Stanton start doesn’t pay off
MIAMI Don Mattingly’s daily gambit comes in the afternoon hours long before the fans and shortly after most of his players file intoMarlinsPark. In concert with the Marlins’ medical staff, he decides: Can Giancarlo Stanton play today?
Then Mattingly, this time with his coaching staff, considers the second question: Should Stanton play today? The right fielder, operating at less than full strength after straining his groin last month, offers obvious offensive benefits while sacrificing — due to limited mobility— defensive ability and baserunning flexibility.
On Friday, in a 3-2 loss to the Braves, Mattingly played Stanton. It didn’t pay off. Stanton went 0 for 3 at the plate with apairof fly balls to deep center, and misplayed a pair of hits that led to Atlanta’s game-tying run in the sixth inning.
“At leastwe go in with our eyes open,” Mattingly said. “We knowhe’s not playing at 100 percent. That’s what we’ve talked about as far as the risk-reward. He does hit two balls that he just misses to the wall. And that’s really whatwe’re gambling for.”
Freddie Freeman led off that sixth inning against reliever Mike Dunn with a line-drive double but ended up on third after Stanton bobbled it. Three batters later, with two outs and Freeman still on third base, Tyler Flowers’ line drive sailed just beyond Stanton’s outstretched glove, landing on the warning track in right field to score Freeman.
Stanton exited in favor of Ichiro Suzuki as part of a doubleswitchin the seventh.
“I can’t say definitively that he catches that ball if he’s 100 percent,” Mattingly said. “That’s maybe the first play we feel like could have been affected by it.”
Former Marlins player Atlanta’s Emilio Bonifacio follows through on a base hit against the Marlins in the ninth inning Friday in Miami. He scored the winning run later in the inning.
Emilio Bonifacio burned his old team for the game-winning run in the ninth inning. Against closer A.J. Ramos, Bonifacio reached on a pinch-hit single, stole second andwent to third on catcher J.T. Realmuto’s throwing error. Adonis Garcia singled to score Bonifacio.
The game’s first six batters could not have gone much better for theMarlins. In the top of the first, righthander Andrew Cashner struck out the side swinging on 12 pitches (11 fastballs). In the bottom of the first, Derek Dietrich (walk) and Marcell Ozuna (single) reached before Martin Prado doubled to drive them both in.
The next six innings definitely could have gone better for theMarlins. They did not get another hit off of Atlanta right-hander Matt Wisler, who gave up two runs in six frames. Ichiro singled in the eighth for the Marlins’ only other hit.
“This game offensively is what we’ve seen all year long,” Mattingly said. “We score early, and we don’t score again.”
Cashner finished at five innings and one run allowed.
Flowers singled to score Matt Kemp in the second. Cashner threw 36 pitches while loading the bases in the third, escaping without allowing a run with an assist Braves vs. Marlins
7:10 p.m., Marlins Park ON THE AIR
from plate umpire Adam Hamari, whoseiffy strikecall onNickMarkakis prevented Cashner from walking in a run. Markakis flied out to left field on the next pitch.
940-AM, 710-AM (Spanish) ON THE MOUND RHP Aaron Blair (1-6, 7.71) vs. LHPWei-Yin Chen (5-4, 5.04): In his return Monday from a two-month stint on the disabled list, Chen got through four scoreless innings before allowing the Nationals three runs (Danny Espinosa home run) while recording one more out. Chen threw 66 pitches and likely will not be at full starter capacity this time around. In three first-half games against the Braves, Chen allowed seven runs in 16 innings (3.78 ERA) while posting a 1.08 WHIP and holding Atlanta to a .230/.273/.344 slash line. … Blair, 24 years old and a former first-round draft pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks, has had a rough time in his first major league season, posting a 7.71 ERA and 1.68 WHIP in 13 starts. He is allowing more than a hit per inning and nearly as many walks as strikeouts. In his only start against Miami, Blair lasted 5 innings while yielding two runs May 28. Lefties are hitting .320/.417/.590 against Blair.
RHP Julio Teheran (6-10, 3.10) vs. RHP Jose Fernandez (16-8, 2.86); Monday — RHP Bartolo Colon (14-7, 3.12) vs. RHP Tom Koehler (9-12, 4.02)
UPCOMING SERIES Monday-Wednesday, vs. Mets; Sept. 30-Oct. 2, at Nationals