The One Inning That Keeps Deciding Marlins Games
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It comes at a critical point in the game, where the Miami Marlins must be careful how they perform, as it can change the outcome.
The end result can be a good one or a bad one. It all depends on timely hitting and effective pitching. Of course, miscues can also play a factor in a particular inning.
The Fifth Inning Saga
Every single inning is important in baseball. However, if we have to dictate the one inning that puts the Marlins in a position to succeed or fail, it will have to be the fifth inning.
The sixth inning is an honorable mention as well, but the fifth inning is where things get started; for example, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, which this game took place about three days ago. Miami had a good pitching performance until the fifth inning. Jake Magnum got things started for the Pirates with a triple.
After Magnum's triple, Jared Triolo hit a two-run home run to right-center field to put the Pirates on the board 2-0 in the inning. That's where things began to derail for the Marlins. They ended up losing the game at home in an embarrassing fashion, 13-1.
Two days before this game, the Marlins did get an important insurance run in their 2-0 win to start the series opener.
Eury Perez pitched one heck of a game. Although the Marlins had a 1-0 lead, in the bottom of the fifth, they gave Perez a little more breathing room when Xavier Edwards singled on a ground ball that allowed Esteury Ruiz to score, also thanks to a throwing error by shortstop Jacob Gonzalez.
On Aug 2, against the New York Mets at Citi Field, Joe Mack set the tone in the fifth inning when he hit his 11th home run at the time. Mack put the Marlins on the board and went on to score their second run in the ninth inning. Sandy Alcantara got the win. Pete Fairbanks earned his save.
In a three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers, there was one game where it didn't occur in the fifth inning, but it happened in the following inning.
On July 18, the Brewers scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning after trailing 3-2. They actually were down 3-0 at the start of the game, and they slowly began to creep back in, but it was the sixth inning where the hit marathon erupted. The Marlins would lose that game 8-6. Brewers finished sweeping the Marlins.
Whether it's a win or loss, the fifth inning has been the most important inning for the Marlins, especially during the second half of the season.
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After graduating from City College of New York in 2014, Miguel created his own blog. Since 2021, he has written for FanSided, where he covered the Toronto Blue Jays, College Football and Utah Mammoth hockey team. He also wrote for Miami Heat on SI and Cleveland Sports Talk. Miguel is the creator and host of his podcast, Baseball Heat Podcast with Mike.