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Marlins vs. Mets: Game 157 Thread

Just a few days removed from José Fernández' untimely passing, the Marlins will again try their best to move forward with the rest of their season as they face the Mets for game two of a three-game set.

By Gianni da Costa
Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

After a night that was truly special in every sense of the word, the Marlins must again find it within themselves to play their best while still grieving the loss of their beloved teammate. After a moving tribute and a warm embrace from the opposing team, the Marlins tagged Bartolo Colon for seven runs. They will again try and retain some normalcy on the field during a time of off the field circumstances that are far from normal.

Pitching Matchup

Miami will send Tom Koehler to the mound, who will be aiming for his 10th win of the season. Koehler has gone 9-12 with a 4.02 ERA this year. It should be noted that Koehler has not received a win since August 9th when he pitched seven innings while only surrendering two hits during his shutout performance. In his career, the Mets have batted .278 against him as a team. With a quality start tonight, Koehler can help Miami secure a much-needed series victory against their NL East rival.

New York will have Noah Syndergaard try and help their playoff push get back on track. Syndergaard has had a very good year, going 13-9 with a 2.63 ERA. He has also struck out 210 hitters on his way to becoming a staple in the Mets 2016 rotation. In his brief career, the Marlins have a .250 batting average against the right-hander. Noah was scratched from his last start due to a bout with strep throat. While he is usually very productive, his last time out was anything but that. He lasted only 3 and 2/3 innings against the Giants while giving up five earned runs. Perhaps the most troublesome aspect of that game was that Syndergaard somehow threw 99 pitches during an outing that didn't even last four innings.

Today's Lineups

NEW YORK METS MIAMI MARLINS
Jose Reyes - 3B Dee Gordon - 2B
Asdrubal Cabrera - SS Marcell Ozuna - LF
Yoenis Cespedes - LF Martin Prado - 3B
Curtis Granderson - CF Christian Yelich - CF
Jay Bruce - RF Giancarlo Stanton - RF
T.J. Rivera - 2B Justin Bour - 1B
Lucas Duda - 1B J.T. Realmuto - C
Rene Rivera - C Adeiny Hechavarria - SS
Noah Syndergaard - RHP Tom Koehler - RHP
Notes
-- If the Marlins want to assure that Syndergaard doesn't go more than five innings, they must work the count early and make him throw a lot of pitches. If there is definitely one weakness that the young pitcher has, it's that too often, he finds himself throwing far too many pitches early in the game which disallows his manager from letting him pitch into the later innings.
-- Both Justin Bour and Marcell Ozuna have the best numbers against Syndergaard in comparison to the rest of tonight's lineup. They have batted .400 and .333, respectively, against him. Miami will need both of them to continue that success, especially if Noah starts to dominate from the getgo.
-- Koehler has only reached made it through the sixth inning once in his last four starts. It would be best for the Marlins if he can give them a quality start so the bullpen can focus on innings 7-9 rather than having to come in earlier.
Bold Prediction: Marlins again get to Mets early, and end up winning 6-3.

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