MIA 1, CIN 6; Old friend Luis Castillo impresses again

The gracefully aging Joey Votto vaporized an early Marlins lead with a three-run home run and his Reds teammates tacked on three more from there in Cincinnati’s series-opening win over the Fish Thursday night.

• Nick Neidert—5.0 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 1 HR, 25.4 CSW% (71 pitches)
• Luis Castillo—7.0 IP, 8 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 29.3 CSW% (99 pitches)

The newly recalled Neidert retired eight of the first nine Reds batters he faced, but only six of the final 12. Although he was relatively efficient on a per-plate-appearance basis, he continues to issue walks at a rate that’s doubled his 2021 minor league average. It’s unclear whether he will stick on the active roster for another start next week or head back down to Jacksonville.

The Marlins’ lone run was generated via a two-out rally in the top of the fourth inning. A Jesús Sánchez single and Brian Anderson walk passed the baton to Jorge Alfaro, who singled off Luis Castillo’s fastball for his 20th RBI of the season.

But Castillo tormented his former organization from there. This is the fourth time in five career starts against the Marlins that his team has been victorious (the lone loss had a 1-0 final score).

Bryan De La Cruz remains in the good graces of the BABIP gods. The rookie’s batting average ticked up to .319 thanks to a single up the middle.

Ross Detwiler extended his post-trade deadline scoreless streak. I wonder if the Marlins will try placing him on waivers before the end of the month, banking on a contender to scoop him up (and absorb his September salary in the process).

Making his Marlins debut, right-hander Bryan Mitchell surrendered two earned runs on four hits in two innings of relief while striking out three. Jonathan India did some damage against him and reached base safely three times overall, furthering strengthening his NL Rookie of the Year race.

This game dropped the Marlins to 21-41 in away games, clinching a losing record for them in that department. In 2020, they went 20-14 under those conditions, setting a franchise record with that .588 winning percentage.

Friday’s probable starters are Elieser Hernandez and Sonny Gray. Once again, it’ll be a 7:10 p.m. ET scheduled first pitch.

Baseball Savant

Fish Picks Answer Key

1. Joey Votto
2. Push
3. Under
4. Yes
5. Reds