Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
One Starling performance
Marte has five hits as Pirates rough up Urena to take series
MIAMI — A rough five-batter stretch in the third inning and a career day from Starling Marte doomed the Miami Marlins’ chances against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday afternoon.
Holding a 1-0 lead versus Pittsburgh in the top of the frame, Miami starter Jose Urena plunked Josh Harrison and then surrendered four consecutive hits, allowing three runs to score as the Pirates held on for a 7-3 win.
Marte went 5 for 5 with a home run and four runs scored; his five hits were a careerhigh.
The Marlins (4-11) dropped the threegame set after splitting the first two. Miami has lost nine of its past 11 games.
Urena (0-3, 5.57 ERA) took the loss for the Marlins, giving up four runs on eight hits with one walk and one hit-batsman. The 26 year old, who’s dropped back-toback starts, struck out five on the day.
“We always know [Urena]’s stuff is going to be good, but just hasn’t been able to really put the whole package together,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “He’s had sections of games that have been really good and he’s had some rough starts. Today, we’re hoping he gets through that first [inning] and gets on a roll, but just wasn’t able to do that.”
“[Pittsburgh] has a good-hitting ballclub and Jose is kind of more their style. They’re
power guys — they like the fast ball and we weren’t able slow them down enough.”
Ivan Nova (2-1, 4.48) picked up the win, continuing his recent dominance against the Marlins. The right-hander went 6
2⁄3 innings, striking out nine and allowing three runs on six hits. Last year, Nova tossed 15 scoreless innings against Miami, picking up wins in both starts.
In front of an announced crowd of 10,621, the Marlins got off to an auspicious start Sunday as the team’s first three batters reached base. Miami jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead as JB Shuck scored on a Brian Anderson RBI groundout. Miami was unable to capitalize any further, though, stranding two runners to end the frame.
After two scoreless innings to start the game, Urena ran into trouble during the third. After hitting Harrison, he allowed a Marte single to put two men on. Josh Bell quickly brought both runners home, lacing a double down the first base line, just past the reach of Derek Dietrich, to give the Pirates a 2-1 lead.
The next batter up, Corey Dickerson peppered an RBI single to center — extending his hit streak to 10 games — to push Pittsburgh’s lead to 3-1.
After adding another run in the fifth inning, the Pirates (11-4) tacked on two more in the seventh to extend the lead to 6-1.
Miami’s bats finally got back on the scoreboard in the seventh inning, thanks to one swing from Justin Bour. Pinch hitting with a runner on, the Marlins’ slugger demolished a 1-2 pitch to the right field upper deck for a two-run blast to cut the lead to 6-3. For Bour, it was his fourth home run of the season and third career pinch-hit HR.
“It kind of got us back in the game,” Mattingly said. “It gave us a little bit of hope and then they come right back and score. … They kind of kept pushing us away, so we weren’t able to stop them late and allow ourselves to get back in it.”
In the ninth inning, Marte homered for the third time this season to push the Pirates lead back to four.
With the loss, Miami has lost four consecutive series. The Marlins, who split a four-game set with the Chicago Cubs to start the season, have yet to win a series.
The Marlins will now hit the road as they begin a nine-game road trip tonight in New York.