Nate Karzmer

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

Max Meyer was brilliant on the bump in his most recent start, showcasing outstanding efficiency while shutting down the lineup opposite him. In other words, it was a day ending in "y". Meyer's seven-inning, two-hit outing on Wednesday afternoon kept an otherwise slumping Marlins offense around long enough for a late-game surge. Three runs in the final two frames were enough for the visitors to hold on for a 4-1 win, earning a much-needed series sweep in the process. Miami finishes their ten-day road trip at a respectable 4-5, a far cry from what seemed possible following last weekend in Queens. Pacing the Marlins in the matinee was their most consistent starting arm, who continues to live up to his third overall pick billing in what has been a breakout 2026 campaign. Entering Wednesday with a career 1.24 ERA in day games, the 27-year-old averaged a measly thirteen pitches an inning. That impressive enough number was actually inflated from a third inning that featured two walks and an earned run, Meyer's lone blemish. Miami's four-year veteran flashed his five-pitch mix to a tee while leaning on his signature sweeper/slider and four-seamer to keep Nationals hitters guessing. Six of Meyer's seven punchouts came courtesy of the off-speed offerings. Aside from the rugged beard, Meyer's most significant change from a season ago is the incorporation of that sweeper-a staple of Marlins' pitching development. While Meyer's slider was consistently pegged as one of the best in baseball, an over-reliance on the pitch plagued the right-hander in years past. 2025 saw Meyer throw 55% sliders and fastballs, with the changeup, sinker and sweeper in the distance. Now, with even a slight difference of spin on the sweeper, Meyer and Miami's staff have been able to couple the two beautifully. Per Baseball Savant, the advancement places Meyer's breaking pitches in the 100th percentile in terms of run value with eight. Although the All-Star fan vote was released to the masses an hour before game time, pitchers are instead placed in the hands of the manager. It'll be up to back-to-back World Series champion Dave Roberts to get Meyer and his superb 2.81 ERA to Philadelphia. Pitching and defense wouldn't win this game on its own, though. After Esteury Ruiz blasted his third long ball of the season and Miami's eighth of the series early-their most in a series since the infamous sweep of Atlanta in September of 2023-the rest of Pedro Guerrero's group went quietly until some patented small-ball set the table for Joe Mack in the eighth. While Owen Caissie and Javier Sanoja both failed to get the job done with the bases juiced and nobody out, Mack flaunted his clutch gene on the first pitch, lining a two-run, go-ahead single into right-center. The eventual sweep-clinching rope marked Mack's fourth and fifth RBI of the set, symbolizing the rookie's improved confidence at the dish. Miami's potential catcher of the future is 8 for his last 28 at-bats-including a multi-hit effort Wednesday-after adjusting to big league arms. Additional offensive standouts from Miami's ten-hit day include Xavier Edwards, who tallied a multi-hit game of his own, and Kyle Stowers. Stowers delivered welcomed insurance with an RBI triple (his first three-bagger of the year) in the top of the ninth. With their first three-city road trip of the season in the books, Miami returns home to loanDepot park this weekend for a date with the in-state Rays. Following an off day on Thursday, Clayton McCullough hands the ball to Tyler Phillips for Friday's series opener against familiar foe Drew Rasmussen. First pitch from South Florida comes your way at 7:10 pm EST. View full article

Through four innings of Tuesday's Lou Gehrig Day game between Miami and Washington, neither team could seem to muster any offense in a game started by openers, at that. Two-headed monsters from each club combined to work early no-hit bids, with what appeared to be a game-long offensive struggle on the horizon. Fortunately for the visitors, things changed quickly. Back-to-back-to-back homers from Joe Mack, Heriberto Hernandez and Otto Lopez in the fifth handed Miami a lead they would inevitably hold all night, while a late insurance blast from Hernandez supplied some cushion in the 7-3 series-clinching win. With their second consecutive victory, the Marlins improve to 4-1 over their division rival and 28-34 on the year. The fifth-inning power surge marks just the third time in franchise history the feat has been accomplished and the first since August 13, 2023, when Jorge Soler, Luis Arraez and Josh Bell tormented Houston. For the tablesetter Mack, the more meaningful achievement was his swing-marking his first homer in 23 games at the big league level. Leading off for the first time since Low-A and leading Miami's offense was Hernandez, whose two homer-day and three-homer set continue what has been a monster stretch since getting his mind right in the minor leagues. In 39 at-bats since being recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville in early May, the second-year outfielder is slashing an astounding .308/.317/.692 for an OPS over 1.000. Five of Hernandez's twelve hits have left the yard. After coming out of the gates especially slow, a run of this magnitude gives Clayton McCullough a platoon bat more than capable of flipping a game upside down at any time. In a near-180 from Sunday's 10-1 thumping, Tuesday's edition of a bullpen game was a fairly clean effort. Lake Bachar and John King worked the aforementioned hitless first four frames before passing the baton to freshly recalled Ryan Gusto. The 27-year-old's second look in the bigs this season wasn't as smooth as his first, as Gusto forfeited three runs across two innings of work. Fortunately, scoreless eighths and ninths from Michael Petersen, Anthony Bender and Calvin Faucher kept Miami from sweating any more. Aiming to remain undefeated in June and clinch their third sweep of the season, Miami sends their most consistent starting arm in Max Meyer to the hill early Wednesday afternoon opposite Andrew Alvarez. First pitch from Nationals Park is set for 1:05. View full article

