The Miami Marlins scored two runs in the third inning against Taylor Jordan and the Washington Nationals in the final game before the All-Star Break, one in which the Fish lost in 10 innings, 5-2. Since that time, the Marlins have not scored a run, and there have been three games after that one. The Marlins were shut out of the three-game series versus the Milwaukee Brewers, being outscored 9-0 in the set. This marks the second time in two years that the Fish have been shut out of three consecutive games, and it also marks the longest consecutive scoreless inning streak since the 1985 Houston Astros went 42 straight innings without a run.
The Marlins' offensive futility has been well-noted here, but the Fish have taken their struggles to yet another level over the weekend. The Marlins' failure to score a single run is endemic of a team-wide problem with offense combined with some bad luck over the weekend. The Marlins outhit the Brewers on Friday night, but two solo home runs allowed by Jacob Turner cost the team a potentially winnable game. Yesterday, the Marlins grounded into three double plays in situations in which they could have brought a runner home.
But bad luck is just part of the reason for this latest streak of awfulness. Outside of a streaking Adeiny Hechavarria (eight hits in 16 plate appearances in the four-game streak), no Marlin is playing well. This is especially true for the faltering middle of the lineup. Giancarlo Stanton is the Marlins' best player, but he has just one hit in the last four games (18 plate appearances) and has struck out seven times along the way. Logan Morrison also has just one hit in the last four games in 17 plate appearances. Marcell Ozuna has just two hits in that time frame.
But blaming just the middle of the lineup would be unfair to them, as the entire cast has been very bad. After a perfectly acceptable month of June on offense, the Fish have dropped back down in a big way this entire month, not just in the four-game scoreless streak. The Marlins are hitting just .216/.293/.317 (.272 wOBA), worse than their already-terrible season line. That batting line is worse than all but one other team this month, and this streak is merely a terrible extension of the team's fall back into offensive futility.
The Marlins broke their own record for lack of scoring, which they set unsurprisingly last season. Last year, the Marlins had a three-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies in which they were shut out of the final two games. The team followed with being shut out by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the next game as well. The club finally scored in the last outing, holding the scoreless innings streak to 30 innings.
The Marlins have a little more not-scoring to do to catch the Major League record, and that may be the only upside to this offensive hot mess. They may have broken the team record, but the Fish still have about a game and change to go to break the overall Major League mark. The record was set in the mid-1940's and was at 48 consecutive innings, meaning the Fish would need at least one extra-innings game tonight to break tie and/or break the record.
The good news is that the Marlins will face off against the Colorado Rockies and their hapless pitching staff. Drew Pomeranz (8.76 ERA, 8.08 FIP in 12 1/3 innings) will take the mound tonight. Even better news, the Fish will be in Coors Field, where most teams can probably score a bunch and where Giancarlo Stanton enjoyed a ridiculous set of games last season.