Cubs beat Marlins 6-1 as Miami slips to 71-71
The Cubs beat the Marlins 6-1 Friday to open the series, dropping Miami to 71-71 and 3.5 games back in a crowded NL Wild Card race.
Junk goes 5, Blalock struggles early
Bradley Blalock lasted just 3.0 innings on Friday, allowing 4 hits and 2 earned runs with 3 strikeouts and a walk. Janson Junk followed with 5.0 innings of his own, giving up just 1 earned run on 3 hits with 4 strikeouts and a walk, but neither line held up against Chicago, and the Marlins fell 6-1 at loanDepot park.
Cubs1-6The night got stranger in the bullpen: Craig Kimbrel got sick on the mound as Miami's broadcast ran a commercial for an injury law firm, Talkin' Baseball noted. The loss dropped the Marlins to 71-71 on the season.
Level with the Cardinals, 3.5 back in the wild card
At 71-71, Miami is tied with St. Louis for sixth in the National League and sits 3.5 games behind San Diego for the third and final NL Wild Card spot, with an elimination number of 8. Arizona (74-68) is a half-game back of the Padres, while Pittsburgh (70-72) and Cincinnati (67-74) trail further with elimination numbers of 3 and 1.
The Marlins are 2-3 in their last 5: a 6-3 loss to Washington on August 31, back-to-back wins over Kansas City — 6-3 on September 1 and 9-6 on September 2 — then a 7-3 loss to the Royals on September 3 and Friday's 6-1 defeat to the Cubs.
"Frankly, I think they're a team that just lacks the depth to be a true contender right now," Foul Territory's Isaac Azout said this week, adding the front office "could've done a little more" at the trade deadline. Miami is also still waiting on Xavier Edwards, whose injured thumb still won't let him fully squeeze a bat handle even as he does rotational work in the cage, MLB.com reports.
Upcoming
Javier Assad (6-1, 3.46 ERA) starts for Chicago against Ryan Gusto (1-3, 3.86 ERA) as the Marlins host the Cubs this afternoon. Assad's last time out, August 4 against the Dodgers, he went 5.2 innings with 1 earned run, 3 strikeouts, 2 walks and 4 hits on 88 pitches without a decision. Gusto's last start, August 31 against Washington, was shorter — 4.1 innings, 1 earned run, 4 strikeouts, 2 walks and 4 hits on 69 pitches, also without a decision.
Chicago is favored, and the total is read as middling — not a game the market expects to turn into a slugfest either way. With both starters working back from short, no-decision outings, whichever bullpen holds up longer likely decides it.