List of Miami Marlins Opening Day starting pitchers

Last updated

Hard Rock Stadium, the Marlins former home ballpark from 1993-2011 Marlins 2008 001.jpg
Hard Rock Stadium, the Marlins former home ballpark from 1993-2011

The Miami Marlins are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in Miami, Florida. They play in the National League East division. The first game of the new baseball season for a team is played on Opening Day, and being named the Opening Day starter is an honor, which is often given to the player who is expected to lead the pitching staff that season, [1] though there are various strategic reasons why a team's best pitcher might not start on Opening Day. [2] The Marlins have used 17 different Opening Day starting pitchers in their 27 seasons. Since the Marlins' first season in 1993, the 17 starters have a combined Opening Day record of 12  wins and 14  losses with two no-decisions. Notably, no Marlins Opening Day starter received a no-decision until the team's 24th season in 2016. [3] [4] [5] No-decisions are only awarded to the starting pitcher if the game is won or lost after the starting pitcher has left the game. [6]

Contents

Nine Marlins pitchers have started on two or more Opening Days. [3] Those nine are Charlie Hough, Kevin Brown, Alex Fernandez, Ryan Dempster, Josh Beckett, Dontrelle Willis, Josh Johnson, Ricky Nolasco, and José Ureña. [3] Beckett and Johnson hold the record for most Opening Day starts as a Marlin, with three appearances each, from 2003 to 2005 for Beckett and 2010 to 2012 for Johnson. [3] When playing at their original home field, the venue now known as Hard Rock Stadium, the Marlins had a record of nine wins and five losses (9–5). [3] At their current home of Marlins Park, Opening Day pitchers have a record of 1–5 with one no-decision. [3] In the franchise's history, the Marlins have only played Opening Day games at another team's home stadium eight times. [3] As the away team, Marlins' starting pitchers have an Opening Day record of 1–6 with one no-decision. [3]

The longest ever Opening Day winning streak for Marlins starting pitchers is four years, when Florida won from 1997 to 2000 under starting pitchers Kevin Brown (1997), Liván Hernández (1998), and Alex Fernandez (1999 and 2000). [3] This streak was sandwiched by the Marlins' two longest Opening Day losing streaks for starting pitchers, each at three losses. The first was in 1994, 1995, and 1996 under starting pitchers Charlie Hough (1994), John Burkett (1995), and Kevin Brown (1996); the second was in 2001, 2002, and 2003 under Ryan Dempster (2001 and 2002) and Josh Beckett (2003) [3] The Marlins have won the World Series twice, in 1997 and 2003, and in those seasons, their starting pitchers had one win and one loss on Opening Day. [3]

Key

Ricky Nolasco, the 2009 opening day starter Ricky Nolasco Marlins.JPG
Ricky Nolasco, the 2009 opening day starter
Mark Hendrickson, the 2008 Opening Day starter MarkHendrickson.jpg
Mark Hendrickson, the 2008 Opening Day starter
Dontrelle Willis, the 2006 and 2007 Opening Day starter DontrelleWillis.jpg
Dontrelle Willis, the 2006 and 2007 Opening Day starter
SeasonEach year is linked to an article about that particular Marlins season.
WWin
LLoss
ND (W) No decision by starting pitcher; Marlins won game
ND (L)No decision by starting pitcher; Marlins lost game
Pitcher (#)Number of appearances as Opening Day starter with the Marlins
*Advanced to the post-season
† World Series Champions

