Nate Karzmer

MIAMI -- For much of the past two seasons, the Marlins and their rising shortstop Otto Lopez have mirrored each other. A year ago, the two exceeded expectations. While it wasn't all pretty, there was serious reason to believe there was long-term hope--even if most of the baseball world overlooked them. As for 2026? They've been undeniable. On the same night Lopez tallied his franchise record-breaking 127th hit before the All-Star break, Miami won their sixth straight-an 8-4 sweep-clinching effort over the AL West-leading Mariners. The hottest team in the sport improves to ten games over .500 for the first time since July 17th, 2023, and secures a second consecutive sweep. "It's so much fun right now," said Lopez postgame. "When you win, you can celebrate, and this team has to give it their all until the end of the season. We're showing what we want from now on until October, because we want October here in Miami. That's what I'm focused on." Lopez's decisive knock to pass Luis Arraez's mark of 126 set in 2023 came in the midst of a four-run fourth. A sharp ground ball past a diving J.P. Crawford knocked around just enough in the corner for the 27-year-old to cruise into third for his sixth three-bagger of the year. Awaiting Lopez at third and his following at-bats were MVP chants from the crowd at loanDepot park, which caused an ear-to-ear smile when discussing the moment. "It makes me feel super good," said Lopez. "They motivate me to just keep going and be comfortable. So, I just want to continue to keep putting on." "It's hard really to describe," said skipper Clayton McCullough. "It's so many hits that he's collected -- I think 140 multi hit games. He's has a hit in every series, and just the way they've come, he's got a bunch of doubles, triples, and he's got homers. He'll hit the ball over the place, tonight down the third base line, right center, infield hits. It's been a real hitting display with his bat to ball and how he moves the ball around the field. He's hitting all pitch types so much better this year and getting a lot more balls in the air this year than he has in the past. I mean, if he gets two hits in a game, you're not even really surprised anymore. It just seems like it's every single night." With just three games remaining in the first half, Lopez has a commanding lead across all of MLB in batting average (21 points higher than #2) and hits (15 more than #2, who happens to be Arraez) as of this writing. His OPS now sits at a clean .900. In addition to their first-time All-Star, Griffin Conine and Jakob Marsee enjoyed fine nights of their own at the plate. Conine shined with a three-hit, two-extra-base performance—including his fourth blast of the year in the second—while Marsee continues to show improvement, getting on base three times and notching an RBI. On the bump, an admittedly amped up Janson Junk settled in after an uncharacteristically wild first two frames. Making his first appearance since being sidelined with right shin inflammation in mid-May, the right-hander completed five innings of two-run ball, striking out five. The red-hot Fish return to action Friday night, playing host to the slumping Guardians in a rematch of the 1997 World Series. Ace Sandy Alcantara takes the mound in the series opener opposite Parker Messick. First pitch from LDP is set for 7:10 pm EST. View full article

The 2026 edition of the Marlins' annual trip to Denver can best be described as a tale of two halves. Monday and Tuesday's opening bouts were a continuation of near-flawless baseball from the visitors, as evidenced by a combined 24-run effort and+14 differential over a lowly Rockies team. The latter two contests, though, presented a night-and-day difference. A disastrous 1-13 combined mark with runners in scoring position in both efforts proved insurmountable to overcome in the notorious hitter-friendly confines of Coors Field. In Thursday's finale alone, Miami was 0-for-8 en route to a 12-4 waxing, marking their first pair of consecutive losses since June 15th and 16th in Philadelphia. Clayton McCullough's group falls back to four games over .500, but ends 2026 with a 5-2 mark over their 1993 expansion mates, a step up from a 3-3 split a year ago. Miami didn't go down without its chances, as a particularly ineffective Michael Lorenzen presented numerous occasions for a lineup with its best bats to strike. Although a pair of force outs and a sacrifice fly in two separate bases-loaded situations pushed three early runs across, the "big hit" that seemed to show up aplenty throughout their magical June never did. Pedro Guerrero's unit threw up four early runs across the first four frames, but were shutout by a trio of Colorado relievers the rest of the way. A short list of offensive standouts features Otto Lopez , who ended up tallying three legs of the cycle, missing the long ball just like Javier Sanoja in the series opener. For Lopez, it was his ninth three-hit performance of the year. As for Sanoja, he collected two more knocks to wrap up a stellar set in which he raised his season OPS to .741. While the veteran Lorenzen managed to skate by, allowing just four earned runs despite walking six across four and a third innings pitched, the Rockies offense made Ryan Gusto pay for his mishaps. Similarly to his counterpart, Gusto struggled with command, walking two and throwing 21 of his 50 offerings out of the zone. Unfortunately for the right-hander, Colorado's offense came through for their guy going 6-for-10 with RISP, chasing the Marlins' spot starter after three innings. Bad quickly turned to worse following Gusto's departure, as a back-breaking seven-run sixth off Calvin Faucher and Cade Gibson all but put the nail in the coffin. Miami continues westward to conclude their three-city road trip in the new confines of Sacramento. Taking the ball for McCullough in the club's first ever game at Sutter Health Park on Friday night is Tyler Phillips, coming off a stellar eight-inning outing a Sunday ago in St. Louis. First pitch for a vintage "Late Night With The Fish" is set for 9:40 pm EST. View full article

