Burger walks if off against his former squad

In a game that commenced with the return of Edward Cabrera as the prevailing storyline, Jake Burger made it so that this was not the case when all was said and done.

The Marlins were an out away from giving the Chicago White Sox—a team whose current incarnation is in the conversation for the moniker of "worst team of all-time"—their first road series win of the season. Instead, Burger would put the finishing touches on a comeback that took root in the bottom of the seventh.

Facing the hard-throwing Michael Kopech and a 4-3 deficit, second baseman Vidal Bruján led off the ninth by drawing his second walk of the day. Catcher Nick Fortes then laid down a sacrifice bunt that would see Bruján execute a high-baseball IQ move, taking third base upon noticing no one was covering. With the count sitting 3-2, Josh Bell hit a fly ball initially thought to be caught by left fielder Tommy Pham, except it found its way through the 11-year veteran's glove and onto the warning track dirt, tying the score at 4-4.

Two batters later, after Kopech had intentionally walked Jesús Sánchez, Burger got the hit that sealed Miami's 7-4 win over Chicago. He squared up a 99 mph fastball from Kopech, sending it 110.3 mph off the bat and 431 feet into AutoNation Alley in left-center for a walk-off, three-run home run.

"Pretty special," said manager Skip Schumaker. "He was frustrated with his previous at-bats, maybe trying too hard against his former team." Entering that ninth inning at-bat, Burger had been just 1-for-10 during the series.

Less than a year ago, Burger was dealt at the deadline by the organization that had drafted and developed him in exchange for pitching prospect Jake Eder. Burger told Fish On First how appreciative he was that the Sox stood by him through two Achilles injuries.

Kopech is one of many former Burger teammates that remain with Chicago. So is Gavin Sheets, who was drafted the round after Burger in 2017. The two came up the minors together.

“We got called up about six days apart," Sheets said. "We just went through it all together: seeing the good, the bad, the ins and outs.”

Burger built bonds with White Sox players that are still going strong. He said he "felt the adrenaline coming to the field" this weekend. But in the heat of competition, he put those feelings aside to defeat them.

The Marlins improve to 32-58 for the season and 2-4 in July with their victory.

Cabrera's Return to the Hill

In what was his first appearance since May 7, Edward Cabrera showed signs of his former self, topping out at 98 mph with his fastball and striking out 4 while generating 14 swings-and-misses.

"I thought he was okay," Schumaker said. 

Though he only walked one in 3 ⅔ innings of work, Cabrera registered just a 41.1% first-pitch strike rate on the afternoon. "He hung a few sliders...The homer was a slider, the Jazz play was on a slider."

The homer in question came in the top of the fourth when light-hitting Danny Mendick laced a mistake pitch over the left-field wall for his third home run of the season, ultimately ending Cabrera's day. 

Miami starters have now gone nine consecutive games dating back to June 28 without completing 6 innings. Cabrera ought to have the flexibility to go well beyond 82 pitches when he makes his next scheduled start.

Of Note 

- Sunday marked the eighth time this season that the Marlins collectively struck out four or fewer times. Miami is now 6-2 in those games. 

- Jake Burger's walk-off home run was the fifth walk-off hit of his career and second in 2024. 

- Tanner Scott was announced as the Marlins lone All-Star representative in 2024. The left-hander earned the nod after a sterling 1.42 ERA in the season's first half. 

Looking Ahead

The Marlins are en route to Houston to begin a series against the Houston Astros. Trevor Rogers (1-9. 4.91 ERA) will look to avoid joining the recently DFA'd Dakota Hudson in the double-digit loss club. 

If Hurricane Beryl permits, first pitch from Minute Maid Park Tuesday is slated for 8:10 EST.