The Marlins fell to 3-14, and their frustration boiled over in the bottom of the eighth when plate umpire Laz Díaz ejected manager Skip Schumaker. Earlier, Schumaker emerged from the dugout and had a heated exchange with Díaz but wasn’t tossed. During Nick Gordon’s pinch-hit appearance, Schumaker again stepped out of the dugout and exchanged words with Díaz before he was ejected.

Kyle Harrison (2-1) allowed three runs in six innings. The rookie left-hander gave up eight hits, walked one and struck out two.

Down 3-1, the Giants rallied with a three-run seventh against relievers George Soriano (0-1) and Andrew Nardi. Patrick Bailey’s sacrifice fly made it 3-2 before consecutive RBI singles from Lee and pinch-hitter Wilmer Flores.

Tyler Rogers relieved Harrison and threw a scoreless seventh, and Ryan Walker got the first two outs in the eighth. Camilo Doval closed, throwing the final 1 1/3 innings for his second save.

Miami’s Edward Cabrera struck out 10 and allowed one run and five hits over six innings in his season debut. The right-hander had been sidelined with a right shoulder impingement.

Cabrera became the second Marlins starter to complete six innings this season. Max Meyer did it twice before he was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville on Monday to make room for Cabrera on the roster.

Avisaíl García’s leadoff homer and Bryan De La Cruz’s two-run double in the second put Miami ahead 3-0.

The Giants narrowed the margin on Michael Conforto’s RBI single in the fourth.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: Placed infielder Jake Burger on the injured list because of a left intercostal muscle strain and recalled infielder Otto López from Jacksonville. … LHP Braxton Garrett (left shoulder impingement) experienced “dead arm” discomfort after his bullpen session, Schumaker said. … C Christian Bethancourt (illness) was not with the club.

UP NEXT

RHP Jordan Hicks (2-0, 1.00 ERA) will start for the Giants on Tuesday. The Marlins will go with LHP Ryan Weathers (1-1, 2.57).

Atlanta wasted a 5-1 lead and fell behind 7-5 in the sixth when Jesús Sánchez hit a tying RBI single with two outs against Charlie Morton and scored on Nick Gordon’s two-run homer off Dylan Lee.

Ozuna hit an RBI double in the seventh against Anthony Bender. Then in the ninth, Ronald Acuña Jr. singled off Scott (0-3) leading off, Matt Olson walked on four pitches with two outs and Ozuna drove a slider with an 0-2 count to center for his seventh home run this season.

“I just wanted to make good contact and tie the game because Ronny was at second,” Ozuna said. “Any bloop or base hit I could get and Ronny scores and it’s tie game.”

Ozuna, who spent the first five seasons of his career in Miami, went 7 for 12, homered twice and had eight RBIs in the series.

“This is the place that I grew up and this is the team that gave me the opportunity as a professional baseball player,” Ozuna said. “This is basically my hometown. Every time I come here, I feel good.”

Scott retired Ozuna on a double play grounder to close Miami’s win Saturday.

“I didn’t execute my pitch. I threw a bad pitch and it all falls on me,” Scott said. “I should have gotten the guy before him. That’s my mistake.”

Adam Duvall also homered for the Braves. A.J. Minter (2-1) pitched a perfect eighth and Raisel Iglesias got three straight outs for his third save.

“These guys are amazing,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “If you keep within a run or so, you’ve got a pretty good chance. It was a tough, well-fought game.”

Third baseman Jake Burger, who leads Miami with 15 RBIs, left in the third inning because of a left oblique strain. Miami dropped to 3-13.

“The way they fought was so encouraging because if they do that throughout the year, you’ll get more wins than losses,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. “That’s tough. It’s going to eat at them tonight, no doubt.”

Morton gave up six runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings with eight strikeouts.

“I think they jumped me early in a couple of counts,” Morton said. “They got some pitches to hit and put barrel on the ball. There were a couple of mistakes that I made in counts and I paid for them.”

Jesús Luzardo allowed five runs and seven hits in five innings. Bryan De La Cruz also homered for the Marlins.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: INF Tim Anderson entered in the sixth after missing two games because of an illness and struck out leading off the ninth. Anderson replaced Vidal Brujan, who exited because of right knee soreness.

UP NEXT

Braves: RHP Darius Vines makes his season debut at Houston after pitching 12 innings with a 3.75 ERA for Triple-A Gwinnett. RHP Spencer Arrighetti (0-1, 21.00) starts for the Astros.

Marlins: LHP A.J. Puk (0-3, 5.91) will start Monday’s opener of a three-game series against visiting San Francisco and LHP Kyle Harrison (1-1, 4.76).

Bell hit a fly ball off Braves starter Chris Sale that sneaked over the left-field wall of a windy loanDepot Park in the first inning. It was Bell’s second home run of the season.

Meyer (2-0) continued his strong start, limiting the Braves’ high-powered offense to one run on six hits while striking out a career-high seven batters and not issuing a walk.

Meyer picked up his first career win last Sunday against St. Louis with six innings of one-run ball on three hits. The 25-year-old Meyer, who is ranked as Miami’s third-best prospect by MLB Pipeline, missed last season recovering from Tommy John surgery.

“I felt good. I was pretty much just following Bethancourt (Marlins catcher Christian Bethancourt) the whole day,” Meyer said. “I liked his gameplan. He really made it easy on me. We were dialed in the whole game, attacked the zone. I didn’t get as many first-pitch strikes as I wanted to, but I was able to bounce back and get some swings and misses too.”

Bryan De La Cruz gave the Marlins a 5-0 lead with a two-out, bases-loaded double in the fifth off Sale, who recorded outs against the first two batters he faced in the inning and then allowed a single and consecutive walks. Luis Arraez, Bell and Jake Burger scored.

“That was really the only inning that kind of got away,” Sale said. “Even the following two innings, when I was still kind of steaming, I felt like my command was there. For whatever reason that one inning, it fell apart. I wasn’t able to limit the damage.”

De La Cruz has a hit in 12 of Miami’s 15 games this season and leads the club in hits with 17, two of which came Saturday.

“This is who we are, actually,” De La Cruz said through a translator. “If you see the way we play out there as a unit — this is actually the way we play the game. This is what actually got us to the playoffs last year. And that’s what we’re trying to emulate.”

Atlanta’s Austin Riley hit a leadoff triple off Meyer in the sixth and scored on a groundout by Marcell Ozuna.

Ozuna extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a leadoff single in the second.

RHP Calvin Faucher, who was recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville ahead of the game, replaced Meyer and pitched a perfect seventh. Anthony Bender was perfect in the eighth, and Tanner Scott rounded out a solid bullpen effort for the Marlins, recording the final three outs.

Sale (1-1) allowed five hits and five runs with seven strikeouts and three walks over seven innings.

The Marlins were 0-8 at home entering Saturday’s game.

“It’s not like we’re going to stop playing hard and stop fighting,” said Braves manager Skip Schumaker. “I know it’s not what everybody wants the start to be, but that’s a really good team that we have out there.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: Tim Anderson missed his second straight game with an illness. … RHP Matt Andriese was designated for assignment.

UP NEXT

Right-hander Charlie Morton (1-0, 3.18 ERA) will start Sunday’s series finale for the Braves against Marlins left-hander Jesús Luzardo (0-2, 7.20).

Fried (1-0) entered with an 18.00 ERA after a pair of rough starts to open the season, but limited the Marlins to four hits while striking out four and walking one. The 30-year old left-hander was replaced by Pierce Johnson after giving up back-to-back hits in the seventh.

Ozuna blasted a solo shot 446 feet to center field in the ninth for his sixth home run — tying him with Boston’s Tyler O’Neill and the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout for the major league lead — and the second-longest homer hit at loanDepot park this year. Ozuna was 3 for 4 with three RBIs.

Braves shortstop Orlando Arcia led off a five-run seventh with a double off reliever George Soriano, who then walked Ronald Acuña Jr. and hit Ozzie Albies with a pitch to load the bases. Andrew Nardi replaced Soriano and gave up a bases-loaded walk to Matt Olson and a two-run single to Ozuna.

Nardi exited to some boos before Burch Smith gave up a pair of RBI singles to make it 7-0. Smith got Travis d’Arnaud to ground out to end the inning.

Arcia also doubled to start the fifth and scored on Albies’ single that put Atlanta up 2-0.

Olson, d’Arnaud and Austin Riley also doubled for the high-powered Braves, who have an MLB-leading 38 doubles. Acuña stole two bases, giving him six on the season.

Marlins starter Trevor Rodgers (0-2) allowed eight hits and two runs with five strikeouts and a walk in five innings.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. singled in the seventh against Fried, then scored Miami’s only run on a single by Emmanuel Rivera.

The Marlins lost their 12th game and remain winless at home after opening with an 0-7 homestand.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Braves: C Sean Murphy (oblique strain) threw flat-footed before Friday’s game and is increasing his activity. Manager Brian Snitker said it was a “good sign.” … RHP Darius Vines was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett. … RHP Allan Winans was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett following Thursday’s loss to Mets.

