Miami Marlins' Jarred Cosart solid in August starts

Jarred Cosart thought being traded from the Houston Astros was a slap in the face, and was embarrassed by the fact that one of baseball's least successful and youthful teams traded him. But for Cosart, making the playoffs would make the situation that much better.

Although the Marlins are coming off of a road trip in which they dropped three consecutive series, Cosart was among baseball's best pitchers in the month of August, allowing the Marlins to be optimistic when they think of their 2015 rotation without Jose Fernandez.

"I wasn't a high paid guy, and it's kind of a slap in the face when you get traded from an organization that's one of the worst organizations in baseball over the last three years. So I just play with that extra chip on my shoulder, come here and it would be the icing on the cake if we could somehow get in the playoffs," Cosart said.

Cosart is 12-8 with a 3.80 ERA and 3.73 FIP in 25 starts with both the Marlins and Astros. Seeking a controllable arm before the non-waiver trade deadline, the Marlins took a shot on Cosart, and to this point, he has been effective.

"He's got a good fastball, and makes the ball cut a little bit," manager Mike Redmond said. "He's got a nice curveball. He's been able to mix it up, and his changeup will continue to be a weapon against lefties."

To top off an already impressive month, Cosart tossed seven shutout innings against the Braves on Saturday night, improving his August record to 3-1 to complement a 1.64 ERA. The fact that Cosart had success against the quality lineups of the Braves, Angels, and Cardinals proves he has the potential to be a solid middle of the rotation arm.

Although he had pitched well and the lack of run support in Houston led to an average win-loss record, Cosart has utilized his fastball consistently has been able to throw his offspeed pitched for strikes. He credits his Marlins success to Pitching Coach Chuck Hernandez, who was his minor league instructor while he was in the Phillies' organization.

With the struggles of Nathan Eovaldi, despite a solid outing on Sunday, Cosart's success has helped Miami's young rotation. Henderson Alvarez has pitched well each time out, but beyond his starts and the success of Cosart, the Marlins have seen little consistency within the rotation.

Cosart, who was said to have character issues while he was in Houston, has helped keep Miami in the postseason conversation. And if that's where he wants to be, there may be no better club to be a part of moving forward.

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