Game 2 between Marlins-Cubs is postponed because of bad weather. Here’s what’s next
The Miami Marlins’ wild card game had already been postponed, the threat of inclement weather here forcing MLB to be cautious. Miami would have to wait at least another day to potentially punch their ticket to the National League Division Series.
But there was Sixto Sanchez in shallow right field, running wind sprints and playing catch with pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. A few more players and club personnel lingered on the field a little bit afterward as well. Members of the Marlins’ taxi squad stayed behind and got in a quick, 45-minute workout in right field as the sky cleared up and a tarp laid out to the side of them, ready to be placed over the infield when the weather started to pick up. This came after the Marlins took batting practice underneath an overcast sky about an hour before first pitch was supposed to happen Thursday.
They’ve been through this routine before. The Marlins have gone through postponements and doubleheaders and weather delays and rescheduling all year.
Why would the postseason be any different?
Game 2 of the best-of-3 wild card series between the Marlins and Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field was postponed because of inclement weather throughout the day Thursday in Chicago. The Marlins won the first game of the series 5-1 on Wednesday and need to win just one of the final two in order to advance to the next round of the playoffs.
The postponement comes a day after the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians waited out a 45-minute delay due to inclement weather in the area only to begin the game when rain began falling at Cleveland’s Progressive Field. The game was delayed a second time for about 20 minutes six batters into the game.
Game 2 of Marlins-Cubs is now slated begin at 2:08 p.m. Friday on ABC. An if-necessary Game 3 would be played Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
The winner of the series will face the Atlanta Braves in the best-of-5 NLDS in Houston starting Tuesday. The Braves swept the Cincinnati Reds in their wild card matchup at Truist Park 1-0 (13 innings) Wednesday and 5-0 Thursday.
Another setback
The Marlins are used to setbacks this season. Thursday was just the latest. For the recap of their season:
▪ There was the week in quarantine in Philadelphia following a COVID-19 outbreak that resulted in 18 players testing positive.
▪ There was the complete overhaul of their 60-game schedule that had them spend 23 consecutive days on the road, play seven doubleheaders and have a 24-day stretch with 28 games to close out the regular season.
▪ There were the 18 MLB debuts, 61 players (including 25 rookies) and 174 roster moves in a 60-game season. Only five players have been on the active roster the entire season.
But through it all, they went 31-29 to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2003 and won the first game of their postseason run. Waiting a day to continue isn’t going to faze them.
“We’ve been through a lot, obviously, as everyone knows” utility player Jon Berti said pregame. “It’s been quite a story, so to be able to win here and to move on and add another chapter to this would be awesome. We’re just looking forward to the opportunity and we’re gonna have some fun out there.”
Added starting pitcher Pablo Lopez: “Once we resumed playing in Baltimore [after the COVID outbreak], and we won five games in a row, that’s when a lot of us knew we had something special and if we just kept trusting and kept playing for the guy next to us, we were gonna be able to make it happen.”
Pitching plans
The Marlins, for now, plan to keep their rotation on the order they set for the series. That means Sanchez, the Marlins’ top prospect with the 100 mph fastball that highlights a five-pitch mix, is pitching on Friday and Lopez would start the if-necessary game on Saturday.
“You never know what’s going to happen in a series and how it’s going to go, but I think as much as anything, kind of the feeling as the group gets together, it was that you don’t want to go through a series and this guy doesn’t pitch,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said pregame Thursday about Sanchez. “With his kind of stuff and even though he’s struggled the last couple, he’s had some really good ones. We feel like his stuff is dynamic enough that he can dominate a game if he’s on. We didn’t want to have a scenario where we don’t win yesterday and Sixto, you know, we have him lined up for Game 3 and you don’t ever get to see or he doesn’t pitch where you have the chance to go out and dominate a game.”
As for Lopez? Mattingly noted how he pitched in “a lot of big games” this season. He’s the only pitcher who made every scheduled start and 6-4 on the season with a 3.61 ERA and 59 strikeouts against 18 walks over 57 1/3 innings. His final three starts of the season? Lopez has given up just three earned runs over 17 1/3 innings (a 1.56 ERA) while striking out 19 batters against five walks.
“He’s been a stopper for us kind of all year and one of the mainstays during the COVID [outbreak],” Mattingly said. “He was the one guy we tried to get the ball to a lot. We felt like he would be best suited for that type of game if we got there.”
This story was originally published October 1, 2020 at 1:13 PM.
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