Sandy saves the day AGAIN as Fish take game two in Chicago

The Marlins may be mathematically out of the playoff picture, but that does not mean the end of their season has to end on a sour note.

Experimental in their approach to pitching, the Marlins, for the second night in a row, deployed the strategy of having a starting pitcher throw in-game. After Eury Pérez tossed a scoreless eighth inning in Tuesday's extra-innings victory, it would be Sandy Alcantara, yet again, in to close it out.

Whereas the first such occurrence last week in Arizona came with a pair of close-call fly balls, Alcantara fared much better on Wednesday, needing just 12 pitches to secure his second save of the season. In doing so, Alcantara becomes the first pitcher since 1996 with a season of at least 200 innings pitched and two or more saves.

How We Got There

Had someone told you at the beginning of the 2026 season that Ryan Gusto would be making a compelling case to start for the Marlins in 2027, you would be hard-pressed to find someone who agreed. Through the end of July, Gusto sported a 5.31 ERA, a case of déjà vu from his rookie season when he posted an ERA approaching six.

And then, something clicked.

Gusto's performance in Miami's 3-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday read more like the pitcher he has been for the better part of the last two months. Tossing 5 ⅓ scoreless innings before being lifted in the bottom of the sixth, Gusto showed why the Marlins brass has entrusted him to work deeper into games.

"I thought Ryan was fantastic tonight...He was moving the ball around, using his mix really well...and he's just been throwing the ball really well of late," noted McCullough.

Finishing his season on a strong note, Gusto has posted a 3.12 ERA since the beginning of August. The right-hander allowed two or fewer earned runs in nine of his last 10 starts.

Giving the ball to Michael Petersen , Miami's best reliever at stranding baserunners (93.3%), one had to figure they would exit the inning retaining their 2-0 lead. But, because baseball is baseball, Petersen allowed a two-out, two-strike single to Dansby Swanson, tying the score at two apiece. 

Like Gusto, veteran Kevin Gausman matched him pitch-for-pitch, allowing two over 5 ⅔ innings, striking out seven. The lone blow against the splitter specialist came in the top of the sixth when Kyle Stowers homered for the second time in as many days. Though he has played most of 2026 on a pair of injured hamstrings, a compromised Stowers still ranks second on the club with 21 home runs, while sporting an OPS right under .800.

The Marlins would take the final lead of the evening when a Joe Mack ground ball originally ruled a 6-4-3 double play was overturned on replay review that showed Esteury Ruiz slid into second just before the transfer was caught by Swanson.

The Current Playoff Picture

With the Marlins playing spoiler this final week of the season, the Cubs and Phillies remained deadlocked for a share of the first NL Wild Card spot with identical 87-71 records.

The Don Mattingly-led club fell 4-1 at the hands of the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers, who secured their 99th victory of the season. The Phillies will commence their final series of the year against the AL East champion Tampa Bay Rays, while Chicago will match up against the Boston Red Sox. 

Of Note

Miami will close out the season series against Chicago on Thursday in an afternoon affair at the Friendly Confines. Tyler Phillips (5-4, 3.45 ERA) gets the call for the Marlins in his final start of the season. In his lone start against Chicago earlier this year, Phillips allowed three runs over five innings pitched in a 10-3 Marlins win. Matthew Boyd (9-5, 4.06 ERA) will oppose Phillips as he vies for his tenth win of the season.

First pitch from Wrigley Field is slated for 2:20 pm EST.

Should Clayton McCullough return as Marlins manager next season?

Should Clayton McCullough return as Marlins manager next season?

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