Alcantara’s first career complete game propels Marlins to series sweep

Needing just 89 pitches, Sandy Alcantara tossed his first career complete game, as the Marlins finished off the New York Mets on Sunday afternoon, 3-0. It is the first series sweep in 2019 for the Marlins, and also the first time Miami has won three consecutive games.

Alcantara faced these same Mets just over a week ago, May 11 at Citi Field. In that contest, he went just 5 ²⁄₃ innings, allowing eight hits and four runs.

Sunday was a much different story. The talented 23-year-old worked through the Mets lineup with absolute ease and calmness. Besides J.D Davis’ two hits, Alcantara was untouchable in the ballgame.

Alcantara’s superb performance lowered his ERA to 4.25.

Meanwhile, Noah Syndergaard was going to be a difficult challenge for Miami’s offense. Against the Marlins in his career, Syndergaard had compiled a total record of 6-0 with a sub-2.00 ERA. It didn’t help that both Jorge Alfaro (left calf strain) and Jon Berti (left oblique strain) were unavailable on Sunday due to injuries.

The contest remained scoreless until the home half of the sixth inning, when the Fish began scratching across some runs. Curtis Granderson grounded into a double play, scoring Rosell Herrera. In the next inning, Miguel Rojas brought home Neil Walker thanks to a sacrifice fly.

Providing some insurance in the eighth, Granderson spanked his fifth home run of the season to right field.

Coming into the series Friday night, Miami had lost seven consecutive baseball games and was coming off back-to-back shutout losses to the Tampa Bay Rays. There was certainly a sense of desperation for the players to prove that they could be more competitive, and they delivered.

The fanbase played its part, too:

Miami will have an off-day Monday while traveling to Comerica Park to battle the Detroit Tigers in a three-game interleague matchup. Tuesday night’s probables are Caleb Smith and Spencer Turnball (first pitch 7:10 ET).

Mets vs. Marlins box score (Baseball Theater)

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