DENVER _ The Marlins might have found a No. 5 starter. Turns out, he was here the whole time.
Right-hander David Phelps pitched 41/3 scoreless innings in the Marlins' 5-3 comeback win over the Rockies on Friday, exiting after 70 pitches as he continues to stretch out after relieving for the first four months of the season. Phelps worked around four hits and one walk while fanning four.
Long after Phelps' night ended, Martin Prado's two-run single in the ninth put the Marlins on top for good, erasing what would have been a second consecutive ugly loss after Fernando Rodney's eighth-inning implosion.
Closer A.J. Ramos, two days after his own meltdown against the Cubs, allowed a leadoff single in an otherwise uneventful bottom of the ninth.
The Marlins for weeks have sought stability in the back end of their rotation, the likes of Paul Clemens, Jose Urena, Jared Cosart, Justin Nicolino and Colin Rea all getting shots. Now, they've turned to Phelps, who started double-digit games in each of his past four major league seasons, including 2015 for the Marlins.
Phelps started out rocky. Through two innings, Colorado hit seven balls in the air _ four of them line drives _ and just two on the ground. The Rockies stranded the bases loaded in the second inning when Phelps snagged a one-hop comebacker off the bat of Charlie Blackmon.
Then Phelps settled in, facing the minimum number of batters over his final 21/3 frames. That included three strikeouts looking and a double play.
The last time Phelps pitched this long? Exactly one year ago Friday, when he had a stinker at home against the Mets and lasted 41/3. He made one other start in August 2015, but left with a stress fracture that ended his season. He had pitched exclusively out of relief this year.
It might've helped that Phelps took the mound Friday with a lead. The Marlins scored in the first inning when Dee Gordon singled and stole second, then came around when Giancarlo Stanton smashed a double down the left-field line.
Rodney allowed three runs in one-third of an inning. The Rockies reached him for four hits and one walk before manager Don Mattingly pulled him in favor of rookie righty Brian Ellington, who walked a batter but escaped the jam.
Rodney has pitched poorly since coming to the Marlins from the Padres in a late-June trade, posting a 6.46 ERA and 1.67 WHIP. His season ERA was 0.30 when he came to Miami. Now, it's 2.45. Rodney has allowed runs in four of his past five outings and hasn't pitched a clean inning since July 18.
Ichiro Suzuki struck out looking during a pinch-hit appearance in the seventh inning. Hitless in his last 11 at-bats, Ichiro remains at 2,998 career major league hits.
.jpg?w=600)
