Marlins shut out for 13th time, wasting Elieser Hernandez quality start

In a game that was much more competitive than the final score would suggest, the Marlins dropped the opening game of their week-long road trip to the Cardinals on Monday night, 5-0.

Elieser Hernandez: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R (1 ER), 0 BB, 6 K on 101 pitches

Miles Mikolas: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K on 99 pitches

This was the eighth start of Hernandez’s major league career, and quite clearly the best he’s ever been. The right-hander’s slider, in particular, generated seven swinging strikes and didn’t allow for any hard contact. He has earned an extended stay on the Marlins active roster.

Unfortunately, Hernandez received no run support whatsoever. Mikolas got his revenge after a poor outing last week, holding the Fish without a walk or extra-base hit.

St. Louis took a 1-0 lead on a Matt Carpenter solo home run in the third inning. A miscommunication between Starlin Castro and JT Riddle on a pop-up in the fifth brought home an insurance run.

Misplays in center field have become unfortunately common since Lewis Brinson was optioned to Triple-A last month. Riddle’s lack offensive impact to compensate for that makes him a candidate for demotion in the near future.

In the eighth, the Cardinals broke the game open. A pair of hits forced Wei-Yin Chen out of the game, then Dexter Fowler took Austin Brice deep for a three-run home run. That made it 5-0.

These teams go at it again at 8:15 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Probable starters are Jordan Yamamoto and Jack Flaherty. According to FNTSY Radio host Craig Mish, Caleb Smith (hip inflammation) could potentially return from the injured list this weekend, which raises the question of whether Yamamoto might be headed back down to the minor leagues after this outing.

Marlins vs. Cardinals box score (Baseball Theater)

Fish Picks answer key

1. Cardinals
2. Under
3. Under
4. Yes
5. Cardinals