Fried Fish—Series Preview: Marlins at Phillies, August 9 – 11

Kim Ng, the General Manager of the Miami Marlins, said that the Marlins would not sell at the trade deadline. At this point, Miami was just a few games back of a playoff spot as their record hung around .500. Ng was confident that the group of players they had could potentially lead them to a playoff appearance, but she was not confident enough in her players to make additions at the trade deadline. But just three weeks later, the fish are fried, and zero reinforcements are coming their way.

The Phillies—who were sent reinforcements before the deadline—will host the skidding Marlins as the Phils look to continue taking advantage of subpar teams like Miami.

Last time they met

The Phillies, actually, started the Marlins’ drop-off when they swept them in a three-game series in Miami right before the all-star break. Their struggles continued after the break when they lost eight of their first twelve. They lost the first two series against the Pirates and Reds and followed that by being swept by division-leading Mets.

In that last series before the break, Kyle Gibson pitched one of his best games this season, and Ranger Suarez shined in his first game since returning from the injured list. J.T. Realmuto, Rhys Hoskins, and Didi Gregorius sparked the Phillies’ ten-run win in game two, and Aaron Nola shut out the Marlins in game three.

As many know, the Phillies have always struggled on the road versus the Marlins. The win in game three was the first time the Phillies swept the Marlins in Miami since September 2010.

Watch out for Sandy

Sandy Alcantara is the favorite to win the NL Cy Young in 2022, and the Phillies will receive the unpleasant gift of having to face him in game two of this series.

Alcantara, who has a 1.88 ERA in 22 starts this season, is coming off a complete-game shutout of the Cincinnati Reds. He did allow six hits, but he was efficient enough to make it through all nine innings.

When the Phillies saw him in June, he allowed two runs in 7.2 innings of work. His stuff was excellent until the seventh and eighth innings, but he did struggle to control his pitches. Surprisingly, this will be the fourth time this season that the Phils face off against Alcantara, while some teams like the Braves have faced him just twice in 2022.

A shorthanded opponent

Injuries will always happen in baseball, but the Marlins have more than what seems realistic. The number has come down since, but the Marlins had 17 players on the injured list on August 2. This list includes top prospects Max Meyer, Jesus Sanchez, and Sixto Sanchez; 2021 Rookie of the Year Trevor Rogers; all-star Jazz Chisholm, Jr.; World Series MVP Jorge Soler; former all-star Avisail Garcia; and utility man Brian Anderson. Jon Berti, also on the shelf, has arguably been the Marlins’ most consistent hitter at the top of the lineup.

Edward Cabrera, the starter in game three, has made just one start since coming off the IL at the beginning of the month.

Pitching matchups

Game 1: Zack Wheeler (RHP, 10-5, 2.69 ERA) vs. Braxton Garrett (LHP, 2-5, 3.88 ERA)

Game 2: Noah Syndergaard (RHP, 6-8, 4.02 ERA) vs. Sandy Alcantara (RHP, 10-4, 1.88 ERA)

Game 3: Kyle Gibson (RHP, 7-4, 4.36 ERA) vs. Edward Cabrera (RHP, 2-1, 2.61 ERA)

The numbers

• Run Differential:
• Phillies: 72
• Marlins: -36

• Runs Scored Per Game:
• Phillies: 4.78
• Marlins: 3.84

• Runs Allowed Per Game:
• Phillies: 4.11
• Marlins: 4.18

Game times and broadcasts

• Tuesday, August 9, at 7:05pm ET on NBC Sports Philadelphia, WTTM 1680, 94.1 WIP
• Wednesday, August 10, at 7:05pm ET on NBC Sports Philadelphia, WTTM 1680, 94.1 WIP
• Thursday, August 11, at 1:05pm ET on MLB Network, NBC Sports Philadelphia, WTTM 1680, 94.1 WIP

Game coverage will be available on Philly Sports Reports’ Twitter.