The Miami Marlins — who have the third-lowest payroll in the majors — have won a season-high four consecutive games.
The New York Mets — who have the highest payroll in the majors — are in a swoon, having lost seven of the past nine games.
On Sunday afternoon, the two teams with the worst records in the National League East will meet in Miami, with the Marlins looking for a three-game sweep.
During this streak, the Marlins have won in varied ways. Their first three wins were shutouts. And on Saturday, they rallied to beat the Mets 10-9 in 10 innings.
Miami trailed 9-5 in the ninth before getting four runs off struggling Mets closer Edwin Diaz, whose ERA has soared from 2.13 to 5.50 due to three blown saves in the past two weeks.
Marlins manager Skip Schumaker spoke glowingly on Saturday about his team’s perseverance.
“(Our) guys don’t stop believing,” he said. “That’s a cliche, but it’s true. You see (Diaz) come in, and you still believe you have a chance? That says a lot about our clubhouse.”
Interestingly, Schumaker criticized himself on Saturday.
“Good players cover a manager’s mistakes,” he said. “I was late going to the bullpen a few times (on Saturday). I managed that game terribly. But we won, and that overshadowed things.”
Despite this win streak, the Marlins still have the worst record in the National League at 15-32 while the Mets are 20-25. But that doesn’t tell the whole story. Since a 12-8 start to the season, the Mets have gone 8-17.
Diaz is only part of New York’s problems, but lacking the ability to close games has hurt them.
“I won’t lie,” Diaz said. “My confidence is down. I’m throwing strikes. I’m trying to do my best to help the team win. But, right now, I’m not in that capacity.”
The Mets on Sunday will hope to contain Miami’s Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Josh Bell, both of whom went 3-for-5 on Saturday. Bell had four RBIs and Chisholm three.
Then there’s Marlins second baseman Otto Lopez, who replaced Luis Arraez when the two-time batting champion was traded to the San Diego Padres on May 4.
Lopez had the game-winning hit on Saturday, which was a proud moment for the 25-year-old.
“My confidence is at 100,” said Lopez, who before this season had only 10 MLB at-bats. “I have worked hard to get to this point in my career.”
Sunday’s pitching matchup will feature Mets left-hander Sean Manaea (2-1, 3.05 ERA) against Miami right-hander Sixto Sanchez (0-1, 5.96).
Manaea has made two career starts against the Marlins, going 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA.
The Mets are 5-3 when Manaea starts this year, and both of his outings this month go down as quality starts.
Sanchez, who has never faced the Mets, is still just 25. He showed promise in limited action in 2020, going 3-2 with a 3.46 ERA in seven starts.
However, over the next three years, Sanchez — due to injuries — made just one appearance, and that came in 2023 in one inning at Double-A Pensacola.
This year, the Marlins are just 2-9 in his 11 appearances.
His longest outing this season has been 4 2/3 innings, and that came Monday in a 6-5 loss to the Detroit Tigers. He did not figure into the decision.
–Field Level Media
