Atlanta Braves crush Marlins to win NL East. Where do Miami’s playoff hopes stand now?

Freddie Freeman snatched Jorge Alfaro’s line drive hit down the first base line, a ball snared 97.3 mph off the bat, and the celebration at Truist Park began.

The Atlanta Braves, behind a five RBI night from former Miami Marlins All-Star Marcell Ozuna and five home runs overall, crushed the Marlins 11-1 on Tuesday to clinch their third consecutive National League East and 15th since moving from the NL West in 1994. It’s the 20th overall divisional crown in franchise history.

The Braves stayed on their home field for about 20 minutes after that final out to soak in their latest playoff berth. They donned “Respect Atlanta” T-shirts and “Postseason 2020” hats while DJ Khaled’s “All I Do is Win,” Jay Rock’s “Win,” Panic! At The Disco’s “Victorious,” Kool and the Gang’s “Celebration” among other victory-centric songs blared throughout the stadium.

They posed for a team photo. Pitching coach Rick Kranitz lit a cigar. Blooper, the Braves’ mascot, stood two rows behind the Braves’ dugout in a sea of cardboard cutouts of fans waving an “N.L. East Champs” flag.

The Marlins, meanwhile, slowly retreated into their clubhouse, looking to regroup and find a way to clinch their trip to the postseason.

Miami’s hopes to reach the playoffs for the third time in franchise history remain very much alive. It’s slim chance to win the division is officially over. Any sign of momentum seems to be wavering, too, with the Marlins on a three-game losing streak dating back to the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader with the Washington Nationals.

“They’re pretty good,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said of the Braves. “They showed it. They’re a tough team to deal with as far as their offense. ... They’ve been probably the class of the division over the last few years. They’re the gold standard. They’re the guys you have to go after.”

The Braves, at 33-22, have a five-game lead over the Marlins (28-27) with five games left in the regular season for both clubs. The best Miami could do at this point is tie the Braves by winning all five of its final games and Atlanta closing the season with an 0-5 run. Atlanta and Miami would be tied in their season series 5-5 at that point, but the Braves are guaranteed to own the next tiebreaker between the two teams for best record among division opponents.

With that, the Braves would have the edge even if everything worked in Miami’s favor over the final five days.

“When it’s all said and done, this is the most satisfying with what we had to go through this season to get to this point,” Freeman said in a postgame interview on Fox Sports Southeast. “It seemed like every day, we had someone dropping down and getting hurt. Things weren’t going to go right in 2020. I think everyone knew that 2020 is something else. We were able to just keep grinding, keep it right. ... It’s just amazing.”

The Braves fittingly clinched their division title with a high-octane offensive attack. Atlanta leads MLB in runs scored (326) and on base plus slugging (.843) while ranking second only to the Los Angeles Dodgers with 98 home runs.

They jumped on Marlins starter Jose Urena, the longest-tenured player on Miami’s roster, early and tacked him for four runs over his six innings of work. Ozuna and Ozzie Albies hit solo home runs in the first and second innings. Ozuna then drove in Dansby Swanson and Freeman with a double off the right-field wall in the fourth.

Ozuna, who leads the National League with 17 home runs and 53 RBI, added his second home run of the game in the eighth off Brett Eibner.

“Ozuna killed us all night,” Mattingly said.

Swanson added a solo home run and Freeman followed with a two-run homer off reliever Nick Vincent as part of a five-run seventh inning.

Starling Marte hit a solo home run for the Marlins in the sixth to avoid the shutout. Miami had a chance to cut into their deficit in the eighth with the bases loaded and no outs, but Lewis Brinson struck out and Brian Anderson lined into a double play. Braves spot starter Bryse Wilson, who had thrown 7 2/3 innings this season and came into the game with a 7.04 ERA, held the Marlins scoreless over the first five innings before Atlanta went to its bullpen.

“We really didn’t get a whole lot going,” Mattingly said. “I thought their guy [Wilson] was good tonight, honestly. ... He kind of just throttled us.”

The Marlins’ playoff standings

The best Miami can do now is secure second place in the division, which guarantees a playoff spot this year.

MLB expanded the playoff field for the 2020 season, with 16 total teams advancing to the postseason instead of the usual ten. The top two teams in each division plus the next two teams in each league advance. Every team plays in a best-of-3 Wild Card round to begin the postseason, with the top four seeds in each league (the three division winners and the division runner up with the best record) hosting at their home ballparks before moving to hub cities. The runner-up in the NL West will be the No. 4 seed, so the Marlins will start the postseason on the road should they advance.

At the end of Tuesday’s games, Miami held a one-and-a-half game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies for second place in the division. The Phillies were swept in a doubleheader with the Nationals and are 27-29 on the season. Philadelphia has one more game against Washington on Wednesday and then closes the season with three games against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Miami’s magic number to secure the second spot in the NL East is three after Philadelphia was swept. That number can come from any combination of Marlins wins and Phillies losses. Miami can clinch a playoff spot as early as Thursday.

“Obviously I’d like to be taking care of our own business and we could have done more damage with it,” Mattingly said. “But we’ve just got to get in. Once you get in, you’re dangerous.”

While the Marlins are focused on the task in front of them, which is winning their games and securing their postseason ticket by their play on the field, Mattingly noted that he is keeping up to date with what is happening in games around the league.

“This time of year, it’s only natural that you’re watching all the teams that are involved,” Mattingly said pregame. “Guys know who’s playing who, who’s involved with different races, trying to win your division, all the different scenarios.”

The Marlins’ simplest scenario, however, is to clinch their berth on their own merit. They have two more games against the Braves and three against the New York Yankees to prove it.

“We get out there and everyone tries to do the best we can,” Urena said. “Sometimes we try to do too much. .. We’ve got to keep focused and our heads up.”

This story was originally published September 22, 2020 at 10:00 PM.

Jordan McPherson

Miami Herald

305-376-2129

Jordan McPherson covers the Miami Hurricanes and Florida Panthers for the Miami Herald. He attended the University of Florida and covered the Gators athletic program for five years before joining the Herald staff in December 2017.