Marlins: SS Tim Anderson was given the day off because of an illness. … LHP Braxton Garrett (shoulder) threw six innings in a rehab start with the Triple- A Jacksonville on Friday. Garrett gave up four runs and six hits while striking out four. … RHP Edward Cabrera (shoulder impingement) is scheduled to pitch six innings with Triple-A Jacksonville on Wednesday.

UP NEXT

Left-hander Chris Sale (1-0, 3.38 ERA) will start for Atlanta against Marlins right-hander Max Meyer (1-0, 2.45).

Ryan Weathers (1-1) allowed three hits and three walks in five scoreless innings for the Marlins, who at 2-11 had matched the team record for worst 12-game start set in 1998. Weathers got his first big league win in almost a year, since defeating the New York Mets for San Diego on April 11 last year.

New York dropped to 10-3 as the Marlins stopped the Yankees’ four-game winning streak.

Giancarlo Stanton homered in the sixth off Bryan Hoeing for his third home run in five games and fourth this season. Stanton’s home run was his first against the Marlins — his original team — and he has now homered against all 30 clubs.

Juan Soto hit an RBI double in the eighth, cutting the deficit to 4-2. Tanner Scott escaped a two-on jam by retiring Anthony Rizzo on a popup and striking out Gleyber Torres.

Tim Anderson, running on the pitch, scored from second base on Nick Fortes’ ninth-inning grounder.

Scott got five outs for the Marlins’ first save this season, retiring Aaron Judge on a game-ending flyout with the bases loaded.

Marcus Stroman (1-1) gave up four runs, four hits and four walks in five innings on a cool, breezy night. He had not allowed an earned run in 12 innings over his first two starts.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone was ejected in the seventh inning by plate umpire John Bacon after arguing a called strike to Alex Verdugo. It was Boone’s first ejection this season and 34th in seven seasons and 883 games as New York’s manager.

Nick Gordon walked leading off the third, Fortes had a hit-and-run single through the hole on the right side vacated when Torres moved to cover second, and Luis Arráez grounded an opposite-field RBI single to left.

Burger drove a flat slider 425 feet into the visitors’ bullpen in left-center for his third home run this season and a 4-0 lead.

Anthony Volpe was moved to leadoff by Boone and is hitting .372 after going 1 for 3 with a pair of walks. Torres was dropped to sixth and is batting .192 (12 for 52) after going 0 for 2.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: RHP Edward Cabrera, who had been sidelined by right shoulder impingement, struck out nine in 5 2/3 innings for Triple-A Jacksonville against Charlotte. He allowed an unearned run, five hits and one walk, throwing 58 of 82 pitches for strikes. Cabrera made spring training starts on Feb. 28 and March 4, then was scratched after warming up for a March 10 outing against St. Louis. “Commanded all his pitches up to 98 miles an hour,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. “I anticipate him being in the rotation at some point very soon.”

Yankees: DJ LeMahieu, sidelined since breaking his right foot with a foul ball on March 16, will continue workouts with the Yankees on the road. RHP Gerrit Cole (elbow inflammation) likely will stay behind and throw at Yankee Stadium. … RHP Tommy Kahnle (right shoulder inflammation) will throw his first bullpen Thursday or Friday. His 2023 season ended Sept. 20 because of the injury.

UP NEXT

Marlins: LHP Trevor Rogers (0-1, 5.40) is scheduled to pitch in Friday night’s series opener at Atlanta, which will have had two days off because of a rainout.

Yankees: RHP Clarke Schmidt (0-0, 4.66) starts Friday night’s series opener at Cleveland and RHP Carlos Carrasco (0-0, 4.50).

New York won its fourth straight and improved to a major league-best 10-2, equaling the starts of the Yankees in 1922, 1949 and 2003.

Miami dropped to 1-11 for the first time since losing 11 in a row after an opening victory in 1998. The Marlins are the first team to lose 11 of its first 12 since Baltimore in 2010.

Rodón (1-0) allowed four hits in six-plus innings for his fourth win in 12 decisions since signing a $162 million, six-year contract. He is 1-0 with a 1.72 ERA in three starts.

Verdugo admired his first Yankee Stadium homer in pinstripes, dropping to one knee after swinging at A.J. Puk’s 1-0 sweeper. He watched the ball land a few rows back of the short porch in right and raised his arm midway through the home run trot.

After reaching the dugout, Verdugo was met by teammates jumping up and down and barking — a reference to his calling teammates “dawgs” following the opening four-game sweep at Houston.

Verdugo hit his second homer with the Yankees, a night after getting three hits and reaching four times.

Giancarlo Stanton added an RBI double in the fifth after being robbed of a potential extra-base hit in the third by Bryan De La Cruz’s leaping catch at the left field warning track. Juan Soto, batting .348, reached three times and had an RBI single in the sixth.

After Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s grounder went under Anthony Rizzo’s glove and Tim Anderson reached on an infield single to load the bases in the seventh, pinch-hitters Jesús Sánchez (run-scoring grounder) and Nick Gordon (sacrifice fly) drove in runs against Ian Hamilton, ending Miami’s 16-inning scoreless streak.

Hamilton also pitched a scoreless eighth and Clay Holmes pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his fifth save in six chances.

Defending NL batting champion Luis Arráez struck out twice for his second multiple-strikeout game this season. He had two multi-strikeout games last season when he batted .354 in 147 games.

Puk (0-3) allowed two runs and four hits in 4 2/3 innings.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Yankees: Manager Aaron Boone said Gerrit Cole (right elbow inflammation) recovered well after resuming throwing Monday. … 3B DJ LeMahieu (bruised right foot) has begun fielding side to side grounders.

UP NEXT

RHP Marcus Stroman (1-0, 0.00 ERA)) starts Wednesday night for the Yankees against Miami LHP Ryan Weathers (0-1, 4.00).

New York improved to 9-2 and matched the best 11-game start in team history.

Soto was cheered by fans extending into the top of the following inning following his first Yankee Stadium home run in pinstripes. He turned to applaud them.

“Amazing how the crowd reacted. It was really cool. They really surprised me with that one,” Soto said. “They’re giving you a lot of love, so you got to give them some love back. Whenever I can, I just try to cheer for them, too.”

He is hitting .357 with two homers and 10 RBIs in his first season with the Yankees, who acquired the three-time All-Star from San Diego in December.

Soto was signing autographs before the game until just before Nestor Cortes threw his first pitch.

“I was thinking, hesitating, because the game was supposed to start at 6:08,” Soto said. “I have two minutes and turned around and Nestor is almost moving.”

A day after winning in St. Louis, the Marlins dropped to 1-10 for the first time since they lost 11 in a row after an opening victory in 1998 — when a selloff followed the team’s first World Series title.

“If you look at it as 1-10, you’re just going to dig yourself into a deeper hole,” Luzardo said. “It’s just more of going out there and trying to be your best every day.”

Cortes (1-1), pitching against his hometown team for the first time, allowed two hits, struck out six and walked none over eight innings. Cortes had his longest outing since May 2022 and the longest by a Yankees starter this year. After his 2023 season was cut short by a shoulder injury, Cortes won for the first time since May 30.

Josh Maciejewski, a 28-year-old left-hander, got three groundouts on four pitches in his major league debut as Miami was shut out for the first time this year.

Volpe put the Yankees ahead when he drove a flat slider over the fence in left-center, and Soto doubled the lead when he sent a first-pitch changeup high over the right-field wall.

Alex Verdugo added an RBI single in the fifth off Luzardo (0-3), who allowed seven runs, eight hits and five walks in 4 2/3 innings. Luzardo has a 7.20 ERA this season and an 18.36 ERA in three career appearances against the Yankees.

“The walks just really killed me,” Luzardo said.

Bryan De La Cruz had both Miami hits.

First pitch was pushed back four hours last week to 6:05 p.m. to avoid the solar eclipse. At 3:30 p.m., several Yankees players stood on the field to watch an eerie light illuminate the diamond.

“The advice is we can’t be on the field for BP and that’s, from 2:10 to 4:40,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said earlier. “I don’t know if that’s advice or a mandate.”

“Eclipse” from Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon” was played a few minutes before the national anthem.

WORTH NOTING

Boone said Major League Baseball told him Toronto’s Bowden Francis should have been charged with a quick pitch to Gleyber Torres in the first inning Sunday by umpire Ángel Hernández, who instead called strike three.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: OF Jazz Chisholm Jr. was out of the starting lineup a day after banging into the center-field fence in an unsuccessful attempt to deny Nolan Gorman a home run.

UP NEXT

LHP Carlos Rodón (0-0, 2.79 ERA) starts Tuesday night for the Yankees and A.J. Puk (0-2, 9.00 ERA) for the Marlins.

“I’m just happy for the guys, they can actually smile and breathe a little bit,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. “Celebrating in there after kind of a long week, long 10 days, two weeks whatever you want to call it. So it just feels really good to be able to smile in there.”

Schumaker would not comment on a report by USA Today that he and Miami had eliminated a 2025 team option from his contract during the offseason.

Miami had been the first team to start 0-9 since Atlanta and Minnesota in 2016. The Marlins avoided becoming the first team to lose its first 10 games since the 2002 Chicago White Sox began 0-11.

