MIAMI — The Marlins matched a franchise record with their 11th consecutive loss Saturday, falling 7-2 to the Padres at loanDepot park as an anemic offense continued to squander strong pitching from 23-year-old right-hander Eury Pérez.
The skid ties losing streaks from June 2011 and twice during the 1998 season. Only one other Major League club has lost at least 11 in a row this season — the last-place Mets, who dropped 12 straight from April 8-21.
“It’s almost like we’re playing just good enough not to win, that type of thing,” manager Clayton McCullough said. “We have one tomorrow, and to come out and — again — try to break this streak and this storm cloud or these rough seas that we are navigating right now. They’ll end, and I wish I had a crystal ball to know when, but they will, and still a ton of confidence in everyone here that we’ll get this thing turned in a different direction.”
Pérez could hardly be faulted for the result, throwing a career-high 104 pitches and allowing three runs over seven innings for his fourth consecutive quality start. He scattered six hits and walked one while striking out two. Since May 22, Pérez owns a 1.55 ERA over his last eight starts. “I don’t think I would qualify this as a great quality start because there was a lot of soft contact and a few runs I’m not too happy about,” Pérez said via interpreter Luis Dorante. “But we kept working on the mound. Very grateful for the fact they let me finish that seventh inning. The trust is something I really appreciate. We’ll continue to work really hard, get the team out of this losing streak.”
The lineup, averaging 2.45 runs per game during the skid, again failed to deliver. Miami entered Saturday hitting .157 with runners in scoring position. Otto Lopez drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the third, and Kyle Stowers added an RBI single in the eighth, but baserunning mistakes — Jakob Marsee thrown out trying to advance from first to second in the third, Lopez thrown out going first to third in the eighth — snuffed out both rallies.
“I wouldn’t say press, but we’re always trying to get something good going on,” said Lopez, who is playing through discomfort in his right ring finger. “Of course, I would say it’s not happening, but it gets to a point where we’ve been fighting through, and things just don’t work.”
McCullough pushed back against the notion that any single player could reverse the slide. “For the most part, we just haven’t done enough within these games to find a way to get on top and to win,” he said. “It’s not one person that’s going to stop this. It’s going to be a collective effort, and so I kind of view it that way: that all parts have to be involved for us to turn this around.” The Marlins close the series against San Diego at loanDepot park Sunday with a chance to avoid a franchise-worst 12th straight defeat.