Unlike most sports, baseball is a game where a one or two-player effort won't push a team to victory, no matter how impressive it is. The Marlins were reminded of that the hard way on Wednesday afternoon. All-Star level performances from Xavier Edwards and Otto Lopez put their club in prime position to secure back-to-back series victories for the first time since Opening Week and creep back to four games under .500, but a dreadful four outs on the bases and a 2-11 showing with runners in scoring position was too much to overcome. Miami dropped an upsetting series finale to Toronto and two-time All-Star Kevin Gausman by a score of 2-1 while clinching the fourth series loss of their past five. A team reliant on small-ball, the Marlins completely fell apart on the base paths in the later innings. A caught stealing of Jakob Marsee and mental gaffe by Heriberto Hernandez ended the sixth while a strike to nab Esteury Ruiz at second stopped Miami in their tracks an inning later. The most critical mishap, though, came in the eighth with runners on first and third, one out, facing a one-run deficit with Connor Norby at the plate. Needing at the bare minimum a sacrifice fly to tie, Norby watched a hanging slider for strike three while Marsee bolted to second where he was dead to rights. The strike 'em out, throw 'em out took all the remaining wind out of Miami's sails as they were sat down in order by Tyler Rogers in the top of the ninth. Beyond baserunning, the Fish squandered multiple opportunities to put runs on the board early. Leading 1-0. with the bases loaded and one out in the third, Kyle Stowers grounded into an inning ending double play. A frame later, Christopher Morel and Graham Pauley couldn't cash in their first chance with one away and runners on the corners. Taking credit for over half of Miami's hits was the budding star duo of Lopez and Edwards. The two combined for seven hits, four stolen bases and the lone RBI opposite Gausman and a trio of Blue Jay relievers. The two now sit alone atop the hit lead in all of MLB, with Lopez at 75 and Edwards close behind at 67. Now over fifty games into 2026, there should be little to no doubt where the best middle-infield in the league resides. Lost in the late-game malaise was the success and sudden worry for Marlins starter Eury Perez. Perez, who dazzled in his previous outing last Friday against New York, showed more of the same promise that he became renowned for as a top prospect. "Baby Goat" punched out seven through just three innings on his way to a season-high nine. It's a number that had the potential to be even higher if not for a bizarre situation in the middle of the fifth. The 23-year-old right-hander was shown on the broadcast to be writhing in pain out of seemingly nowhere before being helped to the clubhouse by team doctors and his mentor Sandy Alcantara. Shortly after, the team announced it was a right hamstring spasm. Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reported postgame that Perez noted he would be getting imaging and the initial pain was a 10/10, but was a 7 during his scrum. Should the injury lead to an IL stint, it would sting that much more knowing Perez's recent adjustments have proved to be quite effective against formidable lineups. The incorporation of a two-seam pitch with sinking action has kept hitters off balance from a strong, but at times predictable four-seam offering. Increased command—Perez walked zero for the second consecutive outing—and trust in secondary offerings has been key as well. Toronto was able to grab the lead following the youngster's departure, capitalizing in back-to-back frames off Michael Peterson and Andrew Nardi, the latter surrendering his fourth homer of the season. The good news for Miami? A trip to Queens is on deck. Having just swept the Mets and enjoying success against their division foe dating back to 2025, the Fish enter Citi Field with confidence knowing they can mirror what happened at loanDepot park. Max Meyer, having dominated yet again against New York last Saturday with seven innings of scoreless ball looks to continue his sensational early-season campaign on Friday night opposite Freddy Peralta. First pitch is slated for 7:10 pm EST. View full article