Pitchers

SeasonPitcherDecisionOpponentLocationRef(s)
1993 Charlie Hough W Los Angeles Dodgers Joe Robbie Stadium [3]
1994 Charlie Hough (2)L Los Angeles Dodgers Dodger Stadium [3]
1995 John Burkett L Los Angeles Dodgers Joe Robbie Stadium [3]
1996 Kevin Brown L Pittsburgh Pirates Joe Robbie Stadium [3]
1997† Kevin Brown (2)W Chicago Cubs Pro Player Stadium [3]
1998 Liván Hernández W Chicago Cubs Pro Player Stadium [3]
1999 Alex Fernandez W New York Mets Pro Player Stadium [3]
2000 Alex Fernandez (2)W San Francisco Giants Pro Player Stadium [3]
2001 Ryan Dempster L Philadelphia Phillies Pro Player Stadium [3]
2002 Ryan Dempster (2)L Montreal Expos Olympic Stadium [3] [7]
2003† Josh Beckett L Philadelphia Phillies Pro Player Stadium [3] [8]
2004 Josh Beckett (2)W Montreal Expos Pro Player Stadium [3] [9]
2005 Josh Beckett (3)W Atlanta Braves Dolphins Stadium [3] [10]
2006 Dontrelle Willis L Houston Astros Minute Maid Park [3] [11]
2007 Dontrelle Willis (2)W Washington Nationals Robert F. Kennedy Stadium [3] [12]
2008 Mark Hendrickson L New York Mets Dolphin Stadium [13]
2009 Ricky Nolasco W Washington Nationals Dolphin Stadium [4]
2010 Josh Johnson L New York Mets Citi Field [5]
2011 Josh Johnson (2)W New York Mets Sun Life Stadium [5]
2012 Josh Johnson (3)L St. Louis Cardinals Marlins Park [5]
2013 Ricky Nolasco (2)L Washington Nationals Nationals Park [3]
2014 José Fernández W Colorado Rockies Marlins Park [3]
2015 Henderson Álvarez L Atlanta Braves Marlins Park [3]
2016 Wei-Yin Chen ND (L) Detroit Tigers Marlins Park [3]
2017 Edinson Vólquez ND (L) Washington Nationals Nationals Park [3] [14]
2018 José Ureña L Chicago Cubs Marlins Park [3]
2019 José Ureña (2)L Colorado Rockies Marlins Park [3]
2020* Sandy Alcántara W Philadelphia Phillies Citizens Bank Park [3]
2021 Sandy Alcántara (2)ND (L) Tampa Bay Rays LoanDepot Park [3]
2022 Sandy Alcántara (3)ND (L) San Francisco Giants Oracle Park [3]
2023* Sandy Alcántara (4)ND (L) New York Mets LoanDepot Park [3]
2024 Jesús Luzardo ND (L) Pittsburgh Pirates LoanDepot Park [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miami Marlins</span> Major League Baseball team in Miami, Florida

The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2003 World Series</span> 99th edition of Major League Baseballs championship series

The 2003 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2003 season. The 99th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Florida Marlins and the American League (AL) champion New York Yankees; the Marlins upset the heavily-favored Yankees, four games to two. The series was played from October 18 to 25, 2003. This is the most recent Series in which the losing team outscored the winning team; the Yankees lost, despite outscoring the Marlins 21–17 in the Series. This was the Marlins' second World Series championship win, having won their first in 1997. The Marlins would not return to the postseason until 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Beckett</span> American baseball pitcher

Joshua Patrick Beckett is an American former professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). A three-time MLB All-Star, he played for the Florida Marlins, the Boston Red Sox, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlos Zambrano</span> Venezuelan baseball player (born 1981)

Carlos Alberto Zambrano Matos, nicknamed "Big Z" or "El Toro", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2001 to 2012 for the Chicago Cubs and Miami Marlins. Zambrano, who stands 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and weighs 275 pounds (125 kg), was signed by the Cubs as a free agent in 1997 and made his debut in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liván Hernández</span> Cuban baseball player (born 1975)

Eisler Liván Hernández Carrera is a Cuban-born former professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball. Over a 17-year career, he played for nine different teams and was named to two All-Star Games. He was named the MVP of the 1997 World Series with the Florida Marlins. He is the half-brother of pitcher Orlando "El Duque" Hernández.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamie Moyer</span> American baseball pitcher (born 1962)

Jamie Moyer is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Over his 25-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB), Moyer pitched for the Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers, St. Louis Cardinals, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners, Philadelphia Phillies, and Colorado Rockies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Conine</span> American baseball player (born 1966)

