Max Meyer Makes Marlins History After Latest Start Leads to Victory
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Max Meyer can't lose. Well, the Miami Marlins can't lose when he's on the mound. The latest evidence came Tuesday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Meyer didn't finish the game. In fact, he didn't give the Marlins a quality start. He only went 5.1 innings, but he allowed seven hits and two earned runs as he walked two and struck out five. Both runs were scored off home runs. His ERA finished at 2.85. The Marlins defeated the Diamondbacks, 10-6.
With that victory, Meyer took a place in Marlins history.
Max Meyer’s Marvelous Streak
With the victory, Meyer completed his 14th start to begin the season without a loss. It broke the record for a season-opening streak without a loss for a Marlins starting pitcher as set by Livan Hernandez in 1997. The Marlins went on to win the World Series that year.
Per Marlins Communications on X (formerly Twitter), he also has the longest such streak in the Majors since the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Tony Gonsolin, who had a 17-game streak from April 9 to July 13, 2022.
Meyer has been stalking that record in his past few starts. On Tuesday he caught it. Now he can go from chasing the season opening record to chasing the record for most consecutive starts without a loss.
Before Tuesday's victory, both he and Hernandez were tied for the fourth-longest streak by a starter in club history during any span. So now Meyer is tied for third. There are three former Marlins starters left to catch. The included Brad Penny (17 games started from 2000-2001), Elieser Hernández (16 games started from 2019-2021), and Aníbal Sánchez (14 games started in 2011).
Meyer’s chance to break the tie with Sánchez is likely to come on Sunday when the Marlins will be in Pittsburgh to face the Pirates. That assumes Miami keeps Meyer on normal rest.
With Eury Perez on the injured list, Meyer’s performance is even more important. He’s the best complement the Marlins have for Sandy Alcantata, who on Sunday moved into third place all-time in Marlins victories. It’s possible he could be dealt at the trade deadline if the Marlins fall further out of the playoff picture.
It's also redemption from Meyer, a former first-round pick who had Tommy John surgery midway through the 2022 season and saw his progress in the majors derailed. The fact that he's contributing like this means not only is the injury behind him, but he's reclaimed the stuff that made him such a hot prospect before the injury.
The Marlins continue their series with the Diamondbacks through Thursday before they hop on a plane to head for Pittsburgh where they open that series on Friday.
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