‘He’s been our catalyst the whole year’: The Miami Marlins go as Luis Arraez goes
The Miami Marlins’ extra-inning, walk-off win over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday served as a potentially pivotal moment as the team tries turn things around and get out of the rough patch to begin the second half of the season.
But the win also reinforced, yet again, just how valuable Luis Arraez is to the Marlins offense, particularly in adverse situations.
With the bases loaded in the 10th inning and the Rockies playing with five infielders, Arraez singled to a vacated right field to seal the victory. It was Arraez’s first walk-off hit in his five-year career. Additionally, it was his MLB-high 14th game with three hits this year.
“The good thing is [that] we win the game,” Arraez said after the game. “It’s been a long time since we won, but I wanna say thank God that it’s passed already. We’ve got a really good team. I want to say thank God for the opportunity.”
The win snapped Miami’s season-long eight-game losing streak, one that dropped them from the second-best record in the National League to, at the time, being on the outside looking in of the playoffs.
But as dominant as Arraez has been all season, he got off to (by his standards) a rough start to the second half.
Arraez entered Sunday’s game hitting only .294 while also going without a hit in three of the first eight games since play resumed following the All-Star Break. This included his first multi-strikeout game of the season. Before the break, he had only made 13 of his 82 starts without recording a hit while batting .383 overall.
The team has immense confidence in Arraez during crucial moments, according to left-handed pitcher Jesus Luzardo, who was instrumental in the victory and restricted the Rockies to only four hits and one run over seven innings with a career-high 13 strikeouts.
“Just watching him the whole year and how he goes about his preparation and his work, I feel like he comes up big for us constantly,” Luzardo said. “Every time he’s up in a clutch spot, we have a good feeling.”
Arraez is known for his strong hitting and versatility on the field. He made his MLB debut with the Minnesota Twins in 2019 and quickly became a fan favorite due to his impressive offensive skills, high batting average and lively personality.
The Marlins acquired Arraez from the Twins in January in exchange for right-handed pitcher Pablo Lopez, along with two prospects with the hopes that Arraez would become a vital addition to the team’s struggling offense at the time.
He has undoubtedly been one of the Marlins best hitters since joining the club, as evidenced by the fact that his .379 batting average tops all MLB players entering Miami’s series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday. He’s seeking to conclude the season with at least a .400 average and become the first player to do so since Ted Williams in 1941.
After the game on Sunday, Marlins manager Skip Schumaker praised Arraez for the consistent dedication that he puts into perfecting his craft day in and day out.
“He’s been our catalyst the whole year,” Schumaker said. “You know, running the bases the right way. Working the right way. … [He’s] just one of the leaders, if not the leader, in the clubhouse, and it’s just really great to see him get his first walk off.”
The Marlins had to endure six straight losses on the road before returning home and dropping two more games. So, post game celebrations in the locker room are a treasure that have undoubtedly been missed, according to Arraez.
“I missed that,” Arraez said. “We have a lot of energy and I want to do it every day. I want to win every day. That’s why I’m here. We lost a lot of games, but we’re still fighting. We fight and then we come back. Tomorrow, we have a day off and then we have to go to Tampa. We just need to keep continuing to play hard.”