Phillies Series Again Serves as Marlins Measuring Stick

Once again, the Philadelphia Phillies serve as the measuring stick of the Miami Marlins’ season. 

The two teams last met at the beginning of May in Miami, when the Marlins were 15-16 coming off a series win at Los Angeles. The Marlins dropped 3-of-4 against the Phillies and went on to struggle to the point of being eight games below .500 throughout the second month of the season. 

This time around, the Marlins enter Philadelphia battling back to .500 at 36-36. They won all four series and 10-of-12 so far in June. How they do against Philadelphia will signify how sustainable their current run is. 

The Marlins serve as a measuring stick for the Phillies as well. Their previous series was coming off a managerial change and the beginning of a run that led to the Phillies seeing their potential and vaulting back to a playoff position. Don Mattingly, who was the longest tenured manager in Marlins history, once guided the Fightin’ Fish to a playoff appearance in 2020 and now is working with the best roster in his long career. 

From a starting pitching perspective, the Phillies are well-positioned against the Marlins. Philadelphia will have Zack Wheeler (5-1, 2.22 ERA) on the mound Monday against Ryan Gusto (0-1, 6.00 ERA). 

Gusto is coming off a solid, though short, start on June 10, in which he struck out four batters in four scoreless innings in a win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Gusto spent much of the season in Triple-A Jacksonville, where he went 4-2 with a 3.83 ERA and a team-leading 52 strikeouts in 10 appearances.

Gusto told reporters after his outing game that his approach as a current member of the Marlins rotation is “definitely trying to strike everyone out.”

“You don't want to give up any runs if at all possible,” Gusto said. “I think the only acceptable ball to put in play there would be a [double play], obviously. It's easier said than done.”

Tyler Phillips (1-1, 1.86 ERA) will continue his experiment as a starting pitcher against former Marlin Jesus Luzardo (5-4, 4.35 ERA). Phillips had his best outing on Sunday with five scoreless innings with five strikeouts, despite saying he “felt terrible” that day.

“I don't know if what I ate for breakfast never settled in my stomach or if I didn't get enough sleep,” Phillips said on June 11, “but I was able to figure it out.”

The Marlins will finish the series on Wednesday with the MLB leader in innings pitched and one of the best starting pitchers in franchise history going up against a rookie from Ft. Lauderdale. Sandy Alcantara, in the midst of non-stop trade rumors, came off an eight-inning performance, earning his 1,000th career strikeout in an 8-3 win over Pittsburgh. 

With 991 strikeouts as a Marlin, it would take a 10-strikeout performance to tie Ricky Nolasco (1,001) for the most punch-outs in franchise history on Wednesday. 

“He's the guy,” Marlins catcher Joe Mack said of Alcantara on June 12. “We call him ‘Caballo’ [horse] for a reason. He's out there pitching his heart out, and he's out there doing as best as he can, learning from every single game.”

The Phillies will send out Andrew Painter (1-7, 6.43 ERA) in the series finale. He allowed three runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts in five innings during a 4-0 loss against the Marlins in his first start in Miami. 

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