The Miami Marlins head into the West Coast with the kind of trip that can still matter, even if the playoff math is ugly. They were in the National League wild-card conversation not long ago, but after losing seven of their last 10, they’ve slipped to 7.5 games back of the San Diego Padres for the third and final spot.
That makes the margin razor thin. Miami’s elimination number is five from the wild card, and the club could be knocked out before it even gets back home. Still, Clayton McCullough’s team has a chance to tilt the race, and that starts with a six-game swing against the two clubs chasing the last playoff berth: the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Padres.
The Marlins opened that stretch Sunday with a walk-off win over the Los Angeles Dodgers at loanDepot park, getting a home run from Agustin Ramírez to end the game. Now they’re headed west, where the assignment is simple enough on paper: make life harder for the teams they’re chasing.
Against Arizona, Miami will go with its top arm to start the series. Sandy Alcantara gets the ball Monday night in the opener, followed by Janson Junk and Ryan Gusto. The pitching matchups are set for 9:40 p.m. starts each night:
Monday: Sandy Alcantara (13-10, 3.78 ERA) vs. Corbin Burnes (0-0, 0.00 ERA), 9:40 p.m.
Tuesday: Janson Junk (6-9, 4.54 ERA) vs. Michael Soroka (8-5, 3.53 ERA), 9:40 p.m.
Wednesday: Ryan Gusto (1-5, 4.14 ERA) vs. Merrill Kelly (9-13, 4.97 ERA), 9:40 p.m.
Burnes will be making just his second start of the season for Arizona on Monday night, while Soroka and Kelly are lined up to finish the series for the Diamondbacks.
The stakes are a little different on the San Diego side. The Padres are rolling, having won seven straight after sweeping the San Francisco Giants over the weekend. They also draw a series this week in Colorado against a Rockies team that has been swept in back-to-back series, first by the Detroit Tigers and then by the New York Yankees in the Bronx.
For Miami, the postseason path is still there in theory, but it’s narrow. If the playoff door closes, this trip still gives the Marlins a chance to matter in the race and gives players another opportunity to build their case for a place on the Miami roster in 2027 and beyond.
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Agustn Ramirez Just Delivered A Marlins Moment Fans Wont Forget
Agustin Ramirez gave the Marlins one of those late-summer moments that can reset a clubhouse for a night, launching a pinch-hit walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth against the Dodgers. It was the kind of swing that lands with a little extra force around here, not just because of the opponent, but because it came from a player who has been asked to move around the diamond and absorb the churn that comes with a changing roster.
For Miami, it was also a rare piece of history, the clubs first pinch-hit walk-off homer since 2010 and only the sixth such blast in franchise history. For Ramirez, it was a defining snapshot of a season that has required flexibility and patience, and for the Marlins it was a reminder that even in a year full of adjustments, one swing can still give a team and its fans something to hold onto. [Read more 🡒]