MIAMI—Brian Navarreto showed up to work Wednesday morning believing it would be a day to remember. While he would be proven correct, the path that took him there featured more twists and turns than he could have imagined. A sudden allergic reaction around an hour before first pitch threw a wrench in what was slated to be Navarreto’s 2026 debut at the big league level. The 31-year-old wasn't about to let that excuse prevent him from playing, though. "Nobody's gonna take me out of this game, not even the allergies. We took care of it, and right now I'm good, but if you saw me before, it was kind of like a fight with (Manny) Pacquiao." A pickoff, caught stealing, sacrifice bunt and walk might not be sexy on the stat sheet, but when it's in tune with everything else Miami did in the matinee, it proved vital. Navarreto's gritty performance paced Miami in their 4-2 series-clinching win over Texas, their sixth in seven games. The Fish improve to a league-best 16-5 in June and 42-39 on the season, now sitting just one game out of the third National League Wild Card spot. Navarreto detailed his morning as normal, from his eating to how his body felt, before sudden puffiness of the face and intense itches alerted that something was wrong. While he remained unsure what caused the issues postgame, his patented defense would remain unaffected. A back-pick of Ezequiel Duran and caught stealing of Nicky Lopez in back-to-back frames gave recently recovered Eury Pérez the boost he needed. Pérez, who worked 4 ⅔ innings of one-run ball in his first start in nearly a month, described his catcher as “incredible” “The commitment that he puts out there today, even though he had a weird allergic reaction before the game and he. went out there his best-is incredible.” Joining Navarreto on the offensive side were should-be All-Stars Otto Lopez and Xavier Edwards, both of whom padded Miami’s lead in the later innings. Griffin Conine delivered the early game-tying swing with his first RBI in nearly three months. “We’re doing things in a lot of different ways,” said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough. “Playing right now a very clean brand of baseball and that's what you have to do to continue to win.” Following an off day on Thursday, McCullough's club returns to action Friday night in St. Louis to begin a set with postseason implications for both clubs. Max Meyer, who is expected to return from a stint on the bereavement list, toes the slab in the series opener. First pitch from Busch Stadium III is set for 8:15. View full article

PITTSBURGH — When Tyler Phillips and Scott Oberg crossed paths eleven years ago, the two had plenty in common. Both were pitchers in a major league organization, hailed from the northeast, and did offseason work at the same training facility in New Jersey. Oh, and wouldn't you know, Phillips was a recent alumnus of Bishop Eustace Prep School, where both Oberg's wife and sister-in-law graduated as well. What they didn't share, though, was ultimately responsible for where Phillips is today, as he explained in an exclusive interview with Fish On First. In the 2015-16 offseason following Oberg's rookie year in Colorado and Phillips' first few months as a pro, the former reached out to the latter in an effort to gain a workout partner for the winter months. On a podcast appearance in May 2019 with Eric Cressey of Cressey Sports Performance, Oberg detailed the makings of their initial conversations: "(Phillips) kind of just fell into my lap...He had been a kid working out at this facility for a long time. I started reaching out to him like, 'Hey man, congrats on being drafted and everything. I kinda know who you are, so let's get together and work out in the offseason. We're already going to the same place, so let's just do it at the same time—it'll be fun.' Nobody really likes working out by themselves over the offseason." When Phillips agreed, Oberg took it upon himself to help mentor Phillips, having seen first-hand the reality and business that is professional baseball. "Unfortunately, it's a business and a cruel world where they have zero problems just releasing you," Oberg relayed to his new protege. "I had seen plenty of guys go down that road, even guys that were drafted in-state by the Rockies, where they say, 'Hey, you're just not good enough. Goodbye.' That's just the reality of it. Knowing that—I was 24 at the time before I got called up to the big leagues—I'd been through a little bit of the thick of it, seeing a bunch of guys get released, and he has