Source: FanGraphs
Attendance: 28,388
Hero Of The Game: Wade LeBlanc (.208 WPA)
Goat Of The Game: Heath Bell (-.207 WPA)
Play Of The Game: With runners on second and third and one out in the top of the eighth inning, Hanley Ramirez singled to left past a drawn in infield to drive in two and give the Dodgers a 3-0 lead. (.099 WPA)
After being inserted into the starting rotation due to the struggles of Carlos Zambrano, Wade LeBlanc had been on a strictly established pitch limit. His last outing in New York, LeBlanc's limit was 85 pitches. When asked before the game if LeBlanc had a pitch limit against the Dodgers on Sunday afternoon, manager Ozzie Guillen laughed and responded, "If he gives me six innings, I will be very happy." LeBlanc dominated Los Angeles' lineup for seven innings on Sunday, however he still received the loss.
Playing in his first series against his former team since being traded, Hanley Ramirez shined. Ramirez was 6 for 13 with two runs scored and five RBIs. One of those came in the bottom of the third off of LeBlanc, a sacrifice fly that scored Dodgers starter Chris Capuano. Matt Kemp struck out with the bases loaded and nobody out in the frame, and after the sacrifice fly, LeBlanc got Andre Ethier to ground out to limit the damage and keep it a 1-0 game.
Both pitchers settled in, however aside from two walks to Austin Kearns and one to Jose Reyes, Capuano, who pitched with the Mets last season and had Tommy John surgery twice, shut the Marlins down. Capuano consistently fooled Marlins' hitters, and kept the Marlins hit-less through 6 1/13 innings. Jose Reyes broke up the no-hit bid in the seventh with a single up the middle.
LeBlanc was done after pitching seven solid innings, giving up six hits and one run while striking out four and not issuing a walk. LeBlanc was replaced by Heath Bell, who Ozzie Guillen has considered putting back in the closer role, in the bottom of the eighth, an inning in which the Dodgers essentially put the game out of reach for the Marlins.
Shane Victorino lined out to center to begin the inning, but following an infield single by Mark Ellis and a double by Matt Kemp, Hanley Ramirez singled to drive in a pair. Andre Ethier then singled to drive in Ramirez, and Chris Hatcher, who replaced Bell after he was only able to record one out in the frame, gave up a two out double to Luis Cruz before recording the final out of the inning, which extended the Dodgers' lead to five.
Capuano pitched a scoreless eighth, an inning in which he struck out pinch hitter Giancarlo Stanton on two fastballs up in the zone followed by a sharp slider. Caupano earned his eleventh win of the season, pitching eight scoreless innings while giving up two hits, walking three, and striking out ten. The Marlins, whose only other hit came in the bottom of the eighth when Nick Green popped a ball down the line that stayed fair and was out of the reach of Ethier, failed to get a runner in scoring position.
Chad Gaudin worked out of trouble in the top of the ninth, but the Marlins were unable to rally against Jamey Wright in the bottom of the inning, as the Dodgers took the series and didn't allow a run, marking the 11th time on the season the Marlins have been shut out.
Miami will look to bounce back on Monday night, as the Phillies head to Marlins Park for a three game series. Nathan Eovaldi will get the start against Cole Hamels, who the Marlins have beaten multiple times this season.