MIL 6, MIA 2; Winning streaKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK over

Just one of those nights, right? More than half of all Marlins plate appearances on Saturday ended with strikeouts, and unsurprisingly, that prevented them from producing enough runs to extend their winning streak.

• Adrian Houser—6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 10 K, 1 HR, 94 pitches (35.1 CSW%)
• Daniel Castano—4.0 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 2 HR, 70 pitches (27.1 CSW%)

For the second time on this Marlins homestand, Miguel Rojas ignited the offense with a leadoff home run in the first inning.

However, Adrian Houser would go on to retire 18 of the next 22 batters, 10 of them via strikeout (matching his career best). The way in which Houser went about it was extremely unconventional by 2021 MLB standards. He relied overwhelmingly on his fastball, particularly his sinker. The right-hander’s 68 sinkers thrown is the highest total for any MLB pitcher in a single game this season, according to Baseball Savant.

Houser also helped his own cause in the same, shocking way as he did when these teams met last week: by homering off Daniel Castano.

Houser is 2-for-31 in his big league career when facing non-Castano pitchers.

For the first time as a Marlin, right-hander John Curtiss yielded a free, unforced baserunner by plunking left fielder Tyrone Taylor with a pitch in the fifth inning. Curtiss would regret that dearly when Avisaíl García just barely cleared the fence for a two-run homer. That stretched the deficit to 5-1.

The Marlins made some noise in the bottom of the sixth when Adam Duvall singled home Corey Dickerson, but Houser limited the damage at that.

From there, Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell unleashed his high-leverage reliever triumvirate of J.P. Feyereisen, Devin Williams and Josh Hader. They looked as dominant as advertised and K’d eight of the 10 Fish they faced. This was the only game in franchise history where Marlins batters struck out at least 18 times without drawing any walks.

As a silver lining, we ought to feel encouraged about the depth of Miami’s ‘pen moving forward. Rookies Anthony Bender and Zach Pop both put zeroes up on the scoreboard (Pop has quietly contributed seven consecutive scoreless outings).

The Marlins were victims of an organizational sweep—their Triple-A, Double-A, High-A and Low-A affiliates all lost on Saturday as well. That ought to be a rarity this season.

Sunday’s rubber game will feature the most experienced pitchers in each team’s starting rotation: Sandy Alcantara and fresh-off-the-injured-list Brett Anderson. First pitch at 1:10 p.m.

Baseball Savant

Fish Picks Answer Key

1. Marlins
2. Under
3. Over
4. Yes
5. Brewers