PHILADELPHIA — Sandy Alcantara wasn’t sure what happened. His command was completely off. He was possibly tipping his pitches, too. He couldn’t figure out his problems in the moment as he put together the worst start of his MLB career — eight earned runs allowed in just 1 1/3 innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“We have more opportunities,” Alcantara said on that Friday night at Dodger Stadium. “I can get better.”
The Marlins’ ace looked a lot more like his normal self on Thursday night at Citizens Bank Park. His pitch count got up early, but he worked six scoreless innings, struck out nine batters and got plenty of support from his offense as Miami defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 6-0 to win the three-game series and go 5-5 on this three-city, 10-game road trip. The Marlins are 20-23 on the season. The Phillies drop to 22-22.
It was a needed performance and a return to what the Marlins had expected from Alcantara lately.
In Alcantara’s 13 starts prior to the Dodgers game, gong back to the 2020 season, Alcantara had a cumulative 2.56 ERA over 81 innings with 78 strikeouts against 25 walks. He had thrown at least six innings in 12 of those 13 starts and had quality starts, defined as giving up no more than three earned runs while throwing at least six innings, in 11 of those 13 games.
Alcantara worked around three walks and a pair of hits while throwing 100 pitches but never allowed more than one batter to reach base in a given inning.
Five of Alcantara’s nine strikeouts came with his changeup, which he said has been his best pitch this season.
Through 10 starts this season, Alcantara has a 3.63 ERA over a team-high 57 innings with 60 strikeouts against 19 walks.
Alcantara also hit a double off the top of the wall in left-center field in the fifth inning on Thursday, his second hit of the season.
MORE GAME HIGHLIGHTS
Miguel Rojas and Garrett Cooper hit home runs to give the Marlins an early lead.
Rojas opened scoring with a two-out home run in the third off David Hale, who started in place of Vince Velasquez (numb right index finger). It was Rojas’ third home run of the season and first on the road.
Cooper’s two-run home run in the fourth, which went a projected 421 feet to left field and landed in the second deck of outfield seats, was off Matt Moore — the Phillies’ first reliever out of the bullpen — and was his first home run since April 26. Cooper has hits in five consecutive games and nine of his last 10 starts overall.
Cooper finished with three RBI and two runs scored. Corey Dickerson, who hit a double and drew two walks, scored three times.
Adam Cimber, Ross Detwiler and Zach Pop threw three scoreless innings out of the bullpen to seal the win.
DAY OFF FOR JAZZ
Marlins manager Don Mattingly gave rookie middle infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. a scheduled day off from the starting lineup in Thursday’s series finale against the Phillies. There is no injury concern, Mattingly said. Rather, the manager said, he is trying to make sure they don’t “push him too far too fast” as Chisholm returns from a left hamstring strain. Isan Diaz started at second base on Thursday with Chisholm sitting out.
ANOTHER LONG TRIP FINISHED
Thursday marked the end of the Marlins’ second consecutive three-city, 10-game road trip. They split a four-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks, dropped two of three against the Dodgers and took two of three against the Phillies. It was a much better overall showing than their first three-city road trip when the Marlins went a combined 3-7 against the San Francisco Giants, Milwaukee Brewers and Washington Nationals.
The Marlins now return home for a week of games against National League East opponents — three with the New York Mets and then four against the Phillies — before embarking on a third three-city road trip (Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays in Buffalo and Pittsburgh Pirates).