Max Meyer (1-0), a 25-year-old right-hander, got his first major league win in his fourth start and appearance. Meyer allowed one run and three hits in six innings, striking out three and walking one.

“Max was really the story today,” Schumaker said. “It’s exactly what we needed. He’s easy to root for. He’s just different out there. He’s a special kid that has this ninth inning mentality every pitch, and he has a bright future here.”

Meyer had Tommy John surgery on Aug. 9, 2022, and returned to a major league mound this April 1, when he pitched five innings without a decision against the Los Angeles Angels.

“It feels good.” Meyer said. “Obviously, I want to go out there and pitch five, six, seven innings every time, and this is just kind of the base. Now, I feel like for me and for all the starters to just go out there and start winning some ballgames.”

Meyer retired his first 13 batters before Nolan Gorman homered on a drive that bounced off the glove of a leaping Chisholm at the center-field wall. Gorman hit his first two home runs this season, adding a two-run drive in the ninth off Matt Andriese for his seventh career multi-homer game.

“After his first at-bat, he sat next to me and he said, ‘Man, I’m feeling better and better every swing, I feel like I’m getting really close,”’ Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. ”Then he hit his first homer and went back and hit his second one.”

Kyle Gibson (1-1) allowed seven runs and seven hits over six innings in his home debut for St. Louis.

“I felt like I executed a lot of pitches late in the game,” Gibson said. “I’ve been told you obviously can’t win the game in the first but you can lose it in the first.”Unfortunately, I just didn’t give the team a chance to win.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: LHP Braxton Garrett (left shoulder impingement) allowed two runs and three hits while striking out five and throwing 66 pitches in 4 1/3 innings during a rehabilitation start with Triple-A Jacksonville.

Cardinals: RHP Sonny Gray (right hamstring strain) will start Tuesday against Philadelphia. Marmol says Gray will be limited to approximately 65 pitches.

UP NEXT

Marlins: LHP Jesús Luzardo (0-1, 4.35 ERA) matches up against Yankees LHP Nester Cortes (0-1, 6.30 ERA) to start a three-game series in New York on Monday night.

Cardinals: RHP Miles Mikolas (1-1, 6.10 ERA) will face Phillies RHP Spencer Turnbull (1-0, 0.00 ERA) Monday night to open a three-game series.

Iván Herrera and Brendan Donovan each had two hits for St. Louis. Jordan Walker contributed an RBI double.

Matz (2-0) surrendered four hits in five scoreless innings. Ryan Helsley pitched the ninth for his third save.

“I thought my fastball was working really well,” said Matz, who threw 85 pitches. “I’d definitely like to go deeper into the game. Bullpen did a great job. It was a good win.”

The Cardinals turned two double plays. Through nine games, St. Louis has not committed an error.

“Guys are continuing to play really good defense,” manager Oliver Marmol said. “Details matter. They’re making it important.”

Miami’s Trevor Rogers (0-1) was charged with three runs, two earned, and five hits in five innings. He struck out three and walked three.

“They’re finding holes and they’re finding grass. … My stuff feels good. It just didn’t go my way,” Rogers said.

The 0-9 Marlins are the only winless team in baseball. The New York Mets, who dropped their first seven games, beat the Detroit Tigers 2-1 on Thursday for their first win.

Baltimore holds the big league record with 21 losses to start the 1988 season.

“It always starts with starting pitching,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said. “No one ever has lost from a shutout before but that’s asking a lot. I think collectively all together, we have to figure it out. I’m not telling people to do more than they can do. I don’t need one guy to carry the team. We’ve talked. We don’t need any more talking.”

Miami has lost 10 consecutive games dating to last season. It has dropped 13 of its last 16 at Busch Stadium.

“We’ve got to find ways to win,” Schumaker said. “That’s the tough part. We have to figure it out pretty soon.”

The Cardinals scored two runs in the fourth. After Herrera singled and Nolan Gorman walked, Walker doubled down the left-field line. Walker was called out at second, but the call was overturned after it was challenged by St. Louis.

Gorman was thrown out at home on a grounder to third, but Walker scored on an errant pickoff throw to first by Rogers.

“That mental error — the pickoff move — can’t happen,” Rogers said. “Got to make that play. It’s something I’ve done since I was a little kid.”

The Marlins have allowed 10 unearned runs season.

St. Louis added a run in the fifth. Herrera singled home Donovan, who led off with a double.

“Little things add up to big things,” Donovan said. “Everybody’s showing up and pulling on the right end of the rope.”

Miami scored in the eighth against Andrew Kittredge. Luis Arraez doubled and scored on a single by Josh Bell, who had two hits.

“Other than that, we just couldn’t get anything going,” Schumaker said.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: RHP Eury Pérez will undergo Tommy John surgery on Monday. He has been transferred to the 60-day IL.

Cardinals: C Willson Contreras (left hand) was scratched as the designed hitter 45 minutes before the game as a precautionary measure. He did not play in Thursday’s home opener. He was hit by a pitch Wednesday at San Diego.

UP NEXT

Marlins: RHP Max Meyer (0-0, 3.60 ERA) will make his second start of the season on Sunday. It also is his fourth career major league start.

Cardinals: RHP Kyle Gibson (1-0, 2.57 ERA) starts the series finale for St. Louis.

The home game against the Miami Marlins was originally scheduled to start at 2.05 p.m. E.T. but now has been pushed back four hours to 6.05 p.m.
E.T.

Per CNN, the solar eclipse will take place between 2.11 p.m. E.T. and 4.36 p.m. E.T. in New York City, with an 80-85% eclipse at 3.25 p.m. E.T.

Fans will still be able to enter the ground from 3 p.m. E.T., with the first 15,000 fans in attendance receiving a free Yankees solar eclipse T-shirt.

Eclipse mania has gripped the US ahead of the last total solar eclipse in the US until 2044. A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, completely blocking the sun’s face.

The eclipse’s path of totality stretches across portions of 13 US states as well as parts of Canada and Mexico.

Those within the path of totality, or locations where the moon’s shadow will completely cover the sun, will see a total solar eclipse. People outside the path of totality will still be able to see a partial solar eclipse, where the moon only blocks part of the sun’s face.

If your location only affords a view of the partial solar eclipse, some of the sun’s powerful light will always be visible. And any glimpse of the sun’s brightness with the naked eye is not only uncomfortable, it’s dangerous.

Due to the danger of looking directly into the sun’s glare, experts stress the importance of wearing bespoke eclipse glasses to view the eclipse to avoid suffering long-term damage.

Certified eclipse glasses or a handheld solar viewer should be used to watch the eclipse instead of regular sunglasses as they are 100,000 times darker and held to an international safety standard.

The lenses of solar eclipse glasses are made of black polymer, or resin infused with carbon particles, that blocks nearly all visible, infrared and ultraviolet light, according to The Planetary Society. Sunglasses don’t block infrared radiation.

Jake Burger hit a pair of homers for Miami (0-8), which is off to the worst start in the majors since Atlanta and Minnesota each lost their first nine games in 2016.

The Marlins are the only winless team in baseball after the New York Mets got their first win Thursday, beating Detroit.

“Just got to keep grinding. Baseball is 162 games,” Miami starting pitcher Ryan Weathers said.

Gorman highlighted a five-run seventh-inning rally with a double on the first pitch from reliever Andrew Nardi to give St. Louis a 6-5 lead.

“I was sitting heater and I got a slider, a good pitch to hit,” Gorman said. “I took my chance and was lucky enough to put it in a good place.”

Alec Burleson added a two-out, run-scoring single and Masyn Winn capped off the inning with an RBI triple.

“It was great when it all comes together like that,” Winn said. “Everybody can’t wait to hit. It’s like a race to the bat rack.”

Paul Goldschmidt reached on a one-out error against Sixto Sanchez (0-1) to begin the outburst. Sanchez then gave up back-to-back singles, including an RBI knock by Ivan Herrera, before being lifted.

Herrera hit his first major league homer leading off the second. He is replacing regular Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras, who was hit on the hand by a pitch in Wednesday’s loss at San Diego.

Herrera waited almost three seasons before recording his first home run in his 62nd career at-bat. He was able to retrieve the ball from a fan.

“It cost me a bat, but I don’t care,” Herrera said.

Herrera’s teammates tossed him in a laundry basket before rolling him into the shower and dousing him with everything available.

“They put some ice cream on my head, then some chocolate,” Herrera said. “Some soap, too. But it was great.”

Lance Lynn, making his first start for St. Louis since Sept. 28, 2017, allowed three homers and was charged with four runs on eight hits over 4 2/3 innings. Afterward, he was stewing about Burger’s homers in particular.

“To be honest with you, the pitches were so (bad), he should have hit them,” Lynn said. “He did what he was supposed to.”

Josh Bell snapped a 1-all tie with a two-run drive in the fifth. Burger followed with his second homer; he also went deep leading off the fourth. The St. Louis native reached base four times in front of a contingent of relatives and friends.

Giovanny Gallegos (1-0) got the last out in the seventh. Ryan Helsley worked the ninth for his second save in three opportunities.

Weathers gave up three runs on three hits over five innings.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: INF/OF Matt Carpenter was placed on the 10-day Injured with a right oblique strain. The move is retroactive to Tuesday. Carpenter was 3-for-9 in three games. … INF/OF Brendan Dovovan sat out with an elbow injury.

