The Phillies trail the Marlins by a half-game in the congested National League wild-card standings, with Philadelphia fourth and Miami tied for second.
That scenario alone makes for a compelling four-game series that will begin on Monday night when the Phillies visit the Marlins.
“It’s a big series,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said on Sunday.
Philadelphia is just 2-4 against Miami so far this season. However, the Phillies won’t have to face Marlins left-hander Jesus Luzardo, who has beaten them twice this season. Luzardo pitched Sunday.
Monday’s matchup features a pair of right-handers: Philadelphia’s Taijuan Walker (11-4, 4.06 ERA) and Miami’s Edward Cabrera (5-6, 4.74).
Walker, who is in his 11th year in the majors, is one victory away from matching his career high in wins. The Phillies are 15-6 this season when Walker starts.
In addition, Walker has won seven of his past eight decisions. He is 4-2 with a 3.48 ERA in 11 career games (10 starts) against the Marlins. And in four career starts in Miami, he is 3-1 with a 4.07 ERA.
Walker’s best month this season was in June, when he went 5-1 with a 1.50 ERA. But in July, he has slipped to 2-1 with a 4.56 ERA. Walker has also been much better at home this season (5-1, 2.80 ERA) than on the road (6-3, 5.25).
Cabrera, 25, has already made a career-high 16 starts, and he’s one win away from tying his career high in wins.
In three career starts against the Phillies, he is 1-1 with a 2.25 ERA. Overall, though, he has regressed from last season, when he had a 3.01 ERA in 14 starts.
Most of his regression has to do with his poor road numbers this year (0-6, 6.28 ERA). At home, he is 5-0 with a 2.61 ERA.
Cabrera will be facing a Phillies team that just lost two of three games to the host Pittsburgh Pirates, including a 6-4 10-inning, walk-off defeat on Sunday.
The Phillies made two errors in that game — by shortstop Trea Turner and by center fielder Johan Rojas.
“I’ve seen us play better, that’s for sure,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “We made some fundamental mistakes. … We have to clean that up, and we will.”
Turner’s on-base-plus-slugging percentage is down from .809 last season to .673 this year. However, he is 21-for-21 in steal attempts, and he is second on the team in runs (57).
Meanwhile, the Marlins rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-6 on Sunday, taking two of three games in the series.
Two relievers acquired over the past week made their Marlins debuts over the weekend. Jorge Lopez, who pitched a scoreless inning on Saturday, earned the win on Sunday, and David Robertson got his 15th save on Sunday.
“I’m trying to continue doing what I’ve been doing all season long,” Robertson said.
Robertson, acquired from the New York Mets on Thursday, lowered his ERA to 2.00. Lopez improved to 5-2 with a 4.86 ERA.
–Field Level Media
