Yahoo Sports As Marlins lose sixth in a row, pitching staff hopes for relief from rookie Roddery Munoz
Opportunity is knocking for Marlins rookie pitcher Roddery Munoz, and he certainly left the door ajar to be a full-time starter after allowing just one hit over six innings against the resurgent Mets last week.
The 24-year-old Dominican was called up on June 8 when Marlins starter Ryan Weathers was placed on the injured list with a strained index finger. The Marlins’ injury-depleted starting rotation has already lost fellow Dominican Republic countrymen: ace Sandy Alacantara, Sixto Sanchez, Edward Cabrera and Eury Perez, with only Cabrera nearing a return. He is scheduled to throw three innings or 50 pitches on Wednesday for Triple A Jacksonville.
So, every outing is an audition for Munoz, who will be making his sixth career start Tuesday at loanDepot Park, but first against the St. Louis Cardinals, who defeated the Marlins 7-6 in 12 innings on rookie Masyn Winn’s two-run home run off reliever A.J. Puk (0-8) in Monday’s series opener to hand Miami its sixth consecutive loss.
“I had him 0-2, just didn’t execute the pitch,’’ Puk said.
Nick Gordon’s triple, that was first ruled a ground-rule double, drove in Miami’s ghost runner with no outs in the 12th to make it 7-6. However, he was easily thrown out at home attempting to tag up on Tim Anderson’s 269-foot lineout to right fielder Dylan Carlson, who threw a bullet on a fly to catcher Pedro Pages.
“He’s got to make a perfect play,’’ Gordon said. “We’re in a bit of a rut, so we tried to get something going, to make something happen.”
In a wild eighth inning, the Cardinals snapped a 1-1 tie with three runs off reliever Calvin Faucher, with the big blow a bad-hop, two-run triple by Ivan Herrera.
The Marlins countered that with a three-run homer by Bryan de la Cruz, his 12th, off reliever JoJo Romero that spoiled Sonny Gray’s outstanding outing (7 2/3 innings, 2 earned runs), after he began the game by facing the minimum 15 batters.
Both teams scored a run without a hit in the 11th inning to extend the game. Andrew Kittredge (1-3) pitched the final two innings to lift the Cardinals (36-35) to their fifth win in their last six games for their first winning record since April 6 when they were 5-4.
After two rough outings, Marlins starter Garrett Braxton gave up just a solo homer to No. 9 batter Michael Siani in six innings. Miami drops to 6-4 in extra innings.
In his first five major-league starts Munoz, a 6-2 right-hander, has held right-handed batters to a .137 average.
“There’s no pressure,’’ said Munoz (1-2, 4.56 ERA) via a translator. “You’re constantly competing to stay on a team to win a spot on the rotation. It’s part of the job.”
Munoz, who has been part of the Atlanta Braves, Washington Nationals and the Pittsburgh Pirates the past five years without a start, certainly aced his last job interview when he allowed one hit (Harrison Bader) with five strikeouts and one walk over a career-tying outing of six innings in a 3-2 loss to the host Mets on June 13th.
His 5 1/3 innings of no-hit ball was the longest bid for a no-hitter by a Marlins pitcher this season, and he’s the fifth Marlins rookie to have a no-hit bid of 5 1/3 innings since Anibal Sanchez tossed a no-hitter against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sept. 6, 2006.
“At the end of the day it doesn’t matter which lineup you’re going to face,’’ Munoz said. “You have to go out there and compete; and do the best you can. … It’s the knowledge you gain in the years playing the game and situations I have overcome and things that prepare you to be better. All of that can keep me on a big-league team for many years.”
Marlins manager Skip Schumaker and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. have decided that Munoz, who features a 97-mph fastball and outstanding slider to go with a changeup and sinker, needs to stop nibbling on the corners and focus on getting ahead of the hitters.
“He’s got a real arm,’’ Schumaker said. “We decided to get him more on the plate and not work the edges so much and then when he gets ahead, kind of expand from there. … Roddery is a guy who can outstuff guys at times.
“He’s growing and he’s going to be a good one if he keeps working the way he is.”
It doesn’t hurt Munoz that the Marlins’ 40-man roster has 12 players from the Dominican Republic, making him feel like he’s back in Santo Domingo.
“It feels good being surrounded by your countrymen,’’ Munoz said. “Every time you get a chance to share that time with people from the same country, speaking the same language, you build that trust. It’s easier. You feel like your back home.”
Time change
Tuesday’s game has been moved up from a 6:40 p.m. start to 6:10 p.m., so the fans could get home to watch most of the Florida Panthers-Edmonton Oilers Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final.
