Miami

Series Preview: Marlins at Tigers

The Marlins are winners of three straight and will open a series with the Tigers on Tuesday

The Miami Marlins will bring a season high three-game winning streak into a series with the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday.

Miami's surprising sweep of the New York Mets, followed a seven-game skid for the team. The Marlins scored 13 runs in the series, after they were shut out by the Tampa Bay Rays in two consecutive games. The Marlins still own the worst record in Major League Baseball at 13-31 and the lowest run total in 2019 at 118.

Caleb Smith will look to get the series started in a positive way, when he takes the ball for Tuesday's start. Smith has been Miami's ace all season long, but he is coming off his first loss of the year. The lefty is 3-1 with a 2.25 E.R.A. and he leads the Marlins with 64 strikeouts. Smith has faced the Tigers once in his career and has little history against Detroit's current lineup.

Jose Urena will be Miami's starter on Wednesday and he will be looking for a third straight quality start. Urena is 1-6 with a 4.44 E.R.A on the year and he also has only a brief history with Detroit's hitters. The Marlins have lost eight of Urena's nine starts this season, but he has been one of their better starters since mid-April. After posting an ugly 9.22 E.R.A in his first three outings of the year, Urena has put together five quality starts in his last six appearances.

The series finale assignment will go to Trevor Richards and he will look to keep the ball in the yard. Richards has allowed a combined four home runs in his last two starts, which nearly doubled his season total to nine. Richards has been inconsistent, though dominant at times this year. The 26-year old owns a 4.44 record and he has never faced the Tigers in his career.

Curtis Granderson could feel at home in this series, as Comerica Park is where his career began. Granderson was a member of the Tigers for six years and he was an All-Star during his time there. Granderson finished as high as tenth in voting for the Most Valuable Player award as well. The outfielder no longer possesses the game-changing ability he once had, but he does have the second-highest home run total on the team at five. Granderson added a homer to help Miami win on Sunday as well.

With a designated hitter available for the next three days, manager Don Mattingly will have an extra decision to make. The Marlins could use the DH slot to give a guy such as Jorge Alfaro a breather from working behind the plate. Keeping Alfaro's bat in the lineup is crucial, as the catcher leads Miami in home runs and runs batted in.

Tuesday's first pitch in Detroit is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

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