Fish Wrap - Marlins 8, Reds 10

Dear Florida Marlins,

If you are going to end up losing the game anyway, please stop forcing extra innings and getting our hopes up, only to dash them in the end. Thanks.

XOXO,

FishStripes

Game-tying home runs, web gems, and history-making hits weren't enough to put the Fish in the win column. For the second night in a row, the Marlins were able to come back, only to end up losing in extra innings.

Nate Robertson made the start for Florida, and went just five innings, allowing six runs on five hits.

In the second inning Nate gave up a three-run homer to Johnny Gomes, and very nearly followed that up with another when Jay Bruce hit a long line drive to right that was originally ruled a home run. The call was overturned, but then with two out in the fourth, the long ball struck again. Nate gave up another three-run shot to Ryan Hanigan to put the Marlins in a 5-run hole. In all fairness to Robertson, those three runs were unearned, the result of Cantu's misplay of a grounder for the Marlins 12th (and Major League-leading) error of the season.

The Marlins broke through against Bronson Arroyo in the fifth inning with RBI from Mike Lamb, Cameron Maybin, Hanley Ramirez and Jorge Cantu to bring the Fish within a run. With his RBI single, Jorge became just the second player in history, and first since 1921, to have at least one hit and one RBI in the first 8 games of the season.

The Reds scored another two runs in the top of the eighth off of Jose Veras, but in the bottom of the inning, the Marlins answered back against rookie reliever Logan Ondrusek. Cody Ross walked up to bat to the usual chants of "Cody! Cody! Cody!" from the home crowd, and smashed a three-run home run to tie the game at 8.

Both bullpens held the score for two innings, but the Marlins luck ran out in the 11th. Dan Meyer gave up a single to Hanigan and walked Stubbs. Then with one out, Chris Coghlan further elevated the hopes of Fish fans when he showed off in left field, making a spectacular play and robbing Orlando Cabrera of a few RBI.

But it wasn't enough to prevent the inevitable. After Coghlan's web gem, Dan Meyer gave up the game-winning RBI single to Joey Votto. Francisco Cordero recorded another save, and the Fish dropped their second extra-inning affair in two days.

Sigh.