De La Cruz’s double caps latest Marlins rally for series-clinching win over White Sox
The Miami Marlins have found themselves in close games all season and that includes all three contests this weekend in Chicago. And like they’ve done all year, Miami continues to find ways to win.
Trailing by two runs entering the ninth, the Marlins stormed back to win yet again, 6-5, against the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. Bryan De La Cruz came up clutch and delivered a two-out, go-ahead, two-run double to get Miami to a season-high eight games over .500.
“I think the turning point was that they just don’t give up,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “It just didn’t feel like we were ever down, even when we were down 5-1. It felt like we were still in it.”
The victory marked the team’s 17th one-run win and their 20th come-from-behind win of the season. The Marlins scored five in the ninth in Saturday’s win and scored three on Sunday to win the series.
“I think they believe that they’re in it at all times,” Schumaker said. “And once you win from behind a couple of times early in the season, then you know you can do it. These guys, with the way the bullpen is set up, believe they are in every game and so does the staff.”
The Marlins were in danger of losing the series after the bullpen faltered following Braxton Garrett’s dominant start. They trailed 5-1 entering the eighth. But Miami cut into the deficit in the eighth on solo homers from Jorge Soler — his second of the game — and Garrett Cooper.
Then, the tide completely changed in the ninth.
Jean Segura hit his first home run of the season to cut the lead to one. Jonathan Davis then reached base via a catcher’s interference and Soler walked two batters later, setting the stage for De La Cruz to be the hero with two outs.
“I was feeling the adrenaline of the momentum of the game was flowing all over me,” De La Cruz said. “And I told the guys, I wanted to get that at-bat, I wanted to be like the hero of the game.”
And he delivered by turning on an inside sinker down the left field line, bringing in two runs and giving the Marlins the lead. Miami has now come from behind in five of its last seven games and the team is embracing it.
“Resiliency,” Soler said. “Working hard, trying to go out there and compete all the time. We’ve been doing it for a while already. As a team, we want to work and play into the end of the game and never give up…”
Early on, the Marlins were locked into a pitcher’s duel with Garrett dealing on the mound. He set down 12 of the first 14 batters he faced and allowed just three hits and one walk with a season-high nine strikeouts across 5 1/3 scoreless innings.
“He was so good keeping them off balance,” Schumaker said. “There wasn’t loud contact at all, [it was] so tough to pull him [in the sixth].”
Garrett was outstanding again and the offense provided another comeback victory. The Marlins are now 37-29 on the season, tying their second-best record through 66 games in club history.
“It’s one of the beautiful things that I’ve experienced in my career, being with a team like this [and] the way we’re playing,” Soler said. “I know a lot of people don’t believe in us but we do, and we’re gonna continue to play hardball.”