UP NEXT

Miami LHP Trevor Rogers (0-0, 7.20 ERA) will face LHP Steven Matz (0-0, 3.38) when the three-game series resumes Saturday.

Angels starter Patrick Sandoval struck out seven over 5 2/3 innings and overcame an opening day outing in which he allowed five runs in 1 2/3 innings. Sandoval (1-1) limited Miami to two runs and four hits. The left-hander absorbed a 101.9 mph comebacker to his left foot hit by Miami’s Vidal Brujan in the third, but remained in the game.

Ward also had two singles and two RBIs, Miguel Sanó doubled and walked twice and Zach Neto had two hits and two RBIs.

Schanuel extended his streak when he was hit by a pitch in the ninth inning. He is third on the MLB all-time list for consecutive games reaching base to start a career. Alvin Davis (1984) is first at 47 games and Truck Hannah (1918) second at 38 games. Schanuel also had an RBI on a sacrifice fly in the seventh inning.

The Marlins have lost seven games to start their season. They had already set the franchise’s record for worst start on Tuesday when they lost their sixth in a row.

Marlins starter A.J. Puk (0-2) completed four innings and allowed four runs (two earned) and five hits. The left-hander struck out five and walked three.

Miami narrowed the 4-0 deficit on RBI singles from Josh Bell and Jake Burger in the third inning, but couldn’t keep pace with Los Angeles the rest of the way.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: INF Luis Rengifo exited in the fifth after feeling light-headed. … 3B Anthony Rendon was given the day off. Rendon is in a season-starting 0-for-19 skid.

UP NEXT

Angels: RHP Griffin Canning (0-1, 9.00) will start the Angels’ season home opener Friday against Boston. The Red Sox will go with RHP Kutter Crawford (0-0, 0.00).

Marlins: LHP Ryan Weathers (0-1, 6.75) will start the opener of a three-game series in St. Louis on Thursday. RHP Lance Lynn (0-0, 0.00) will start for the Cardinals.

Anderson (1-0) scattered four hits, walked two and struck out five. The left-hander was lifted after 83 pitches.

“Honestly, today I just wanted to make as many good pitches as I could,” Anderson said. “There is no goal of trying to throw more. Sometimes I feel that could put you in a bad spot, trying too hard as opposed to just trying to make as many good pitches as you can.”

Hicks’ solo blast in the fourth put the Angels ahead 1-0. He drove a fastball from Miami starter Jesús Luzardo inside the foul pole in right for his first hit with Los Angeles, snapping an 0-for-11 start.

“You definitely want to start the season quick and get the first (hit) out of the way and enjoy your season with the highs and lows,” said Hicks, who signed with the Angels as a free agent in the offseason. “Today, it felt good, especially with the way that it came.”

The Angels increased their lead on run-scoring singles from Hicks and Taylor Ward in the sixth.

Bryan De La Cruz homered in the ninth inning for the Marlins, who lost their sixth straight game to start the season.

Luzardo (0-1) gave up three runs and four hits, walked two and struck out five over 5 1/3 innings.

“It’s a little frustrating, but I can tell you that there’s no one in the universe that wants to win more than the guys on the field,” Luzardo said. “The guys in this clubhouse, every day, we come with a positive mindset and a positive attitude.”

Logan O’Hoppe doubled and singled for the Angels, who won their third straight after starting the season with consecutive losses at defending AL East champion Baltimore.

“We’ve all been under a little stress since we hit Baltimore,” Angels manager Ron Washington said. “But I think that stress is subsiding now.”

Angels rookie Nolan Schanuel, of neighboring Boca Raton, walked twice, extending his career-starting on base streak to 34 games.

“The word out on him is that he doesn’t swing at too many bad pitches,” Washington said. “He will make you throw the ball across the plate. Tonight he did that and we needed it.”

After Matt Moore relieved Anderson and pitched a perfect eighth, Luis García allowed De La Cruz’s one-out solo homer and walked Jazz Chisholm Jr. García retired Tim Anderson on a groundout and struck out pinch hitter Jesús Sánchez for his first save.

Angels shortstop Zach Neto made a diving stab of Josh Bell’s hard smash in the hole and threw Bell out at first for the second out in the sixth. The play drew cheers from dozens of Neto’s family and friends who sat by the first base area. A Miami native, Neto is playing his first series in his hometown.

The Marlins acquired infielder Emmanuel Rivera from the Arizona Diamondbacks for cash considerations. In a corresponding move, infielder Jacob Amaya was designated for assignment.

Trout’s second shot — a 473-foot blast in the sixth — landed in the walkway high above the wall in left-centerfield. It was the 26th multihomer game of Trout’s and the two blasts put him at 371 in his career, surpassing Gil Hodges for 81st on the all-time list.

Trout’s bid for a third homer ended when Miami reliever Tanner Scott (0-2) walked him to load the bases in the eighth. Brandon Drury then reached on a fielder’s choice that scored Anthony Rendon from third and snapped a 4-4 tie.

The Angels padded their lead in the ninth on Jo Adell’s RBI single and a balk by reliever Anthony Bender that scored Adell from third. Trout grounded out to third to end the inning.

Adam Cimber (1-0) induced a double play grounder against Jake Burger to end the sixth and pitched a scoreless seventh. Matt Moore followed with a perfect ninth and Carlos Estevez pitched the ninth for his second save.

Luis Arraez had two singles and three walks for the Marlins, who lost their season-starting fifth straight.

George Soriano relieved Miami starter Max Meyer to start the sixth and allowed consecutive solo shots against Nolan Schanuel and Trout that tied it at 4-all.

In his first appearance since July 23, 2022, Meyer gave up two runs, two hits, walked two and struck out four. Meyer, the third overall selection in the 2020 major league draft, missed last season after undergoing right elbow surgery.

Nick Gordon’s two-RBI double capped a four-run first for Miami against starter Chase Silseth. Burger and Jazz Chisholm Jr. also hit RBI singles.

The Angels narrowed the deficit on Aaron Hicks’ RBI groundout in the second before Trout’s first solo shot in the fourth.

Silseth was lifted after three innings and 76 pitches. The right-hander allowed four runs and five hits, walked two and struck out five.

Two-time Masters golf champion Bubba Watson threw the ceremonial first pitch before the game.

The Marlins selected the contract of LHP Kent Emmanuel from Triple-A Jacksonville and designated RHP Vladimir Gutierrez for assignment. Gutierrez pitched four innings of relief in Miami’s 9-7 loss against Pittsburgh on Sunday.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: OF Mickey Moniac walked in two plate appearances after sitting out the series finale against Baltimore on Sunday because of illness.

Marlins: LHP Braxton Garrett (left shoulder soreness) is scheduled to throw three innings in an extended spring training game Tuesday in Jupiter, Fla.

UP NEXT

LHP Tyler Anderson (season debut) will start the second game of the series for the Angels on Tuesday. The Marlins will go with LHP Jesús Luzardo (0-0, 3.60).

With Major League Baseball in full swing, so is the rap career of one of the most electrifying players in the game. With the help of his good friend and now teammate, Nick Gordon, Chisholm Jr. Is bringing a new tune to his game.

“It’s just more having fun than anything,” Chisholm said. “Having fun, and then we realize it’s actually really good, so why not just go do it for real?”

“Just a way to express yourself, really,” Gordon said. “At the end of the day, we’re baseball players, but we have fun. We live life as well. We’re humans, and we do things outside of the sport, so music brings us peace a little bit.”

Last week, the outfielders released their latest single, “Upset Your Maker,” which has already garnered praise from teammates and fans alike.

“It’s pretty good,” said Marlins second baseman Luis Arraez. “It’s pretty good, especially with Nick Gordon. They got a lot of talent about music.”

Juggling their two passions, music and baseball, with their undeniable talent on and off the field, Chisholm and Gordon are setting their sights to make waves in the music industry.

“Oh, no, we’re going to do it,” Chisholm said. “We’re really going to get into it. We’re going to drop the songs. We’re going to release them, put it out there, do music videos, all that. We’re not going to take it for granted.”

And, if you were to create your own music track, it’s only right it becomes your opening day walk-up song to the plate.

However, many of Chisholm’s teammates wouldn’t mind stepping up to the dish to “Upset Your Maker” themselves.

“I can do that, let’s see, because his music got a lot of energies,” Arraez said.

“I see no problem with using it as a walk-up song for myself,” said Marlins third baseman Jake Burger.

“If I got ‘not bad,’ yeah, I would use it for sure,” said Marlins pitcher Jesús Luzardo.

And, while Chisholm is a standout member of the all MLB drip team, 7Sports was curious about his chosen genre of music.

“I feel like that’s where all the smooth and the drip and everything came from,” he said. “I feel like, from when I was a kid, everybody was like, ‘Bro, you are smooth. Jazz is playing defense.’ My swing, it’s always kinda smooth, and I got to big league, same thing, same reactions. Everybody always tells me how smooth.”

The track is pretty catchy. Now, let’s hope the Marlins can find their winning tune on the baseball field.

