miami couldn't push a run across on Sunday. The Pirates used five different pitchers and started Andre Jackson, who threw four innings of one-hit ball. He was followed by Osvaldo Bido, Kyle Nicolas, Dauri Moreta, and David Bednar, who completed the 3-0 shutout for Pittsburgh.

What's next?

Miami will travel to Philadelphia on Sunday night. They'll have a full-team workout on Monday at Citizen's Bank Park to prepare for the Series opener on Tuesday. LHP Jesus Luzardo will take the ball for Miami in Game One and oppose RHP Zack Wheeler.

Notes:

• Luis Arraez clinched the 2023 National League batting title with a .354 clip. He becomes the first player in MLB history to win the batting title in consecutive seasons in different leagues (he won the award last year with the Minnesota Twins)
• For Game 2 of the Wild Card Series, Marlins will start Braxton Garrett vs. Philadelphia. They will oppose Aaron Nola.