El Caballo is back

MIAMI — Sandy Alcantara is back where he belongs: on top.

The 2022 Cy Young Award winner tossed a complete game shutout Wednesday afternoon at loanDepot park, propelling the Marlins to their fifth win in six games to open the season. With the 10-0 win, the Marlins now have a plus-15 run differential on the season. 

“I’ve been through a lot, so today was such a special moment for me,” Alcantara said.

In his second full season since returning from Tommy John surgery, the Marlins couldn’t have asked for a better start from their ace. Including his nine shutout innings against the White Sox on Wednesday, Alcantara has now thrown 16 innings this season without allowing an earned run. He’s scattered just seven hits while walking only two.

Per Elias Sports Bureau, Alcantara’s 16-inning scoreless streak is the fourth-longest by a Marlins starter to open a season, trailing only Dontrelle Willis (24.0 IP in 2005 and 19.1 IP in 2004) and Josh Beckett (19 IP in 2005).

In his Opening Day start, Alcantara was pulled after just 73 pitches through seven innings—something that left many disappointed.

“My last outing, I was feeling it a little bit and they took me out of the game. I respect that decision, but today was my game, and it wasn’t going to happen today,” Alcantara said with a smile postgame.

Alcantara was efficient from the outset, recording the first two outs of the game on just two pitches. From the fourth through ninth innings, he averaged fewer than 10 pitches per inning—when he’s at his best.

“Being aggressive and never letting an inning get away from me was key. Plus, all of the great work we’ve put in the bullpen has been helping me a lot,” he added.

Wednesday marked the 13th complete game and fifth shutout of his career. It had been nearly three years to the day since his last complete game shutout, which came on April 4, 2023 against the Minnesota Twins. It was also the first complete game shutout by a Marlin since Braxton Garrett on May 24, 2024.

Since 2022, Alcantara has now thrown more complete games than several MLB teams have as a whole, including the Red Sox and Giants. Only three active MLB pitchers have at least 13 complete games: Justin Verlander, Chris Sale, and now Alcantara.

Alcantara also noted postgame that he only shook off assistant pitching coach Rob Marcello “maybe three times,” crediting the staff for doing a great job with the game plan.

The Dominican flamethrower’s battery mate, Liam Hicks, has also continued his absurdly impressive start to the campaign. Following a 3-for-4, four-RBI performance on Wednesday, the Canadian backstop now leads the majors with 12 runs batted in.

“The at-bat quality is still there, and he’s being very selective in looking for pitches where he wants them,” manager Clayton McCullough said postgame.

Hicks spent his offseason focused on weight training and improving his bat speed, and it’s already paying dividends. He has hit three home runs during the team’s opening homestand. For comparison, he hit just two home runs at loanDepot park all of last season.

With the win, Miami improved to 5-1 on the season while Chicago fell to 1-5. The Marlins have an off-day on Thursday before they begin a three-game weekend series in the Bronx against the New York Yankees. Eury Pérez will face Will Warren in the team’s home opener.