Stowers’ hot streak continues as Marlins clinch Mariners series, keep piling on wins
Before his second-inning home run, before the 416-foot shot to center field that gave the Miami Marlins an early lead on Wednesday, Kyle Stowers came up big on a pair of plays with his glove in the first inning.
First, he turned his body in just the right way to corral a long throw from shortstop Otto Lopez to get Randy Arozarena out and then made a stab at a hard-hit Josh Naylor ground ball to record the final out in the first inning and strand two runners.
“I don’t even know how I made that pick,” starting pitcher Tyler Phillips said of the first play. “That would have that would have hit me square in the kneecap. I guess that’s why I’m a pitcher.”
As important as Stowers’ bat is to the lineup — he’s coming off a breakout 2025 season during which he hit a team-best 25 homers and had a .912 on-base-plus-slugging mark — his adjustment to a new position, moving from his usual spots in the corner outfield to getting more playing time at first base, has been equally critical for the red-hot Marlins.
Both aspects of Stowers’ game were on display in Miami’s 2-0 series-clinching win over the Seattle Mariners. The Marlins have won 25 of 33 games since June 1 and are 9-1-1 in their past 11 series to improve to 51-42 on the season.
And they’ve been on display essentially for the entirety of this hot stretch.
Since June 1, Stowers is hitting .271 (32 for 118) with 18 extra-base hits, including nine of his 12 home runs, across 31 games. The Marlins are 7-0 in games over that stretch when Stowers hits a home run. It’s been a needed turnaround for the 2025 All-Star after his start to the season was delayed by a pair of hamstring injuries during spring training.
“I feel good at the plate,” Stowers said. “I think I have a chance every night, which is a really good place to be. Obviously some games don’t go so well, and some games go better than others, but every night I have a chance.”
Meanwhile, Wednesday was Stowers’ 19th start at first base. He has committed just two errors there while ranking 12th in FanGraphs’ defensive rating among 43 players who have played at least 150 innings at first base this season. Stowers also has 29 starts in left field, 11 in right field and eight as the designated hitter this year, but his ability to play an adequate first base allows manager Clayton McCullough more flexibility by freeing up an outfield spot that allows Heriberto Hernandez, Owen Caissie and Griffin Conine to get in the starting lineup more frequently.
“I want to just get as best I can for the team,” Stowers said.
His early home run on Wednesday gave Miami a lead it wouldn’t relinquish. He sent a middle-middle knuckle curve from Seattle’s George Kirby to straightaway center field to give the Marlins an early 1-0 advantage.
An Xavier Edwards RBI triple in the third doubled Miami’s lead.
That was more than enough for the Marlins as four pitchers combined to throw the team’s eighth shutout of the season. Phillips kept the Mariners (47-46) off the board for five innings, working around four hits and a pair of walks while striking out three. Cade Gibson (two innings), Michael Petersen (one inning) and Pete Fairbanks (one inning) took care of the final four frames, with Fairbanks earning his 13th save of the season in the process.
Otto Lopez ties Marlins record
With his latest multi-hit effort on Wednesday, shortstop Otto Lopez tied the Marlins’ record for most hits before the All-Star Break with 126, matching a mark set by Luis Arraez during the 2023 season.
Lopez leads MLB with a .346 batting average.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Lopez is the first player in MLB with 40 multi-hit games before the All-Star Break since Houston’s Jose Altuve in 2014. The last player with more than 40 multi-hit games before the break was the New York Mets’ Jose Reyes in 2011 (43).
Caissie exits early
Caissie was removed from Wednesday’s game in the top of the second inning due to right calf tightness. Conine replaced Caissie in right field.
Caissie entered Wednesday with a .239 batting average and 12 home runs, the latter of which is tied with Stowers and Hernandez for second on the team. Seven of those home runs have come since June 10, a 22-game stretch in which he is hitting .300 with a 1.038 OPS and 20 RBI.
This story was originally published July 8, 2026 at 8:59 PM.
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