Chisholm also has a line of specialized custom gloves in all kinds of colors, which include cookies and cream and a black waffle ice cream cone glove.

Cruz opened the 10th on second as a pinch runner for Rowdy Tellez. He advanced to third when reliever Tanner Scott (0-1) committed an error on Alika Williams’ sacrifice attempt.

Delay then sent another bunt toward first and Cruz beat first baseman Jake Burger’s throw to the plate. Ke’Bryan Hayes reached on a two-out infield single and Michael A. Taylor gave Pittsburgh a 9-7 lead with a bases-loaded walk.

“Alika got a bunt down in a situation where you normally don’t bunt,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “Not too many teams are able to deploy a weapon like we were able to with Oneil being there and we wanted to get him to third.”

Miami had runners on the corners with no outs in the bottom half. But Hunter Stratton retired Burger, Bryan De La Cruz and Jazz Chisholm Jr. for his first career save.

“I just tried to keep everything the same,” Stratton said. “Just kept it simple.”

Pittsburgh’s bullpen allowed two runs over 20 1/3 innings in the series.

Miami trailed 7-6 before Nick Gordon connected for a pinch-hit homer against Pirates closer David Bednar (1-0) in the ninth inning.

Tellez hit a three-run drive for the Pirates, who last opened the season with a four-game sweep on the road in 1903.

“Confidence is huge in baseball,” Delay said. “We’re feeling good right now and we’re going to try to ride it some more.”

Chisholm hit a grand slam and Avisaíl García also went deep for Miami.

In the top of the eighth, two spectators ran into center field and attempted to take a picture with Chisholm before they were detained and removed by stadium security.

Miami was the last big league team without a homer before Chisholm’s drive capped a five-run first against Bailey Falter.

Pittsburgh responded with three runs in the second, highlighted by Williams’ two-run triple.

Hayes added an RBI single in the fourth, but García made it 6-4 when he hit a solo drive to center in the bottom half.

Tellez struck out in his first three at-bats, but he delivered a big blow in the seventh. His three-run drive off Vladimir Gutierrez lifted the Pirates to a 7-6 lead.

“Frustrating first three at-bats but you never want to give up at-bats,” Tellez said. “Going into that one, faced (Gutierrez) before, kind of knew everything in his repertoire.”

Marlins starter Trevor Rogers completed five innings of four-run ball in his first appearance since April 19, 2023. Rogers, who missed most of last season with a left biceps strain, allowed seven hits, walked four and struck out six.

Falter was lifted after four innings. The left-hander gave up six runs and five hits.

MAKING MOVES

Before the game, the Pirates activated RHP Roansy Contreras from the paternity list and optioned LHP José Hernández to Triple-A Indianapolis. Pittsburgh also outrighted OF Canaan Smith-Njigba to Indianapolis and announced C Ali Sánchez refused an outright assignment to Indianapolis, electing to become a free agent.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Pirates: RHP Colin Holderman (illness) allowed three runs and two hits while recording two outs during a rehab outing with Indianapolis on Friday.

Marlins: RHP Edward Cabrera (right shoulder impingement) made a rehab start with Triple-A Jacksonville Sunday.

UP NEXT

Pirates: LHP Marco Gonzales will make his Pittsburgh debut when he starts the opener of a three-game series at Washington on Monday. The Nationals will start LHP MacKenzie Gore.

Marlins: RHP Max Meyer will start the opener of a three-game home set against the Los Angeles Angels on Monday. The Angels will go with RHP Chase Silseth.

A 22-year-old right-hander taken by Pittsburgh with the 44th pick in the 2020 amateur draft, Jones allowed three runs, three hits and two walks. He threw 62 of 89 pitches for strikes, including 22 swings and misses. His fastball topped at 99.9 mph and averaged 97.1 mph.

He credited catcher Henry Davis.

“Felt really good. I just wanted the pitches anywhere close where he would catch them and my nerves settled in right there,” Jones said. “Executing the pitches and the spot they needed to be, that was huge.”

Jones (1-0) made the opening-day roster after throwing 16 1/3 scoreless innings in six spring training outings. He kept Miami hitless until Jake Burger’s two-out RBI double in the fourth.

“We should be excited, but it’s also one start,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “I think the excitement is this a guy we drafted. This is a guy we developed. And we’ve talked about organizationally, we’re going to have to build our depth from within and this is one of the guys that was a part of that.”

Connor Joe doubled twice, singled and drove in two runs for the Pirates, who had 16 hits against starter Ryan Weathers (0-1) and four relievers.

Pittsburgh also scored seven after two out and had batters reach in eight innings. Ke’Bryan Hayes and Oneil Cruz beat out double play grounders that would have ended innings but instead resulted in runs.

“The more you get guys on base the more you’re getting to the top of the lineup and the harder it is for a starter,” Hayes said. “We just have to stay with it and not try to do too much. Just keep the same mentality of trying to hit the ball hard.”

Miami’s Luis Arraez singled in the seventh, ending an 0-for-13 start for the defending NL batting champion.

Edward Olivares gave the Pirates an early lead with his RBI single off Weathers in the third. Joe’s run-scoring double and Hayes’ RBI single in the fourth made it 3-0.

Ahead 5-3, the Pirates scored four runs in the seventh helped by Bryan Reynolds’ two-run double.

Pittsburgh All-Star closer David Bednar, who had been dealing with a lat issue during spring training, made his season debut with a perfect ninth that finished a five-hitter.

Weathers gave up three runs, seven hits and two walks in four innings. Marlins starters haven’t pitched into the sixth inning in the first three games of the series.

“We’ve had some long innings on the other side. When you’re having 30-pitch innings, it’s tough to come in and provide offense,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said.

Before the game, the Marlins recognized Schumaker for earning 2023 NL Manager of the Year last season in his first season running a big league dugout.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: RHP Edward Cabrera (right shoulder impingement) is to make a rehab start with Triple-A Jacksonville Sunday. … LHP Braxton Garrett (left shoulder soreness) will have a bullpen session on Sunday after throwing two innings in an extended spring training game Thursday.

UP NEXT

LHP Bailey Falter will start the series final for the Pirates on Sunday while the Marlins will go with LHP Trevor Rogers.

Michael A. Taylor and Connor Joe also doubled for the Pirates, who beat the Marlins in front of 13,636 people at loanDepot park — a sharp decline in attendance from the crowd of 32,564 on opening day. Marlins games have typically been among the fewest attended in MLB for years, but Thursday’s opening-day home crowd was Miami’s largest since 2016.

Starter Martín Pérez held the Marlins to one run through four innings, allowing six hits with two strikeouts and three walks.

Ryder Ryan (1-0) replaced Pérez in the fifth and pitched 1 2/3 innings of one-hit ball with two strikeouts. Josh Flemming limited Miami to one hit in the seventh and eighth before giving up back-to-back singles starting the ninth. He then retired Jonah Bride on a popout, and Christian Bethancour and reigning NL batting champion Luis Arraez on groundouts

Jake Burger drove in Miami’s first run with a single in the third that scored Arraez, who remains hitless in the series. Burger had his second straight-multihit game, but the Marlins have been hurt by grounding into seven double plays this season.

Miami’s A.J. Puk (0-1) struggled in his first big league start, giving up three hits, four runs and six walks in two innings. Puk went 7-5 in 58 relief appearances last season but was moved to the rotation because of injuries.

Puk walked three of his first four batters in the second around a single, forcing in the game’s first run with a free pass to Jared Triolo. Bryan Hoeing replaced Puk and gave up two hits and a run with four strikeouts over four innings.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Pirates: RHP Colin Holderman, on the 15-day IL with an illness, began a rehab assignment Friday night with Triple-A Indianapolis and allowed three runs, two hits and a walk in two-third of an inning against Louisville. He threw 24 pitches.

UP NEXT

RHP Jared Jones will start for the Pirates on Saturday, while the Marlins will send LHP Ryan Weathers.

Fans can redeem their complimentary sandwich via the Burger King app at participating restaurants in Miami-Dade and Broward counties on the day after the winning game, the Marlins said in a news release.

The offer requires BK Royal Perks account registration and is exclusively valid at participating Miami-Dade and Broward County Burger King restaurants, expiring at midnight the day after the victorious game.

The Marlins will also be catering to fandom with a buy one, get one free Marlins ticket promotion.

Throughout the season, Burger King guests at participating Miami-area locations will have the opportunity to scan a QR code, enabling them to capitalize on the BOGO deal.

Triolo’s line drive single against Marlins reliever Declan Cronin (0-1) scored automatic runner Ke’Bryan Hayes. Pirates reliever Jose Hernandez then earned the first save of his career, retiring 2023 NL batting champion Luis Arraez, Josh Bell and Bryan De La Cruz in his only inning of relief.

After Pirates starter Mitch Keller gave up seven hits, five runs (four earned), walked two and struck out three over 5 2/3 innings, Pittsburgh’s bullpen held the Marlins to just one hit.

Luis Ortiz (1-0) pitched critical shutout innings in the 10th and 11th, getting the Marlins to ground into double plays twice, to set up Hernandez.

“I think when I left the game it was 5-2, I said, ‘If we could just get back into it,’” Keller said. “I knew that our bullpen was gonna lock it down, and they sure as hell did.”

