Munoz continues struggles against lefties in Marlins’ 7-6 series-finale loss to Orioles

Through two batters, everything looked set for Roddery Munoz. The Miami Marlins had won their first two games against the Baltimore Orioles, clinching the series. Munoz forced the first batter, All-star shortstop Gunnar Henderson, into a ground out. Then, he jammed Orioles third baseman Jordan Westburg with an inside fastball, which resulted in a lineout to left field.

But a hanging changeup to all-star right-fielder Anthony Santander quickly changed the complexion of the game. Santander homered to right field, which put the Orioles on top 1-0.

Santander’s home run was an omen for the rest of Muonz’s outing, as he gave up a three-run home run and another solo home run in his start. In total, Munoz gave up six runs and six hits in five innings during the Marlins’ 7-6 loss to the Orioles. Despite a valiant effort by the Marlins to take the game to extra innings, the team couldn’t complete the comeback.

“We can’t give up six runs and expect to come back,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said after the game. “That’s really tough to do in the major leagues.”

Munoz had a 27.8 percent barrel rate in this game and owns the eighth-highest barrel rate in all of baseball. In other words, teams are able to square up on Munoz’s pitches rather easily, which proved deadly against the Orioles.

“With [Munoz], we knew he was going to have growing pains,” Schumaker said. “There’s going to be some really good outings and there’s going to be some tough outings. Today was one of the tougher outings.”

“We were going to have our right-handers go against six or seven lefties in their lineup. [Munoz] has a tough time against lefties in general so we knew it was going to be a tough matchup for him.”

Unless Munoz figures out how to get left-handed hitters out, his future in the major leagues will be shaky at best.

“My changeup is something I can improve against lefties,” Munoz said through interpreter Luis Dorante Jr. “I think that’s something that helped me out when I came up. That changeup was helping me get out some of those lefties.”

The 24-year old pitcher allowed a .302 batting average, 1.072 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) and 1.85 WHIP against lefties coming into Thursday’s game.

“I know [Mel Stottlemyre Jr.] and the staff are working really hard to figure out some pitch or some way that he can get lefties neutralized,” Schumaker said. “If he doesn’t it’s just going to be tougher and tougher in this league because they adjust.”

Chisholm shines against Orioles

While there were other standout performances in this series against the Orioles, center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. may have raised his value at the trade deadline with his performance against Baltimore. Chisholm tallied five RBI in this series and made several great defensive plays, including a diving catch in center to prevent Santander from getting another extra-base hit.

It appears that the Marlins want to deal Chisholm at the trade deadline, but according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan several teams are hesitant to trade for the 26-year old center fielder due to his injury history and perceived strong personality. Chisholm has also stated that he prefers playing the infield, which also means he could be a better fit for teams looking for a second baseman rather than a center fielder.

However, Chisholm is one of the most dynamic athletes in baseball right now, and his ability to take over the game in multiple ways makes him a unique player.