Ruiz homers and Bell stays hot, but Gray struggles in latest loss to Marlins (Updated)

Gray pitching blue

Some teams just have your number. The Marlins seem to be one of those teams for the Nationals this year. 

For the first time since May 24, Josiah Gray allowed more than two runs in an outing on Friday night and the Nats fell to 1-9 on the season against the Marlins with a 6-3 loss at Nationals Park. 

The outing started out strong, just like the last five for Gray. He retired the first six batters in order and even struck out the side in the second inning. 

The Marlins were able to get to the young right-hander in the third inning, though, plating three runs. Brian Anderson kicked off the frame with a solo homer over the left field wall. Two outs later, Jon Berti walked and swiped his league-leading 23rd bag of the season before scoring on Joey Wendle’s single to left field. The two-out rally continued after Garrett Cooper ripped a line-drive double, allowing Wendle to score from first and make it 3-0 Marlins. 

Washington scratched across a run in the fourth inning. Juan Soto got into an 0-2 hole before working a walk to lead off the inning. Josh Bell moved Soto over to third on a single to right field before Soto scored when Nelson Cruz grounded into a double-play, cutting the deficit to 3-1. 

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Game 126 lineups: Nats at Marlins

Game 126 lineups: Nats at Marlins
After suffering through a stretch of six straight outings in which he yielded at least four runs in each start, left-hander Patrick Corbin (7-12, 5.82 ERA) turned in a gem on Aug. 20 at Milwaukee, holding the playoff-bound Brewers to a run on three hits over 6 1/3 innings to pick up his first victory since July 7. Now Corbin just has to do it again. An aggressive young Marlins team will be the latest test for the southpaw's improved fastball velocity, which allows him to set up his slider. In...
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Can rookie Marlins hurlers tame tough Braves lineup in NLDS?

Can rookie Marlins hurlers tame tough Braves lineup in NLDS?
Baseball teams are measured with an endless numbers, from traditional statistics to a new-age analytics such as Wins Above Replacement. The Miami Marlins have another set of numbers unique to the season of the pandemic: As the season started, they had 18 players test positive for the coronavirus and were quarantined for a week in Philadelphia. They used 61 players for 60 games, including pitchers manager Don Mattingly met for the first time as he brought them into a game. Olympic speed skater...
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Checking out the postseason storylines

Checking out the postseason storylines
The Marlins finished in last place in the National League East in 2018 with 95 losses and 2019 with 105 losses. In the first week of this season, they were quarantined in a Philadelphia hotel for a week after 20 positive coronavirus tests that disrupted their schedule, as well as schedules for other teams, and they needed 17 new players to compete, including former Orioles reliever Richard Bleier helping their bullpen. The Marlins, who tore down World Series title teams after championships in...
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Nats split twinbill thanks to 15-0 pounding of Marlins (updated)

Nats split twinbill thanks to 15-0 pounding of Marlins (updated)
After missing a catch at first base Sunday afternoon in Game 1 loss in a doubleheader against the Marlins, Eric Thames spoke about the frustration he's felt during this abbreviated season and how it has played out for the last-place Nationals. In Game 2, his teammates took out those frustrations on a difficult campaign, slamming five homers and collecting 18 hits in a 15-0 shellacking of the Marlins at Marlins Park, splitting the twinbill. "This game is unbelievable," said manager Davey...
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Game 52 lineups: Nats at Marlins

Game 52 lineups: Nats at Marlins
In Game 2 of today's doubleheader and the series finale, the Nationals send out left-hander Ben Braymer for his first major league start. Braymer has made two big league appearances, Aug. 28 and Sept. 15, and has gone 0-0 with a 3.86 ERA, with four strikeouts in 2 1/3 innings. He has allowed six hits and walked two. Manager Davey Martinez said Braymer has been stretched out and he expects 60 to 75 pitches from him. The southpaw made 26 starts last season in the minors, going 4-10 with a 4.53...
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Brock Holt on pitching for the first time in a big league game

