Alcantara leads young trio in playoff rotation
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The math might not add up in the world of academia, but Sandy Alcantara knows perfectly well that in baseball terms, the 6-4-3 combination equals two outs. As in a shortstop to second baseman to first baseman double play.
As a reminder, Alcantara has “6 + 4 + 3 = 2” tattooed on his left arm.
Alcantara’s ability to shut down a lineup and to get two outs with one pitch are reasons he was tabbed to start Game 1 of the Wild Card Series on Wednesday for the sixth-seeded Marlins against the third-seeded Cubs at Wrigley Field.
“If Sandy is on the attack, and getting after the strike zone, which is what we talk about all the time, you like his chances of being successful, keeping us in the game and giving us a chance,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said.
Shop for postseason gear: In Game 2 on Thursday, the Marlins announced, rookie Sixto Sánchez will start. If there is a decisive Game 3, it will be Pablo López.
“We talked about possibly going the second game with Sandy, and giving him an extra days' rest,” Mattingly said. “We decided that he's been a little bit on a roll. He's our guy. He wanted it. It all kind of worked out. We felt like he was the best guy. We like Sixto in the two spot and Pablo in Game 3.”
Alcantara, an All-Star in 2019, and Miami’s Opening Day starter this year, lobbied for the ball.
“I prefer to throw the first game, because I think I can do it,” the 25-year-old said. “I think we can do it, too. The thing we have to do [Wednesday] is go out there and enjoy the moment. Play hard. That's what we have to do.”
The hard-throwing right-hander reaffirmed himself as the ace of the staff after testing positive for COVID-19 and missing a month. In seven regular-season starts, Alcantara went 3-2 with a 3.00 ERA.
His power sinker, which averages 96.6 mph, is his bread-and-butter pitch, and he has a 49.1% ground-ball rate. In 42 innings this season, he got six double-play grounders. Last year, his 23 double plays were second-highest in the Majors.
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Alcantara’s ability to get so many double plays inspired the tattoo.
“I did my tattoo last year after my last start,” Alcantara said. “I got it because I get a lot of double plays, and a lot of ground balls. I gave a gift to myself, and I got the tattoo.”
One reason the Marlins are optimistic about these players, and the future, is the quality of their starting pitchers. They believe Alcantara, the 22-year-old Sánchez and the 24-year-old López match up with any team in the postseason.
“The playoffs are all about pitching and defense, clutch hitting and things like that,” Miami left fielder Corey Dickerson said. “You always have confidence when you have pitchers like that. I would not want to face our staff, for sure.”
All three are hard throwers. Per Statcast, Sánchez’s fastball average is 97.6 mph and López’s is 93.3 mph. López has topped 96 mph on several occasions.
“When you have a well-above-average fastball that gets on you quickly, it just makes it a tough at-bat,” Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill said. “When you’re talking about Sandy, who is upper 90s, and Sixto, who is upper 90s, and Pablo, who is mid-to-upper 90s, you’ve got to be prepared to try to get to that fastball.”
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Marte ready
Starling Marte practiced on Tuesday, and he is considered ready to go for Game 1. That’s a relief for the Marlins, considering the 31-year-old center fielder was struck on the brim of his helmet by a pitch on Sunday against the Yankees.
Marte sustained a bruised left ear, which was caused by his helmet being knocked off his head.
“He seemed fine,” Mattingly said. “He’s not having any other issues. I didn’t read anything on the medical report. He seems the same. He took BP, and he was running around. We dodged that bullet.”
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Rojas enjoying the ride
Shortstop Miguel Rojas has been with the Marlins since 2015, and the 31-year-old has endured the lean years. Now he’s enjoying the improbable ride into the playoffs.
“There's a lot of satisfaction for me,” Rojas said. “I bought in when this ownership group took over in 2018. They had a plan. They executed the plan, and now we're here. We took the first step towards the goal of what we want to be. We don't just want to be a winner -- we want to be a sustainable winner for a long time, which is why I'm here.”