Behind Braxton Garrett, Marlins clinch series vs Astros and win fifth straight game
.JPG "Miami Marlins starting pitcher Braxton Garrett throws against the Houston Astros during the first inning of a baseball game Saturday, June 11, 2022, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)")
Dating back to spring training, Braxton Garrett thought he was at the point where he could crack the Miami Marlins’ starting rotation. The left-handed pitcher had made 10 appearances over 2020 and 2021 with spotty results but felt more prepared heading into this season with an upgraded pitch mix featuring an improved slider as well as a better understanding of how his pitches play at the big league level.
Garrett didn’t break camp with the club, starting the season in Triple A before missing time with a shoulder injury.
He finally got the call up last as the Marlins dealt with injuries (Jesus Luzardo and Cody Poteet) and underperformance (Elieser Hernandez) with the bottom of its rotation.
Whether he stays long-term is tough to gauge at this point, but at the very least, Garrett is giving the Marlins something to ponder.
The 24-year-old was dominant on Saturday, holding the Houston Astros to one unearned run over 5 2/3 innings in the Marlins’ 5-1 series-clinching win at Minute Maid Park — Miami’s fifth consecutive win to improve to 27-30 on the season.
Garrett recorded five strikeouts while scattering six hits and issuing one walk as he picked up his first win of the season.
“I tried this year to just be more confident,” Garrett said. “I’ve really gotten better at preparing and having a plan going in. I feel like I know what I’m doing. My delivery’s in a good spot right now to where I have the confidence to throw any pitch at any count.”
He threw 83 pitches, 59 of which went for strikes, and minimized damage despite the Astros (36-23) regularly having traffic on the basepaths.
He worked around a Michael Brantley one-out single in the first by striking out Alex Bregman and Yordan Alvarez, hopping off the mound and pumping his fist into his glove as he made his way back to the dugout. He worked around a Kyle Tucker one-out double in the second by striking out Jeremy Pena and getting Mauricio Dubon to line out to center field.
After cruising through the third and fourth, Garrett gave up his only run in the fifth when Jose Altuve’s double off the wall in left-center scored Pena, who led off the inning by reaching on a fielding error.
And in the sixth, he had runners on first and second with no outs on a Bregman double and Alvarez walk. He retired the next two batters — Yuli Gurriel popping out and Tucker grounding out — before being lifted. Dylan Floro stranded the two inherited runners by striking out Pena.
“I always want to get of out [the jam myself], of course, but that’s [manager Don Mattingly’s] decision,” Garrett said. “He made a good one.”
It followed up Garrett’s season debut on Sunday, a 5-1 loss in which he was solid for three innings against the San Francisco Giants before giving up a grand slam in the fourth.
Anthony Bass worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the seventh by striking out Brantley and getting Bregman to hit into a double play. Steven Okert worked a perfect eighth and Louis Head sealed the win with a scoreless ninth inning.
And one day after belting out four home runs, the Marlins manufactured their offense on Saturday. They scored three runs in the second on two groundball singles, two walks and an RBI groundout, added another run in the third on an RBI fielder’s choice and tacked on a fifth run in the bottom of the ninth on back-to-back two-out singles.
Injury updates and roster moves
The Marlins on Saturday placed first baseman/designated hitter Garrett Cooper on the injured list for undisclosed reasons and selected the contract of right-handed relief pitcher Aneurys Zabala to take his place on the active roster.
With no other corresponding move, this points to a COVID-19-related IL although the Marlins don’t officially announce when players are placed on that list. The Marlins had a full 40-man roster before Cooper was put on the IL, and players on the COVID-19-related IL do not count toward a team’s 40-man roster for the duration of their IL stint.
Cooper was removed from Friday’s 7-4 win in the eighth inning with what Mattingly said was cramping. Mattingly said pregame Saturday, without going into specifics, that Cooper was “not feeling good overnight. We did some testing on him and we’ll see where that goes. Not doing great today.”
Cooper entered Saturday with a .315 batting average that ranked 12th in MLB (and fifth in the National League) heading into the day. The bulk of his production has occurred over the past three weeks, an 18-game stretch that started on May 20 in which he has hit .455 (30 for 66) with 10 extra-base hits (seven doubles, one triple, two home runs), 14 RBI and 10 runs scored. He recorded multiple hits in 12 of those 18 games.
Up next
The Marlins cap their three-game series with the Astros on Sunday, with first pitch set for 2:10 p.m. Edward Cabrera (2-0, 0.75 ERA) will be on the mound for the Marlins opposite the Astros’ Justin Verlander (7-2, 2.13).
After that, the Marlins continue their three-city road trip with a three-game set against the Philadelphia Phillies from Monday through Wednesday before wrapping up with four games against the New York Mets starting Friday.
This story was originally published June 11, 2022 at 7:24 PM.
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