Brock Holt on pitching for the first time in a big league game
In the bottom of the sixth inning Friday night in Miami, Nationals right-hander Aaron Barrett was called into pitch in a game the Marlins already led 10-3. Barrett hit Garrett Cooper with a pitch. As TV cameras went back for his reaction, it appeared the right-hander was shaking out his arm after that pitch that got away. Barrett then walked Jesús Aguilar on five pitches. Quickly, manager Davey Martinez and a Nats trainer went to the mound to check on Barrett. Martinez said after the game...
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Crowe, bullpen struggle as Nats fall 14-3 in nightcap (updated)

Crowe, bullpen struggle as Nats fall 14-3 in nightcap (updated)
The nightcap of today's twi-night doubleheader was no fun for Wil Crowe and the bullpen as the Marlins jumped on the Nationals for six runs in the first three frames and cruised to a 14-3 victory at Marlins Park. Brian Anderson went 3-for-4 with a career-high three homers and seven RBIs. Corey Dickerson went 3-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs. The Marlins put together three four-run innings in the rout. The win allowed Miami to snap a two-game skid and split the twinbill. The Nats won the...
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Game 49 lineups: Nats at Marlins

Game 49 lineups: Nats at Marlins
Fresh off an impressive 5-0 win over the Marlins in Game 1 of their series-opening doubleheader, the Nationals go for the sweep by sending right-hander Wil Crowe (0-1, 7.50 ERA) to the hill for his third big league start. The Marlins will pitch left-hander Daniel Castano (0-2, 3.32 ERA). Castano took the loss in the Nats' 5-4 win on Aug. 22 at Nationals Park. As the opener, Castano allowed two runs on one hit with two walks and recorded only one out, a strikeout. Crowe allowed three runs on...
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Marlins return Rule 5 pick Sterling Sharp to Nats

Marlins return Rule 5 pick Sterling Sharp to Nats
Right-hander Sterling Sharp has been returned to the Nationals and assigned to the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies. The Miami Marlins selected Sharp in the major league phase of the Rule 5 draft in December 2019. They were required to keep him on their major league roster the entire season or risk losing him, but opted Monday to designate him for assignment. That gave every other team the opportunity to pick him up, but if a team selected him it would also have to keep him on the active roster for...
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Turner hot and Sánchez cool as Nats roll past Marlins 9-3 (updated)

Turner hot and Sánchez cool as Nats roll past Marlins 9-3 (updated)
Trea Turner went 3-for-3 with a triple and three RBIs and Aníbal Sánchez allowed only one run over seven innings for his first win of the season as the Nationals dispatched the Marlins 9-3 on Sunday afternoon. The Nats offense finally got rolling, tallying nine runs through five innings, including five in the fifth, to coast to their 11th victory on the season, evening the series at two games apiece. In the first, Turner singled to extend his hitting streak to nine games. He came around...
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Game 25 lineups: Nats vs. Marlins

Game 25 lineups: Nats vs. Marlins
The Nationals look to even their series with the Marlins today with a 12:35 p.m. first pitch at Nats Park. Aníbal Sánchez gets the call, looking to build off his last start where he said he felt strong at the end of the outing, which is a good sign. Manager Davey Martinez and pitching coach Paul Menhart have worked with Sánchez to get him to throw less between starts so he is fresher on game day. Sánchez (0-3, 8.50) faces Marlins right-hander Humberto Mejía (0-1, 5.68 ERA)....
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Strasburg out for season; hand surgery sometime next week

Strasburg out for season; hand surgery sometime next week
The Nationals' road to a repeat just got much more difficult with the announcement that World Series MVP Stephen Strasburg will undergo surgery to repair carpal tunnel neuritis in his right hand sometime early next week, manager Davey Martinez confirmed. The Nats have placed Strasburg on the 60-day injured list, effectively ending his 2020 season. Strasburg, 32, hopes to return 100 percent for the 2021 spring training. Right-hander Wil Crowe is promoted to take Strasburg's place on the roster...
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MLB faces new coronavirus crisis early on in abbreviated schedule