Marlins starter Jesús Luzardo allowed two hits and two runs, walked two and struck out eight — one shy of matching the club record of nine opening-day strikeouts set by Josh Beckett in 2004 and Jose Fernandez in 2014.

Left fielder Bryan Reynolds hit a two-run homer off Luzardo that briefly tied it in the third, but Pittsburgh’s hitters largely struggled against the left-hander, tallying 18 whiffs as Miami went up 5-2.

“We got his pitch count up,” said Pirates manager Derek Shelton. “We made him throw a lot of pitches. I was happy with the fact that we kept grinding through at-bats. I don’t think when you see a 12-inning game that you see at-bats given away, especially on opening day. And we did not give away an at-bat tonight.”

The Marlins are already facing injuries to several pitchers in their starting rotation, and manager Skip Schumaker opted to take out Luzardo after five innings and 85 pitches despite his dominant start.

“If you ask me, of course I want to go more,” Luzardo said, “but it’s early in the season, understandable. (Schumaker) told me that’s what it was. I definitely felt good to continue.”

Pinch-hitter Eddie Olivares and short stop Oneil Cruz hit solo homers off Miami relievers Andrew Nardi and Sixto Sánchez, and Michael A. Taylor scored against reliever Anthony Bender, tying it 5-5 in the eighth.

Bell singled twice, and Jake Burger had three hits for the Marlins, who have now lost six straight opening-day games played at home dating back to 2014.

Former AL batting champion Tim Anderson, who signed a one-year deal with Miami in the offseason, had an RBI double in his first at-bat as a Marlin. Arraez was 0 for 6.

Brazilian soccer star Neymar threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Pirtes: RHP Carmen Mlodzinski (right elbow inflammation) and Colin Holderman (illness) were placed on the 15-day IL, retroactive to Monday. C Yasmani Grandal (left foot plantar fasciitis) went on 10-day IL, retroactive to Monday.

Marlins: 3B Jonah Bride was recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville, filling roster spot opened up in the trade that sent Jon Berti to the Yankees. … LHP Braxton Garrett (left shoulder impingement) went on 15-day IL, along with RHP JT Chargois (neck spasms), Eury Pérez (right elbow inflammation) and Edward Cabrera (right shoulder impingement), all retroactive to Monday.

UP NEXT

LHP Martín Pérez will start for the Pirates on Friday against LHP A.J. Puk, who will make his first career MLB start.

At loanDeport Park Thursday afternoon, it is expected that a crowd of 37,000 will be in attendance for the game. Fans are also encouraged to make opening day a festive event by bringing bongos, drums, trumpets, and flags to the game.

As far as the team goes, the Miami Marlins are ready to start their season.

Skip Schumaker enters his second season as the Marlins manager.

“There’s nothing like major league opening day. There just isn’t,” Schumaker said. “No matter where you’re at in your career, as a manager that’s been around for a little bit, I remember opening day in Dodgers Stadium. When I was there, growing up as a Dodgers fan and then getting to play on opening day there it was a surreal moment.”

The opening day starter will be Jesús Luzardo. The Parkland native had a rough spring training: Four starts and ERA of 5.24.

But now, the games will count.

Luzardo got tickets for 65 family members and friends to be in the stands.

As a kid growing up in South Florida, it’s a dream to pitch opening day for your hometown team.

“This will be my sixth season in the big leagues and I still feel like a kid,” Luzardo said. “I go back to my old high school and hangout with them and I feel like I’m one of them still. But at the same time, I mean, I can see the maturity when I’m on the mound at times and then like, my thought process in between and stuff. I’ve definitely grown in that in the sense, but at the same time, I still feel like I’m a kid.”

The Marlins return two-time All-Star second baseman and two-time batting champion Luis Arráez.

This team will also have a full season with Jake Burger and Josh Bell.

Peter Bendix is in his first season as the Marlins president of baseball operations.

“We feel really good about the group that we have,” Bendix said. “I think there’s a lot of young talent on this team, there’s a lot of talent that can do different things, right. We got speed, we got power, we got guys that that can put the ball in play, we got good defenders and I think it’s about giving those young guys opportunities to show what they can do.”

At loanDepot park, seating at the second level, from sections 201-204, is the all-you-can-eat section. For $52, you can get a seat and an endless amount of popcorn, peanuts, hot dogs, cheeseburgers, soda and water.

Fans could begin to enter the stadium at 2:00 p.m.

The first pitch against the Pirates starts at 4:10 p.m.

The 35-year-old Rojas spoke on “The Chris Rose Rotation” podcast released Tuesday and responded to comments Chisholm made on ” The Pivot Podcast” released March 19, hosted by former NFL players Ryan Clark, Channing Crowder and Fred Taylor.

Chisholm, 26, had said his first three major league seasons from 2020-22 were “the worst three years of probably my life” and discussed how he felt Marlins’ veterans mistreated younger players like himself. Chisholm referred specifically to someone as the “team captain” without mentioning that player by name.

“Even though they suck, they’ve been there for nine, 10 years and the team calls them the team captain, but they’re not a good captain, they’re not a good person,” Chisholm said. “You’re not even a good athlete at this point. You’re just here and you’re bringing down the young guys that are supposed to be good.”

The Marlins didn’t have a captain in those years but Rojas was regarded as an unofficial captain. Rojas played for the Marlins from 2015-22, then was traded to the Dodgers in January 2023.

Rojas said he learned about Chisholm’s comments from media members, his agent and relatives.

“You can think that I suck at baseball, that I’m not a good player, that I’m not a good leader,” Rojas said. “But when you cross a line and say that I’m not a good person and I’m there just because, I guess he’s thinking that I’m telling someone that I’m supposed to be there and, ‘Please keep me here so I can be a major league baseball player for 10 years,’ that’s what kind of bothers me.”

Chisholm, a 2022 All-Star, said he was unhappy during his first three seasons with the Marlins because “you had vets that hate, hate what you do and who you are.” Chisholm, an avid shoe collector, discussed one way in which an unnamed veteran got under his skin.

“My first year in the big leagues, I get to the locker room, I’ve got 20 pairs of cleats,” Chisholm said. “Everybody know I’m a big shoe guy. I’ve got about 20 pairs of cleats, seven or eight pairs of just shoes to go and practice in, and I’ve got like 100 pairs of batting gloves –- all custom. Everything is custom. Nothing is normal. Nothing is white. Nothing is black. Everything has color.

“I think within the first week, one of my vets cut up my cleats, poured milk in my cleats and threw them in the trash and said, ‘Those shoes are ugly, bro. Get some new ones.’ I don’t want to say what I did on camera, but definitely I was not the rookie that took that easy. I definitely went and threw his whole locker in the trash. That’s me. You’re not going to come over here and mess with the things that I worked hard to design myself.”

Without referencing that specific incident, Rojas said he was unhappy that Chisholm revealed things that happened in the locker room by noting “that’s our house” and “there’s things that should never leave the clubhouse.”

Rojas said the Marlins’ veterans simply were trying to keep younger players accountable for their actions.

“Do you think they are the first ever players to be rookies in the league and be treated this way?” Rojas said. “You have to know that there’s players before you that have been treated the same way or worse. That doesn’t give them a reason to go on a podcast and talk about the veteran players and what they did to them.”

Chisholm credited Marlins manager Skip Schumaker for changing the culture after arriving last year, helping Miami earn its first playoff berth in a non-pandemic season since its 2003 World Series title.

“He got rid of everybody who didn’t want to do it like that,” Chisholm said. “And that’s how it’s supposed to be. You ain’t supposed to have a vet that’s trying to bring down the rookies.”

Rojas was asked if he’d be willing to sit down and talk with Chisholm to try to work this out sometime down the road.

“As soon as you have the kind of assumption on me and the person that I am, I’m not up to having a person in my life or anything that thinks I’m a bad person or a piece of (trash),” Rojas replied.

As a new season goodie, loanDepot Park is offering the first 30,000 fans who come are going to get a free rally towel.

7News cameras captured Marlins’ players warming up ahead of the big season opener on Thursday. They were seen practicing for the first time this season.

According to the Miami Marlins CCO, David Oxfeld, the Marlins are starting their season pumped.

“But we’re gonna really lean into being all things Miami and allow instruments, tell people to bring their flags, support their countrymen,” said Oxfeld

Oxfeld was even spooked by 7News’ reporter Alex Miranda.

“Duck! A ball!” said Alex Miranda. “Did I get you?”

“A little bit,” said Oxfeld.

“A little bit, a little bit,” said Alex Miranda.

With the first pitch at 4:10 p.m, Oxfeld said this season’s team has some homegrown roots.

“Hometown kid, Jesus Luzardo on the mound for the Marlin, making the opening day start,” said Oxfeld.

But before the first ball is pitched, a parade kicks things off.

“From Calle Ocho, really celebrating the neighborhood, that’s going to come west,” said Oxfeld.

Attendance was up almost 30% last season as the players made it all the way to the playoffs.

But something new is being added this season to loanDepot Park: all-you-can-eat seats starting at $52.

“12 cheeseburgers, please and nachos. Thank you,” said 7News’ reporter Alex Miranda.

