The fact that Miami Marlins have had an outstanding start to the 2019 Major League Baseball season is quite simply miraculous. They have only played six games, but the Marlins have a record of five wins and one loss, and are tied with the Minnesota Twins and Chicago Cubs for the best winning percentage at .833. This despite the fact the Marlins had 20 cases of coronavirus, and saw an Olympic silver medalist in short track speed skating make his Major League Baseball debut on Wednesday.
Along the way, the Marlins have won two of three games against the Philadelphia Phillies, and have won the first of three games in a four-game series this week against the Baltimore Orioles. They have outscored their opponents 24-16.
What has been most impressive about the Marlins’ run the last two days has been their starting pitching. On Tuesday, Pablo Lopez threw five shutout innings and struckout seven in a 4-0 Miami win. That was followed by two consecutive wins on Wednesday where Miami only gave up one run. Elieser Hernandez only gave up two hits in 4 1/3 innings pitched in a 1-0 Miami win on Wednesday in the first game of a doubleheader. The Marlins then beat the Orioles 2-1 after a fantastic collective effort by five Marlins pitchers, including starting pitcher Josh Smith.
The short track speed skater who made his Marlins debut on Wednesday was third baseman Eddy Alvarez, who saw five at-bats, but did not collect a hit. Alvarez, who is from Miami, Florida, won a silver medal in the men’s 5000 metre relay for the United States at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi.
Meanwhile, the Marlins announced the signing of veteran infielder Logan Forsythe of Memphis, Tennessee this week. The Marlins become Forsythe’s sixth Major League team after playing for the San Diego Padres, Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers. Last season in Texas, Forsythe batted .227 with seven home runs and 39 runs batted in.
