Marlins vs. Dodgers series preview

All stats updated entering games of April 22

The Marlins will be heading to Los Angeles to face the Dodgers in search of their first series win. It’s the final leg of their three-city road trip.

The power house Dodgers of last year have started this year off poorly. They are climbing back towards .500 on a five-game winning streak. The Marlins are clearly in a much worse position, with five wins and 16 losses. They are currently at the bottom of the NL East division.

Pitching will be a big factor in this series, with Miami’s currently floundering (fish pun). The lone bright spot right now for the Fish is Jarlin García. He has done well against some big teams including the Phillies, Mets, Yankees and Cubs. The other two pitchers this series have been struggling with control.

The Dodgers announced that top pitching prospect Walker Buehler will make his MLB starting debut in game one. Veteran left-hander Rich Hill is currently on the disabled list, ineligible to return until April 25. Kenta Maeda will start game two for the Dodgers, coming off two bad outings. Clayton Kershaw will finish up the series as he looks to continue his nice season. The NL Cy Young candidate will be the biggest obstacle for the Marlins to overcome.

Hitting for the Marlins is still a problem. One day they are scoring multiple runs, the next nothing at all.

Lewis Brinson finally came alive after facing his old team. All three of his home runs in 2018 came against the Brewers. J.T. Realmuto has made it back from injury, his bat has sorely been missed. Realmuto has already homered and his presence in the lineup should boost the others. The rest of the lineup has been a bit lackluster, though one would hope this can improve over time. The Marlins have been facing some of the best teams in the majors and this will continue with the Dodgers.

The Dodger hitters who have been carrying the team are a bit unexpected. The players below in the table have been doing the bulk of the work, several of whom were considered disappointments last year—Matt Kemp was traded around multiple times in 2017 and Yasmani Grandal lost his starting catching job. Chase Utley is clearly past his prime, yet these are the players succeeding right now in the hitting department.

Chris Taylor had a breakout year last season, but has been slow to start. Things are gradually starting to pick up for Taylor, while Corey Seager and Yasiel Puig have yet to really heat up.

This series should be a good one. Plus, who doesn’t like late night west coast baseball.

Let’s go Fish!