Phillies vs. Marlins Series Preview

The Miami Marlins look to put a disappointing series against the Mets out of their mind as they host the Philadelphia Phillies this weekend. The division rival enters the weekend two games back from both the NL East-leading Braves and the NL Wild Card spots.

This series preview will give you all the details:

• Schedule, Watch, Listen
• Probable Pitchers
• Recent Lineups
• What To Watch For

Schedule, Watch, Listen

Friday, September 3 at 7:10 pm

Saturday, September 4 at 6:10 pm

Sunday, September 5 at 1:10 pm

• TV broadcast for all 3 games: Bally Sports Florida
• Radio broadcast for all 3 games: 940 AM WINZ, WAQI 710
• Friday’s game is also available on MLB Network for out-of-market fans.

Grid View

• Kyle Gibson, Phillies starting pitcher on Friday Photo by Orlando Ramirez/USA TODAY Sports
• Jesús Luzardo, Marlins starting pitcher on Friday Photo by Sam Navarro/USA TODAY Sports
• Ranger Suárez, Phillies starting pitcher on Saturday Photo by Kyle Ross/USA TODAY Sports
• Zack Wheeler, Phillies starting pitcher on Sunday Photo by Brad Mills/USA TODAY Sports
• Elieser Hernandez, Marlins starting pitcher on Sunday Photo by Gregory Fisher/USA TODAY Sports

Probable Pitchers

Friday: RHP Kyle Gibson vs. LHP Jesús Luzardo

• Gibson: 2.94 ERA, 1.180 WHIP, 18.9 K%, 37.9 HardHit% in 150.0 IP
• Luzardo: 7.19 ERA, 1.688 WHIP, 22.0 K%, 39.2 HardHit% in 66.1 IP

Saturday: LHP Ranger Suárez vs. LHP Trevor Rogers

• Suárez: 1.48 ERA, 1.045 WHIP, 24.2 K%, 30.8 HardHit% in 67.0 IP
• Rogers: 2.45 ERA, 1.127 WHIP, 28.7 K%, 37.7 HardHit% in 110.0 IP

Sunday: RHP Zack Wheeler vs. RHP Elieser Hernandez

• Wheeler: 3.01 ERA, 1.024 WHIP, 28.6 K%, 29.8 HardHit% in 182.2 IP
• Hernanez: 3.62 ERA, 1.134 WHIP, 23.1 K%, 42.7 HardHit% in 27.1 IP

Recent Lineups

Baseball-Reference.com

Baseball-Reference.com

What to watch for on...

Friday: Jesús Luzardo needs to build on his last start.

• Luzardo vs. Reds last weekend: 6+ IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 K.
• I must admit: As I watched the game’s first batter double off Luzardo and the second batter work a walk last Sunday, I groaned and assumed the worst. The Marlins newly acquired left-hander proved me wrong, retiring the next 18 of 19 batters he faced. The one batter that reached base did so on an error. After Luzardo hit the first batter he faced in the seventh inning, he walked off the mound with eight strikeouts and the crowd’s cheers. Sandy León caught Luzardo last weekend, so he’ll likely be behind the plate Friday night.

Photo by Eric Hartline/USA TODAY Sports

Saturday: Stop Bryce Harper from adding to his MVP campaign.

• Harper in 2021: .305/.418/.589, 32 doubles, 26 home runs, 74 walks.
• As if his league-leading 1.007 OPS wasn’t enough, his August was even better: a .337 batting average and 1.231 on-base plus slugging. He’s hitting the ball hard (95+ MPH) nearly half the time he puts the ball in play and works a walk more than everyone in baseball not named Juan Soto or Joey Gallo. It’s unlikely they can shut Harper down completely, but hopefully they can do it when it counts.

Sunday: Marlins face strikeout-leader Zack Wheeler.

• Wheeler leads the league in innings pitched (182.2), strikeouts (208), complete games (3), and shutouts (2).
• Current Marlins batters don’t have much success against Wheeler, hitting a combined .154 against him. Miguel Rojas and Brian Anderson have seen him the most, with moderate success. Rojas: .280 batting average with 2 home runs. Anderson: .273 batting average with 2 doubles.