no idea what he's about to get himself into." Admittedly, things got off to a rough start for Phillips. Late arrivals and lack of seriousness didn't fly with Oberg, whose scolding wasn't appreciated by Phillips initially. "I would show up to the gym. Seventeen years old, he would tell me we're gonna throw at 10 o'clock, and I would show up right at 10. He would be fuming at me," recalled Phillips. "Because it's like, 'Just follow the schedule, be there on time, do your stuff the right way.' I'd be on my phone in between sets in the weight room, like is it really that important? He got on me, and I didn't like it." "A lot of the (issues) early on were discipline things," said Oberg. "I would have to get on him for him to reach out to (Cressey) and not have his dad do it. Like, no man, you need to care enough to call him. This is your job now, and your body is your number one asset. There were times when he'd show up late, and I'd be like, 'Hey man, we're setting times to get our stuff done. You need to show up on time. This isn't show up and do whatever you want. I have my own life with my own things going on, and my wife has her own life going on. You have to understand that this isn't just about you.'" Eventually, though, the accumulation of those moments left an impression on Phillips. Whether it be reading books together or simply sticking to their combined schedule, the two became close quickly. Phillips absorbed as much as he could from Oberg, including the routine that he so heavily emphasized. "As I started getting older, I realized how important it actually is," added Phillips. "I get two, three hours to work out in the gym and take care of business. That's my craft, that's what I want to do. My phone is going to be there when I'm done, so I started putting the phone up. I think just that consistency and finding that routine just really bled into who I am today." "Once some of the discipline started kicking in a little bit, then we could get into the baseball things," said Oberg. "Over the years, he's grown so much as a ballplayer and a person. It's been so much fun to watch. That's what these scouts saw in you when they drafted you. They saw a really good-framed kid and assumed you'd put on some weight. You're gonna be a monster and you have the potential to be a really good starting pitcher in the big leagues." Remember, Oberg was singing these praises in an interview that is now seven years old, while Phillips was moving between High-A and Double-A with Texas. There's been some change since. In an awful turn of events, Oberg was forced to retire in 2023 due to lingering blood clot issues in his throwing arm—a moment that weighed heavily on Phillips. "That broke my heart hearing that. He was unbelievably talented, and his mind was something else." Fortunately, Oberg and his wisdom didn't leave the game. Following the end of his playing days, he received his master's degree from Georgetown University and accepted a job with the Rockies as the minor league pitching coordinator in January 2025. As for the apprentice, Phillips has made good on Oberg's expectations after what was a rollercoaster couple of years post-COVID. The big right-hander was designated for assignment in July 2021 by Texas before being picked up by his hometown Phillies off waivers. Two seasons in the minors opened the door for a full-circle debut and instant, albeit unsustained success in his rookie year as a starter. Phillips was traded to Miami for cash days before the 2025 season began in a deal that got overlooked, but presented some opportunity to at least make an impression as a reliever. To say that the man capitalized on said chance would be an understatement. In 73 appearances across two seasons, Phillips has been another diamond in the rough for Peter Bendix and the Marlins, sporting a 2.43 ERA and an elite 175 ERA+ while being called into a wide variety of game situations. His run prevention combined with a distinct pre-outing self-slap routine made him one of the more prominent middle relievers in MLB. Recently, the window has cracked open for Phillips to fill an even bigger role. Following an avalanche of injuries to Miami's starting rotation candidates, he has been stretched out as a starter. Entering Tuesday, he is enjoying similar success (1.98 ERA in 13.2 IP). Phillips attributes his performance to being an "unhealthy perfectionist" and "figuring out" his old routine, an idea shaped and mastered years back in frigid New Jersey with Oberg. "To be honest, without him, I probably would have been out of the game a lot, a lot sooner. He just gave me this maturity that I don't think I would have ever found." View full article

