How the Miami Marlins approached their impromptu off day as they eye a wild-card sweep
The pregame news Thursday didn’t surprise Garrett Cooper. The Miami Marlins, one win from advancing to the National League Division Series, had just finished batting practice at Wrigley Field when they were informed Game 2 of their best-of-3 wild card series against the Chicago Cubs was postponed due to forecasted inclement weather.
“It’s just like any other day this year,” Cooper said. “... another notch to get over.”
The Marlins, however, weren’t fazed by having to wait a day, even if momentum was on their side when the game was called off and they had to wait to see how the rest of the National League’s wild card matchups unfolded to know what time they would be playing Friday (first pitch is set for 2:08 p.m. but could have been at 7:08 p.m. if the Marlins and Cubs were the only game being played).
The Marlins won the first game of the series 5-1 on Wednesday and need one more victory to advance. Should the Cubs win Friday, Game 3 will be played at 3:30 p.m.
“This is just part of what we’ve been dealing with all year,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “As far as changes and throwing a little curveball at you here and there, it’s what we’ve talked to our guys about from the beginning. The team that makes those adjustments gets over it and just gets ready to play. Our mindset’s gonna have to be tell us when and where. We’ll be there.”
MLB called off the game Thursday about an hour before scheduled first pitch. The forecast showed about a 50 percent chance of rain early in the window the game was supposed to be played. The rain held off for the most part, however.
The postponement comes a day after the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians waited out a 45-minute delay Wednesday 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.
“There’s not a whole lot to do and we didn’t have an whole lot to say in it,” Mattingly said. “MLB makes that decision on what they think is going to happen. I guess try to be fair to both clubs and the starters and all those kind of decisions.”
Added Cubs manager David Ross: “The weather’s the weather. I just listen to my bosses and MLB when it comes to that stuff. I definitely was glad that they erred on the side of caution with what happened the other night [with the Yankees and Indians].”
The Marlins are used to altered schedules at this point. Their schedule was remade on the fly after their COVID-19 outbreak one weekend into the season. They made a day trip to New York to face the Mets on Aug. 31 to make up a game postponed in protest following the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. They spent 23 days on the road to start the year and ended the season with 28 games over 24 days, including four doubleheaders and no days off.
“It’s one thing after another this year,” said Cooper, who was one of the 18 players who tested positive for COVID-19. “You do take each day as it is. You don’t look forward to the next day. You control what you can control. It was out of our reach [Thursday]. MLB made the decision to postpone with rain in the area. You just go on. You keep trucking and just go day by day.”
Regardless, the Marlins know where they stand right now. One more win over the next two days, and they move on to Houston to face the Atlanta Braves.
“Nothing out of the ordinary,” Cooper said. “It’s just another day. Another day to get better. Another day to come out here and try to win.”
The Cubs, meanwhile, know they need to win to keep their season alive. Outfielder Kyle Schwarber said the players took the initiative to go over scouting reports over the impromptu off day to get prepared for first pitch.
“We’re not going to leave any page unturned here,” Schwarber said. “This isn’t us taking anything lightly. This is an elimination game for us.”
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