Meyer Makes All-Star Case as Marlins Welcome Familiar Face

MIAMI — For many Major Leaguers, the push to the 2026 MLB All-Star Game began when the ballots were released on June 3. 

For Miami Marlins right-handed pitcher Max Meyer, his push to the All-Star Game begins on Tuesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks. 

Meyer is certainly worthy of being an All-Star. He enters Tuesday as the only starting pitcher in MLB to not suffer a defeat. His 2.81 ERA is in the Top 10 among National League pitchers, and his 81 strikeouts leads the Marlins' starting rotation. In his previous outing, Meyer limited the Washington Nationals to one earned run on two hits with seven strikeouts in seven innings during the Marlins’ 4-1 win. 

Meyer (6-0) has the opportunity to set the Marlins franchise record for the longest streak of starts without a loss with a successful outing on Tuesday. He is in a good place to accomplish the feat, as he has a 1.79 ERA through seven home starts. 

Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said during his pregame press conference that Meyer has been consistently good this year to the point where “We expect Max to go out and have a strong start, put us in a position to win this game.”

“He’s been terrific this year,” McCullough said.

Before becoming the Marlins manager, McCullough was a member of Dave Roberts’ coaching staff with the Los Angeles Dodgers. After winning the World Series for the second straight season, Roberts will once again be the manager of the National League All-Stars and choose the pitching staff. 

“I may have to send Dave some messages here as it starts to heat up,” McCullough said. 

The Marlins (31-35) have won 11 games in both April and May but are 5-1 so far in June. 

“I think we have played well,” McCullough said. “I do like where we’ve been in the last week or so, and I’m proud of our guys and how they responded to a rough start to their road trip.

The Diamondbacks will send a familiar face in Zac Gallen, who started his career with the Marlins in 2019. Despite having a 2.72 ERA through seven starts, the Marlins traded Gallen to the Diamondbacks for Jazz Chisholm. Gallen has a career 3.69 ERA, a 1.18 WHIP, and 1,103 strikeouts in 1,071.2 innings pitched over 189 games. 

Gallen has struggled throughout the season, posting a 5.32 ERA through 13 outings. In his last seven appearances, Gallen posted a 7.07 ERA through 35.2 innings and a 2-4 record. 

The Diamondbacks (34-31) are coming off a 3-4 homestand with a series loss against the Dodgers and a split series with the Nationals. Arizona is 3-7 in its last 10 games. 

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