PITTSBURGH -- Common tropes of the Marlins' scorching two-week stretch have been steady late-game pitching and timely hitting. On a picture-perfect Saturday afternoon in the Steel City, it was the same knacks that flipped for the worst. Miami's 2-for-13 day with runners in scoring position and struggle to secure a clutch knock in the final two frames proved fatal, as a rare sideways eighth from Anthony Bender ended up being the inevitable nail in the coffin of their season-long six-game win streak. Gregory Soto's tenth save of the year raised the Jolly Roger and sank Miami simultaneously, evening the weekend set with a 3-2 Pirates victory. "It was intense. It was a good game," said Marlins skipper Clayton McCullough postgame. "We had some chances, got the tying run there to second base in the ninth. It was just a good game, and they came through a little bit more than we did." Incredibly, Pittsburgh boasted even worse numbers with runners on, sporting an abysmal 1-for-12 with RISP and eleven men left stranded. The decisive run scored against Bender was the product of a two-out rally that featured two singles and a walk, before a 97 mph sinker drifted too far in, beaning Spencer Horwitz on the shin and plating the eventual winning run. Bender's rocky inning marked both his first loss of the season and first earned runs of June. Most notably, the 31-year-old surrendered multiple hits in an appearance since the end of April in San Francisco. "I thought Anthony threw the ball well," added McCullough. "Unfortunately, it was a hit by pitch with the bases loaded, but hey, you know what, they did their job, move some forward and push one across...Anthony's been on a really incredible run." Preluding Bender was Miami's latest bullpen game, started by Lake Bachar. Both Bachar and John King surrendered a run apiece in their efforts, but scoreless outings from Calvin Faucher, Cade Gibson and Michael Petersen held down the fort, keeping their offense in it. Miami's aforementioned chances in the eighth and ninth saw runners on first and second and a runner on second, respectively. Three strikeouts and the decision not to pinch-hit Owen Caissie for the slumping Leo Jimenez stifled the former, while a forceout, strikeout and putout of Liam Hicks spelled doom in the latter. "(We were) weighing the potential of (lefty Evan) Sisk versus Caissie or Leo, who's been in the game. Certainly trust him in that at-bat there against Yohan (Ramirez) in the eighth, so that's what went into that." It was team RBI leader Hicks and Heriberto Hernandez who cashed in Miami's only two runs earlier in the contest. Hernandez, who was a Bryan Reynolds robbery away from a sixth homer of the year, continues to shine in parallel with Miami's stretch. The sophomore outfielder's OPS sits north of 1.000, courtesy of seven RBI and base hits in eight of nine. "The swings he's getting off are incredibly aggressive," said McCullough of Hernandez's success. "Bert hits the ball hard, can handle velocity, and hits a mistake with spin. I think we've just seen a much more confident version of Bert since he's come back. He's cleared his head a little bit, and he's not as tentative as I thought his plate appearances were early in the season; there's more conviction behind it. This is the Bert-the type of swings he's getting off-that I think we saw last year." If you crave another mid-day, low-scoring affair, look no further than Sunday's series finale. Max Meyer, still sporting an undefeated 6-0 record, goes toe-to-toe with 2025 National League Cy Young winner and superstar Paul Skenes. First pitch from a likely rainy day in Pittsburgh is slated for 12:15. View full article

MIAMI—A 7-1 record, top-five OPS and the second-lowest ERA in baseball. Few things go together like the month of June and Marlins baseball. That sentiment was echoed once more Wednesday night in a contest that was decided essentially within an hour and a half of first pitch. A six-run fourth inning and group shutout powered Miami to a dominant 8-0 series-clinching win over the visiting Diamondbacks, their seventh in eight efforts. They climb to just two games under .500 and remain 2.5 games out of a wild-card spot courtesy of the continued surge. "We dug ourselves a bit of a hole, but now we're playing much better here the last ten days or so" said manager Clayton McCullough postgame, "It's always going to go back to our ability to pitch and play and play defense. I think both those areas we can continue to get better, but right now we're doing a really nice job." The southpaw duo of Owen Caissie and Kyle Stowers headlined Miami's mid-game avalanche, blasting their sixth and fifth home runs of the season, respectively. Both shots registered an 110 mph exit velocity, although the latter was more majestic, finding the second deck and resulting in a rare bat flip from the slugger. Like his club, Stowers' stock has risen now a third into the month. 9 RBI and a .740 OPS in eight games have been just what the doctor ordered for a team desperate for the slug their All-Star of a year ago provides. "Kyle's been on the barrel a lot more of late, and what he can bring to our offense is no secret," said McCullough. "He has the ability to carry you with some swings at the right times with people on, and he certainly has shown that. He's certainly a huge part of our lineup in the middle there, and with how much the guys in front are getting on base, and his ability to drive them in is a big thing for us." Additional multi-hit nights from Liam Hicks, Otto Lopez, who tallied two more RBI as he builds his All-Star case, and Heriberto Hernandez tallied behind Caissie in Stowers in Miami's latest high-scoring day. "We've done it offensively in a variety of ways" said McCullough. "Otto again tonight with a couple more big hits, Liam had a really good night swinging the bat, and then you get the home runs. I think offensively, we've done a nice job during this stretch of getting done in a variety of