Garrett shines, combines with 'pen for shutout

MILWAUKEE -- Finding perspective in the face of adversity isn’t easy, but Marlins catcher Jacob Stallings provided some after Tuesday’s loss to the Brewers.

Miami had lost the first two games in Milwaukee and had been outscored by nine runs.

“We’ve been a resilient group all year,” Stallings said. “We’ve had a lot tougher than two bad games in a row. Overcome injury, overcome longer losing streaks, longer tough stretches. I’m pretty confident we’ll come back tomorrow and be better.”

That season-long theme of resiliency showed up once again Wednesday. The Marlins knocked off the Brewers, 2-0, at American Family Field to pick up a huge win in their push for the postseason.

• Games remaining: at MIL (1), vs. ATL (3), vs. NYM (3), vs. MIL (3), at NYM (3), at PIT (3)
• Standings update: The Marlins (75-71) and Giants (75-71) are both a half-game back of the D-backs (76-71) and the Reds (76-71) for the third NL Wild Card spot. Miami would hold the first tiebreaker, based on head-to-head matchups, over Arizona (4-2). The Marlins (21-22) are in line to hold the second tiebreaker (intradivisional record) over the Reds (19-27) but not the Giants (21-14).

“It’s big, really big,” said rookie infielder Xavier Edwards, whose RBI single got Miami on the board in the fifth inning. “Every game matters a lot right now. We’re still behind a little bit, so every win matters.”

Starter Braxton Garrett threw six scoreless innings, scattering six baserunners -- four hits and two walks -- and struck out seven. David Robertson, Andrew Nardi and Tanner Scott tacked on three more scoreless innings for a Miami shutout.

Along with Edwards, Bryan De La Cruz and Garrett Hampson teamed up with back-to-back doubles to make it 2-0 in the seventh.

Edwards, Hampson and Garrett teaming up in a key September win may have been unexpected six months ago. Edwards opened the season with Triple-A Jacksonville, had a short stint in the Majors in May and then was optioned back to the Jumbo Shrimp. He wasn’t recalled again until Sept. 1.

Hampson, meanwhile, has bounced between the Majors and Triple-A this season. He was recalled late last month for his fourth stint in big leagues.

“Hampson has been awesome, he really has,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “We’ve sent him up and down a couple of times, and he hasn’t batted an eye, really. [Hasn’t] complained at all. Just wore it a couple of times because we had to make moves, and every time we’ve brought him back up, he’s done something. … X, all he’s done up here is hit. He really has, against tough pitching.”

Garrett opened the season in the bullpen and made one relief appearance before he was optioned to Jacksonville. He was recalled one day later, when Johnny Cueto went on the injured list on April 4.

The southpaw's contributions this season have been crucial for the Marlins, and the numbers back it up. Over a quarter of Miami's wins have come on days Garrett has started, with the Marlins going 20-8 in those games.

“He gives us a chance to win,” Schumaker said. “That makes a lot of sense to me, when I hear that number, because we always feel like we’re in the game. Beginning of the year, we didn’t really know [about] third time through and that type of thing, and he maybe struggled a bit third time through.

“Now we feel pretty confident third time through of him getting through that part of the order, or middle of the order. … He’s been excellent. Anytime you hear ‘He gives us a chance to win’ from a starter, that’s all you can ask for.”

Garrett has allowed one fewer runs in 15 of his 28 starts, the most among Major League starters this year and the second-most from a lefty in club history. In a career-high 149 2/3 innings, he has posted a 3.67 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP, with 147 strikeouts and just 27 walks.

“I just harp on my competitiveness,” Garrett said. “I’ve really learned to trust my stuff in the zone, not being a hard-throwing guy with putaway stuff all the time. I've just been happy with the confidence that’s grown, the competitiveness and being in these games late in the season.

“I've never been in a playoff push before. I felt the pressure today, so I think that's awesome. And it felt good to pitch well in a game we felt like we needed to win.”

Hampson spent five seasons with the Rockies. As a rookie in 2018 with Colorado, he lost in the NLDS to the Brewers.

Five years later and back at American Family Field, he was reminded of that playoff atmosphere, as Miami makes its push for October.

“It just feels good to play in those meaningful games,” Hampson said. “I was fist pumping every out late in the game there in center field. It feels awesome to be part of a group that is really fighting to stay alive and fighting for a playoff spot.”