MLB faces new coronavirus crisis early on in abbreviated schedule
Less than a week into the season, baseball is dealing with a coronavirus outbreak, leaving the most important question unanswered: What is the line of demarcation for calling off the 2020 season? That decision is a subjective one. The agreement between owners and players to start this season amid a pandemic gives that decision to Commissioner Rob Manfred. If at any time he thinks travel is too dangerous and the schedule takes an integrity hit, then Manfred can end the season. And after at least...
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Orioles-Marlins game has been postponed (latest update)

Orioles-Marlins game has been postponed (latest update)
The Orioles made it through three games before COVID-19 impacted their schedule and perhaps a truncated season. Tonight's game with the Marlins in Miami has been canceled, with confirmation coming from a team official. The clubs were supposed to play twice in Miami before the home-and-home series shifted to Baltimore. But at least 14 Marlins have tested positive, including 12 players, according to an ESPN report. Major League Baseball's greatest fear is coming to fruition. An outbreak shortly...
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Strasburg powers past Marlins again in Nats' 7-0 win

Strasburg powers past Marlins again in Nats' 7-0 win
The Marlins are hoping they don't have to see Stephen Strasburg again this season. Strasburg has now won 12 games in a row against Miami after a convincing 7-0 shutout Saturday night. He allowed two hits in eight scoreless innings, striking out a season-high 14 batters. Miami managed a pair of singles in their first three at-bats from Harold Ramirez and Starlin Castro. But Strasburg had a hand in an inning ending 1-6-3 double play to end that first frame. That turned out to be the Marlins'...
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Game 134 lineups: Nats vs. Marlins

Game 134 lineups: Nats vs. Marlins
The Nationals found a way to create a rally with three outs to play and surprised the Marlins 7-6 in the bottom of the ninth thanks to another clutch hit from Anthony Rendon. Now the Nats go for a series clincher tonight as right-hander Stephen Strasburg looks to set a career-high this season in wins at 16. Strasburg is 15-5 with a 3.63 ERA. He has 201 strikeouts this season. It marks the third time in his career he has fired 200 or more strikeouts in a season, his best was 242 in 2014. He has...
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Hudson highlights up-and-down night for Nats bullpen

Hudson highlights up-and-down night for Nats bullpen
Reliever Daniel Hudson allowed a two-run home run in the ninth inning Friday night that erased a late Nationals lead. But the veteran held steady and focused on finding a way to bounce back, getting out of the inning and limiting the damage. Hudson was able to record three consecutive outs to allow his club the opportunity to overcome a deficit. Anthony Rendon's two-run single did just that in the bottom of the ninth, and the Nationals came back to drop the Marlins 7-6. Leading 5-4 heading...
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Relentless hitting helps Sánchez early on (Nats win 7-6)

Relentless hitting helps Sánchez early on (Nats win 7-6)
The Nationals used methodical hitting to take the lead early on against the last-place Marlins. After Harold Ramirez smacked a solo shot off of Aníbal Sánchez in the first to give the Marlins the lead, the Nats retaliated with three singles in a row in the bottom of the first. Trea Turner, Gerardo Parra and Anthony Rendon singled off Marlins starter Elieser Herandez to tie the game at 1-1. RBI groundouts by Asdrúbal Cabrera and Turner made it 3-1 Nats. Victor Robles' double to lead...
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Soto leads Nats to 16-game homer streak, plus Taylor update

Soto leads Nats to 16-game homer streak, plus Taylor update
The Nationals have now hit a homer in 16 consecutive games, setting a new club record. The 1999 Expos also hit a home run in 16 straight games. Juan Soto's two-run shot in the first inning gave the Nats a 2-1 lead. It was his 15th homer of the season. Last year, he hit 22 home runs. The Nats have combined to hit 28 homers in those 16 games. Soto had a homer and a triple in his first two at-bats. "All the guys, they're hitting the ball hard," said Nationals manager Davey Martinez. "The...
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