Fish Cap: Red Sox 7, Marlins 5

Source: FanGraphs

Attendance: 37,701

Hero of the Game: Logan Morrison (.435WPA)

Goat of the Game: Mark Buehrle (-.341WPA)

Play of the Game: Kelly Shoppach homered in the second inning. Will Middlebrooks scored. (.178WPA)

The Marlins lost the first game of a three game series in Boston Tuesday night, 7-5. It was a back and forth affair. In the end however, the Fish did not get a reliable start out of Mark Buehrle. And while I never blame a starting core that has kept the Marlins in it all season, it is noticeable that the starting rotation has not pitched as well as it did to start the year. Something to watch moving forward.

Red Sox Hit Three Long Balls

On this night, home runs came from Cody Ross, David Ortiz, and Kelly Shoppach. And while the Marlins actually hit a little (five runs is a massive amount considering how they have been scoring), the Fish only hit one home run themselves (LoMo). To be fair here, the Red Sox are a great team at home. They understand the ball park obviously, and they play to its strengths. Its just unfortunate to see Mark Buehrle, a veteran who has pitched many times at Fenway, give up all three shots.

The Fish Have To Play Better

The Marlins now see their record on the road even up to 16-16. I can see the Marlins winning one game in this series. But considering how they have played the last few weeks, even that will be a challenge. The team will face Felix Doubront on Wednesday. He has won seven games, and only lost three. Hopefully Ricky Nolasco is up to the challenge.