Jeffrey Guy Conine is an American former professional baseball left fielder / first baseman and current front office assistant for the Miami Marlins, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 17 seasons, with six teams. An inaugural member of the Florida Marlins who was with the franchise for both of its World Series titles, he was nicknamed "Mr. Marlin" for his significant history with the club.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juan Encarnación</span> Dominican baseball player (born 1976)

Juan De Dios Encarnación is a Dominican former professional baseball outfielder. He played 11 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1997 to 2007 for the Detroit Tigers, Cincinnati Reds, Florida Marlins, Los Angeles Dodgers, and St. Louis Cardinals. Encarnación suffered a career-ending injury after getting hit in the eye by a foul ball on August 31, 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scott Olsen</span> American baseball player

Scott Matthew Olsen is an American former pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Florida Marlins and Washington Nationals between 2005 and 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ricky Nolasco</span> American baseball player

Carlos Enrique Nolasco is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida/Miami Marlins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, and Los Angeles Angels. He is of Mexican descent.

The 2006 Florida Marlins season was the 14th in Marlins franchise history; an American Major League Baseball team based in Miami Gardens, Florida. They finished the season in fourth place in the National League East. They are notable for greatly exceeding expectations and remaining close in the Wild Card race until September, despite having the lowest payroll in the Major Leagues and using primarily rookies and low priced veterans. They also became the first team in MLB history to be at least 20 games under .500 (11–31), and at any point in the same season be a game over .500 (69–68). The team ultimately fell short of a Wild Card berth, and failed to make the playoffs for the third consecutive season.

The Florida Marlins' 2003 season was the 11th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in the National League. The Marlins were the National League Wild Card winners, the National League Champions, and the World Series Champions. They defeated the New York Yankees in the World Series in six games to win their second World Series championship. The Marlins became the second team in baseball history to win a World Series championship despite being 10 or more games below .500 at some point in the season; the other team was the 1914 Boston Braves.

The Florida Marlins' 1994 season was the second season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in the National League. It would begin with the team attempting to improve on their season from 1993. Their manager was Rene Lachemann. They played home games at Joe Robbie Stadium. They finished with a record of 51–64, last in the National League East. The season ended early as a result of the 1994 players strike.

Below is a partial list of minor league baseball players in the Miami Marlins system:

The Miami Marlins are a Major League Baseball team that currently plays in the city of Miami. Founded in 1991 as the Florida Marlins, the Marlins began play in 1993 in the suburb of Miami Gardens, and moved to the city in 2012, becoming the Miami Marlins at that time. The team has played their home games at LoanDepot Park since that time.

References

  1. ↑ Bastian, Jordan (March 22, 2010). "Marcum tapped for Jays' Opening Day". MLB.com. Retrieved September 26, 2010.
  2. ↑ Dilbeck, Steve (February 24, 2014). "Dodgers may not start Clayton Kershaw in Sydney". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 "Miami Marlins Opening Day Starters and Results". Baseball-Reference . Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  4. 1 2 "Florida 12, Washington 6". Yahoo! . Retrieved 2009-04-06.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "NY Mets 7, Florida 1". Yahoo! . Retrieved 2009-04-06.
  6. ↑ "Official Rules – The Official Scorer". Major League Baseball. Retrieved 2009-01-04.
  7. ↑ "Expos 7, Marlins 6". ESPN . Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  8. ↑ "Bell, Thome and Millwood off to solid starts". ESPN . Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  9. ↑ "Choi marks Marlins debut with career-high 3 RBI". ESPN . Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  10. ↑ "Smoltz allows first-inning grand slam in return to rotation". ESPN . Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  11. ↑ "Oswalt, Lidge combine to five-hit Marlins". ESPN . Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  12. ↑ "Cabrera's four RBI carry Marlins past Nats". ESPN . Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  13. ↑ "Santana K's eight in seven innings as Mets roll". ESPN . Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  14. ↑ "Miami Marlins at Washington Nationals Box Score, April 3, 2017". Baseball-Reference. Retrieved April 14, 2017.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.