This story was originally published by Dead Spin
The postseason-chasing San Francisco Giants will face their last non-contending team of the season on Friday when they open a three-game home series against the Miami Marlins, who have the worst record in the National League.
Coming off a 2-4 trip to Milwaukee and Seattle that pushed them under .500 in their pursuit of the final wild-card spot in the National League, the Giants get an opportunity to build upon the 38-28 home record that has kept their slim postseason hopes alive.
The September list of opponents is an impressive one, with six games apiece against the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres, and three each against the Milwaukee Brewers, Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals.
All except the .500 Cardinals currently occupy a spot in the playoffs.
A sweep of the Marlins would help gather momentum, but the Giants haven’t had one of those at home since they took four straight from the Colorado Rockies in late July. The club returned home Thursday night after a disheartening 6-0 loss at Milwaukee, the first blowout on a trip in which the other three defeats were by a total of four runs.
“You can’t be losing series,” Giants manager Bob Melvin summed up. “Obviously, when you win the first game of the series, you’d like to win at least one more. So it ends up being a bad road trip.”
Seeking to end their losing streak at two, the Giants turn to a well-rested Blake Snell (2-3, 3.76 ERA) to try to get a six-game homestand off on a positive note.
The left-hander was pulled because of control issues after just three innings and 74 pitches at Seattle last Saturday despite not having allowed a hit. He walked six in a game the Giants went on to win 4-3.
San Francisco has won seven of his nine starts since he returned from a strained groin on July 9.
The 31-year-old will be making his seventh career start against the Marlins, having gone 2-2 with a 3.27 ERA in the first six.
He will be seeing a Marlins team that has scored six or more runs in five of its past 10 games, including double digits in a 12-8 win at Colorado on Thursday. Miami split the series against the Rockies, winning when they scored nine and 12 runs, losing when held to two in each of the other contests.
Snell will have to deal for the first time with new Marlins leadoff man Connor Norby, who was acquired along with outfielder Kyle Stowers at the trade deadline from the Orioles for pitcher Trevor Rogers.
Norby has hit safely (14-for-40) in all 10 games he’s played for the Marlins, scoring at least one run in eight of them. He contributed two hits, two walks, three runs and an RBI to Thursday’s win.
“He plays with some edge,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. “We needed edge in that clubhouse. We need edge when we start the game, and he provides it. He’s never going to give in, and I think we need more guys like him, playing the game the right way.”
Another newcomer, right-hander Adam Oller (1-1, 5.23), is expected to get the ball for Miami. The 29-year-old has made two starts since being signed as an in-season free agent in July and is coming off a sharp effort in a 7-2 home win over the Chicago Cubs last Sunday, allowing just one run in 5 2/3 innings.
The third-year major-leaguer has faced the Giants once, that coming in 2022 as a member of the rival Oakland Athletics. Oller took the loss in that one, allowing four runs in five innings in a 7-3 home defeat.
-Field Level Media