ways." Not to be lost in the offensive explosion was the latest impressive bullpen game for a multitude of Marlins relievers. Ryan Gusto led the way with four innings of three-hit, four-strikeout ball, a solid step forward following two sideways outings in his return to the bigs. "I'm really happy about it," said Gusto of his outing. "I think it's something to build off of. I think they'll let that pitch count, getting comfortable to that starter role is something that's really good for me." "The work with the pitching coaches in between starts was huge," replied Gusto when asked what adjustments he made from his previous appearance. "I think that we were able to do a lot of quality work on my bullpen in between starts, and I mean that comes back to the routine that we're building, right? So, a couple like interesting outings out of the bullpen-shorter ones-and then now that we had like a full five days to line up for start, I feel like it was really helpful in that aspect to get some quality work in between." A three-man effort of Lake Bachar, William Kempner and Cade Gibson rounded out the superb day from Miami's arms. Kempner recorded his first win in the bigs because Gusto was removed to early to be eligible. "Our pitching staff overall, from starters to relievers, is nasty," said Kempner of the 'pen. "When you put our guys out there, we know they have a chance, no matter who it is. The stuff in there is absolutely gross." Making his third appearance as a starter, Tyler Phillips takes the ball for McCullough in Thursday afternoon's 1:10 EST finale opposite Merrill Kelly. A sweep and fifth consecutive victory in the matinee would mark Miami's longest winning streak of the season. View full article

MIAMI—An announced attendance of 12,443 took to their feet, while a confident Pete Fairbanks roamed the mound in the ninth with one out, a runner on first and a three-run lead. For all intents and purposes, Saturday afternoon's penultimate Citrus Series matchup between the Marlins and visiting Rays was just about over. Alas, the story didn't end there. A rare mix of chaos and collapse instead created destiny for a certain Marlins reliever. Prior to this week, Tyler Zuber was an unremarkable member of Triple-A Jacksonville's bullpen. He has spent parts of nine professional seasons in five different organizations, scratching and clawing for a consistent major league role and a specific moment at the top of his bucket list. With the "help" of a Pete Fairbanks meltdown and because Miami's other high-leverage arms had been deployed in earlier innings, Zuber got the opportunity he'd been craving. He was tasked with picking up his teammate opposite young phenom Junior Caminero and the bases loaded in what had devolved into a one-run ballgame. "It's the epitome of kind of what I want to be a part of as a team—just if someone doesn't get it done, it's a 'next guy up' type situation," said Zuber postgame. "I want them to have my back if I'm ever in that situation, so everyone just has each other's backs and just fights for each other." After dropping five in a row in Toronto and New York, Clayton McCullough's group has banded together just like they did a year ago, now winners in four of their last five. V0FXTHFfWGw0TUFRPT1fQVFOV1ZBWlJBQUlBQ0ZOUVZBQUhVQTRIQUFBQVZGTUFWd0VOQlFZQkFRSURDRk5l.mp4 Zuber left little doubt, as a five-pitch strikeout of Caminero ignited a yelling celebration and revival of the crowd as Miami held on for a 4-3 nail-biting win. "My whole pro career, I've closed a lot, but this is like one of those things that I wanted the most. I'm still shaking right now. I'm shaking now more than I was in my debut, so that tells me that this means a lot." “I just got ready as fast as possible, and it happened,” the 30-year-old continued. "It happened real quick. It was kind of like that one moment, I was like, 'Oh my gosh, this is it. I can see it. I can see it.'” As for the long awaited ball, it’ll have a home with Zuber’s parents. “Let them have it, put it somewhere in the house. It’ll be a good conversation starter,” he joked. If not for Zuber's heroics, super utilityman Javier Sanoja would be receiving a well-deserved spotlight. "El Chiquito" notched his fourth third-hit performance of the season, dropping down a pinpoint bunt in his first at-bat before blasting his second homer for Miami's first runs of the series. Additional RBI from Sanoja, Joe Mack (his sixth in five contests) and Liam Hicks rounded out a 10-hit day for Miami's bats. For the second time in four games, a group effort from the Marlins bullpen worked a combined no-hitter into the sixth inning. Although a flare single off the bat of former Fish Victor Mesa Jr. put the bid to rest, Rays hitters struggled to create much of anything before the aforementioned ninth. Hitless outings from Lake Bachar—who started the contest and gave Miami three innings—Anthony Bender and John King set the tone early before Calvin Faucher, Michael Petersen, Fairbanks and Zuber navigated the final frames. As noted on Marlins.TV, the Fish have won 173 consecutive games when leading by three runs or more entering the ninth inning. Sunday's rubber match features Marlins ace, Sandy Alcantara, succeeding an encouraging seven-inning evening in Washington. Alcantara goes opposite Griffin Jax at 1:40 EST. View full article