The all-you-can-eat ticket price includes the ticket to the game as well.

Aside from the new addition, the park will continue having the obvious menu items.

“We’ve got the classic food items like ‘Oh,’ waffle fries. Take a look at this burger. Is that three patties? Yummy! And then the gigantic pretzel? God bless America,” said 7News’ reporter Alex Miranda as he surveyed the food items.

Workers at the park described the foods.

“On a one to 10 scale. How refreshing is this frozen lemonade?” said 7News’ reporter Alex Miranda.

“I would give it a 9.5 out of 10,” said the Kimberly’s frozen treat worker.

“Do you know Kimberly yourself?” said 7News’ reporter Alex Miranda.

“I don’t,” said the worker.

But this year, Chef Alex Paz has really upped the ante.

“We’ve opened up a new Asian stand ‘Intentional Wok,’ bringing in some interesting new types of ballpark food that you don’t really see very often,” said loanDepot Park Executive Chef Alex Paz.

“I saw those bao buns,” said 7News’ reporter Alex Miranda.

“It’s a roasted pork and then we glaze it with a sweet soy glaze and a little bit of seasoning,” said Paz. “The baos are fresh and then we top it with a little bit of Sriracha mayo and some green onions.”

On top of all that, their new alligator chili dog is a real home run.

“Now let me specify, the hot dog is not made out of the alligator, it’s the chili. Don’t worry it won’t bite back. Alright, here it is. The Gator chili hot dog.” said 7News’ reporter Alex Miranda as he did a taste test of the hot dog. “That is good. It tastes like the Everglades.”

loanDepot Park will also have three types of delicious tacos

“Al Pastor taco, carne asada, and a Mojo pork,” said Paz.

For those interested in attending the games, the tickets prices range so that everyone can attend.

“Tickets are affordable. We have something for everyone. Our tickets start at $11,” said Paz.

There are plenty of ticket options as well. Veterans and service members get in free on Monday nights, and they have a Taco Tuesday offer, among other options.

The festivities kick off as the Marlins face the Pittsburgh Pirates on the Opening Day.

Priced from $52, the All-You-Can-Eat ticket offers premium seating on the Legends Level (Sections 201-204) along with unlimited access to “Fire Eats” and non-alcoholic beverages at the Caliente Grill Concession Stand (Section 202) until the end of the 7th inning.

The Caliente Grill’s menu features a range of ballpark classics with a fiery 305 twist, including hot dogs, chili dogs, nachos with cheese, chili nachos, cheeseburgers, popcorn, peanuts, cookies, sodas, and water. Alcoholic beverages are also available for purchase at the adjacent bar.

“We are thrilled to introduce our new All-You-Can-Eat Seats, offering a one-of-a-kind experience at loanDepot Park,” said Tiago Pinto, Marlins Chief Marketing Officer. “Marlins Béisbol has something for everyone, and now even more for fans looking to feast all game long while cheering on the Marlins!”

The festivities kick off as the Marlins face the Pittsburgh Pirates on Opening Day, Thursday, March 28, at 4:10 p.m. Fans can secure their reservation here.

For groups of 10 or more, the option to upgrade to a Fiesta Suite (located behind Sections 201-204) is available, providing the same All-You-Can-Eat access along with a private suite to watch the game.

At least half the teams already had announced their opening day starters.

“To be able to be told by your skipper that you’re going to be the guy that’s starting the first game of the season, it’s an honor,” Colorado pitcher Kyle Freeland said in a video released by the team announcing him as its opening day starter. “I definitely don’t take it lightly. It’s great to know and have that feeling that you’ve accomplished something that only a handful of guys get to do on a consistent basis.”

The MLB opener Wednesday at Seoul, South Korea, has Los Angeles Dodgers newcomer Tyler Glasnow facing San Diego’s Yu Darvish. Glasnow signed a $136.5 million, five-year contract with the Dodgers after they acquired him from Tampa Bay.

Perhaps the most notable matchup has Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler facing Atlanta’s Spencer Strider at Citizens Bank Park. Corbin Burnes, the 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner for Milwaukee, is to make his Baltimore debut in an opener against the visiting Los Angeles Angels.

The Chicago White Sox announced Monday that left-hander Garrett Crochet will make his first career start on opening day. The 24-year-old Crochet is moving into the rotation this season, but all 72 of his previous big league appearances have come in relief.

Oakland gave its opening day assignment to Alex Wood, a 33-year-old left-hander who had never started an opener before.

Some other opening day pitching matchups include Jose Quintana for the New York Mets facing off with Milwaukee’s Freddy Peralta, Burnes vs. Patrick Sandoval for the Los Angeles Angels, Cincinnati’s Frankie Montas vs. Washington’s Josiah Gray, Tampa Bay’s Zach Eflin vs. Toronto’s José Berríos, Miami’s Jesús Luzardo vs. Pittsburgh’s Mitch Keller, Kansas City’s Cole Ragans vs. Minnesota’s Pablo López, Houston’s Framber Valdes facing Nestor Cortes of the New York Yankees, Crochet matching up with Detroit’s Tarik Skubal, Texas’ Nathan Eovaldi facing Justin Steele of the Chicago Cubs, Freeland facing Arizona’s Zac Gallen, Wood facing Cleveland’s Shane Bieber and Seattle’s Luis Castillo vs. Boston’s Brayan Bello.

Logan Webb gets the call for San Francisco when the Giants open their season against the Padres, and Miles Mikolas will pitch for the St. Louis Cardinals in their opener against the Dodgers.

BOSTON’S MURPHY HAS ELBOW PROBLEM

The Boston Red Sox are dealing with injuries in their bullpen as the season approaches.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters that an MRI revealed left-hander Chris Murphy had ligament damage in his throwing elbow. Closer Kenley Jansen is dealing with lower back tightness.

CHIEFS’ REID TO THROW OPENING PITCH

Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid will throw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Royals’ opener. Reid coached the Chiefs to their second straight Super Bowl title.

Anderson was guaranteed $5 million under the one-year contract announced Saturday.

The 30-year-old had spent all eight of his major league seasons with the Chicago White Sox. After leading the majors with a .335 average in 2019, Anderson hit .245 last year, the second-lowest of his big league career, ahead of his .240 average in 2018.

Anderson had just one home run and 25 RBIs over 123 games for Chicago last season. His RBIs matched his total in 2022, when he played in just 79 games because of injuries. He dealt with a sprained left knee and right shoulder soreness last season.

The deal for the shortstop is pending a physical, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the deal was not yet announced. The agreement is worth $5 million, according to ESPN.

Anderson is Miami’s first big free agent addition of the offseason. The two-time All-Star became a free agent in November after the Chicago White Sox declined a $14 million option, completing a $25 million, six-year contract.

The 30-year-old Anderson had spent all eight of his major league seasons with the White Sox. After leading the major leagues with a .335 average in 2019, Anderson hit .245 last year, the second-lowest of his big league career ahead of only .240 average in 2018.

Anderson had just one home run and 25 RBIs over 123 games for Chicago. His RBIs matched his total in 2022, when he played in just 79 games because of injuries. He dealt with sprained left knee and right shoulder soreness this past season.

And Anderson brings a fiery temper to his new team.

In August, he and Cleveland’s José Ramírez threw punches that led to a benches-clearing brawl and suspensions. Anderson, who took a hit to the jaw in the fracas, had his penalty reduced from six to five games under a settlement with Major League Baseball.

He had kept his tag on Ramírez’s back as he stood over and straddled him. Ramírez seemed irritated and, after getting up, he pointed his finger in Anderson’s face and yelled. They then fought.

Anderson took off his glove and threw the first punch and then another that missed before Ramírez countered to the Chicago star’s jaw, dazing him and knocking him on his rear end on the infield dirt.

In April 2019, he was suspended one game for a confrontation with Royals pitcher Brad Keller. Anderson flipped his bat after hitting a home run off Keller, then was hit on the buttocks by a Keller pitch in his next plate appearance. Keller was suspended for five games.

Arraez was awarded the team’s $10.6 million offer rather than his $12 million request. The decision was made by Keith Greenberg, Stephen Raymond and Richard McNeill, who heard arguments a day earlier.

Arraez won the 2022 AL batting title for Minnesota, hitting .316 with eight homers and 49 RBIs, then was traded to Miami in January 2023 and won in arbitration when a panel picked his $6.1 million request rather than the Marlins’ $5 million offer.

He captured the NL batting title last year, setting career highs with a .354 average, 10 homers and 69 RBIs.

Arraez, who turns 27 in April, is eligible for free agency after the 2025 season.

Players lead 7-5 with three cases pending: Philadelphia third baseman Alec Bohm ($4 million vs. $3.4 million), Tampa Bay outfielder Harold Ramírez ($4.3 million vs. $3.8 million) and Miami left-hander Tanner Scott ($5.7 million vs. $5.15 million).

Tampa Bay reliever Jason Adam also failed to win two years in a row when a panel picked the Rays’ $2.7 million offer rather than his $3.25 million request on Tuesday.

First baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn and the Baltimore Orioles avoided a hearing when they agreed Wednesday to a $3.5 million, one-year contract. The agreement was at the midpoint of the $3.8 million O’Hearn asked for and the $3.2 million the Orioles offered when the sides exchanged proposed arbitration salaries last month. The deal includes a $7.5 million team option for 2025, and the option price would escalate by $500,000 each for playing in 120 and 150 games this year.

Bride, 28, has two years of experience in the majors, with a career batting average of .192 in 98 big league games. He hit .305 with 13 home runs and five stolen bases in the minors last season and has played first, second and third base.

The Athletics designated Bride for assignment Friday to make room on their 40-man roster after signing free agent left-hander Alex Wood to a one-year contract and acquiring right-hander Ross Stripling from the Giants.

To open a spot for Bride, the Marlins designated infielder Jordan Groshans for assignment.

A traveling exhibit titled “3,000″ — a nod to the day on September 30, 1972, that the late Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder became the first Latin American-born MLB player to record 3,000 hits — stopped at the Caribbean Series held at the Marlins’ home ballpark.

The collection, curated by Dennis Rivera-Pichardo, who is director of photography at the Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Día, consists of 10 bright yellow modules depicting photos of Clemente’s life.

Several of those pictures are of the moments before and after Clemente recorded his 3,000th career hit in a game against the New York Mets at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. There’s one of him reading fan mail in the Pirates clubhouse before the game, and others of him embracing his wife, Vera, and his children afterward.

Many of the photos had been unpublished before the museum debuted in September 2022 in Puerto Rico’s capital city of San Juan, which is less than 15 miles from where Clemente was born in Carolina. The museum made its first U.S. stop last September at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, where Clemente spent all 18 years of his Major League career. Rivera-Pichardo estimated that more that 150,000 people showed up to view the collection in Puerto Rico, as well as another 200,000 in Pittsburgh.

“For Puerto Ricans, Clemente is the biggest ballplayer in our history,” Rivera-Pichardo said. “But being able to take it to his baseball hometown in Pittsburgh, people love him (there) as much as people in Puerto Rico, and as much as people in Nicaragua.”

More than 50 years after his death, Clemente remains one of the most revered figures in Puerto Rico and Latin America because of his grace and power on the field, and most notably, his humanitarian efforts.

He was passionate about his Puerto Rican roots and constantly called out the racism he experienced as a Black Latino during a career that paralleled the civil rights movement.

He was a future Baseball Hall of Famer, with exactly 3,000 hits, four National League batting titles, 12 Gold Gloves, an MVP award, two World Series championships and 15 All-Star appearances.

“We certainly want the world to remember Roberto Clemente as a human being that gave all he had to give in baseball,” Clemente’s middle son, Luis, told The Associated Press in an interview about his father’s legacy last year. “That was his vehicle to get his message across. I think that he’s more revered and remembered by his actions as a humanitarian.”

Clemente died at the age of 38 on Dec. 31, 1972, when his plane crashed off the coast of Puerto Rico while he was delivering relief supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

Included in the collection of photos are some of the moments after that accident: Vera Clemente squinting into chunky black binoculars as she watched rescue efforts where the crash took place; emergency personnel diving into water on the search and rescue mission; as well as members of the U.S. coast guard removing the engine and propeller of the DC7 plane where Clemente died.

The Marlins invited 50 local children from their youth baseball program to attend the unveiling of the exhibit, a day before the Caribbean series began with Nicaragua facing Puerto Rico.

“It’s very emotional for us because we know the love that Clemente had for Nicaragua after he played several tournaments down there,” Rivera-Pichardo said.

Rivera-Pichardo added that the museum will be on display in Miami until May 2 and will travel to New York in June. After that, the plan is to donate the exhibit to the Nicaraguan people.

“He had a personal connection with the country,” he said, “and for us, it’s very special to keep his legacy alive. Fifty years later, having the opportunity to not only show it to the Puerto Rican people, but to show it to people outside of Puerto Rico, for us at El Nuevo Día, this is the best thing that we can give back to the people.”

The outfielder will be paid $2,625,000 rather than his $2.9 million request, Margaret Brogan, Jeanne Vonhof and Scott Buchheit ruled Thursday. The panel heard arguments from both sides a day earlier.

Chisholm hit .250 with 19 homers, 51 RBIs and 22 stolen bases in 25 tries last year, when he was shifted to center field from second base and shortstop. He went 0 for 8 with four strikeout as the Marlins were swept by Philadelphia in their NL Wild Card Series.

The speedy Chisholm was an All-Star in 2022, when he batted .254 with 14 homers, 45 RBIs and 12 steals in 17 attempts. He didn’t play after June 28 because of a back injury.

Chisholm had a $749,500 salary last year and was eligible for arbitration for the first time.

Miami also is scheduled for hearings with second baseman Luis Arraez ($12 million vs. $10.6 million) and left-hander Tanner Scott ($5.7 million vs. $5.15 million). Arraez beat the Marlins last year and was awarded $6.1 million rather than $5 million, then won his second straight batting title after leading the AL with Minnesota in 2022.

Chisholm was the second player to go to a hearing this year. All-Star outfielder Austin Hays asked for $6.3 million on Tuesday and the Baltimore Orioles argued for $5.85 million. A decision in that case is not expected until next week.

Angels left-hander José Suarez asked for $1.35 million while Los Angeles argued for $925,000 in a case heard Thursday by Joshua Gordon, Walt De Treux and Howard Edelman. A decision is expected Friday.

The 26-year-old Suarez was 1-3 with an 8.29 ERA in seven starts and four relief appearances, earning $750,000. He was sidelined between May 7 and Sept. 13 by a strained left shoulder.

They are among 18 players scheduled for hearings, which run through Feb. 16.

The person confirmed an MLB.com report of Balkovec’s hiring to The Associated Press on Tuesday on condition of anonymity because the team had not announced the deal.

Balkovec finished her second season as manager at Class A Tampa in September. She debuted with the team in April 2022 with a win as the first woman to manage a Major League Baseball affiliate.

Before that, Balkovec was the first woman to serve as a full-time minor league strength and conditioning coach, then the first to be a full-time hitting coach in the minors with the Yankees.

A former softball catcher at Creighton and New Mexico, Balkovec got her first job in professional baseball with the St. Louis Cardinals as a minor league strength and conditioning coach in 2012.

In 2016, Balkovec joined the Houston Astros, hired as the Latin American strength and conditioning coordinator and later was the strength and conditioning coach at Double-A Corpus Christi.

She joined the Yankees organization as a minor league hitting coach in 2019.

The Marlins have made a series of front office moves since the 2023 season ended.

A month after parting ways with general manager Kim Ng, who led the organization for three seasons, the Marlins hired former Rays GM Peter Bendix as their new president of baseball operations. Ng was the first woman to become GM of a major league team.

Bendix got to work immediately, bringing in former San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler as an assistant GM.

The baseball team gave back to the community they love and scored a grand slam with children.

Christmas came early for some lucky children thanks to the Miami Marlins. Marlins all-star pitcher Sandy Alcántara and Billy the Marlin helped passed out presents to the children.

It was nothing but smiles Monday at the annual Holiday Wishes Party where children from undeserved families receive a present and a good time at loanDepot Park.

“A special moment for me and for them,” Sandy Alcántara said. “I’m happy to be here doing this for those kids.”

The children were patient, but then, they had to open their gifts. Then it was time for them to make some memories and they built a gingerbread house.

“I think it’s so important to give back to the community, especially, to be able to impact the youth at such a young age, and to develop those memories that they’re going to take home for a lifetime,” said Juseff Punchara with Accident Medical Group.

Sandy Alcántara said that he hopes to remind those children that no matter what the holidays bring them, that they are loved.

“I always was waiting for a phone but I never got it when I was a kid, so now I buy all the phones I want,” he said.

About 35 children got to participate in Monday’s party.

Bethancourt batted .225 with 16 doubles, 11 home runs, and 33 RBIs in 104 games with Tampa Bay during the 2023 season. He also threw out 13 of 57 baserunners. The Panamanian-born backstop has a career batting average of .231 with 113 RBIs and 31 home runs.

Cleveland claimed Bethancourt, 32, off waivers Nov. 6 and will receive cash considerations in the deal.

This is the second trade that Bendix, the former Rays general manager, has executed since his hiring on Nov. 6. He also completed a trade with his former team in late November, acquiring utilityman Vidal Bruján and right-hander Calvin Faucher from the Rays.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Friday because the deal has not been finalized.

Kapler was fired by the Giants with three days left in the 2023 regular season after the team failed to make the playoffs for a second straight year. He had a 295-248 record over four seasons with the Giants, but his only year guiding the team to a winning record was 2021, when San Francisco won a franchise-record 107 games and the NL West title.

San Francisco lost in the NL Division Series that year in five games to Los Angeles, then went 81-81 last year. The Giants were 78-81 at the time of Kapler’s firing.

The 48-year-old Kapler also managed the Philadelphia Phillies from 2018-2019, going 161-163.

Once his hiring is announced, Kapler will be one of four assistant general managers under new president of baseball operations Peter Bendix, including Brian Chattin, Daniel Greenlee and Oz Ocampo. The Marlins brought in Bendix l ast month to lead the organization.

Also Friday, the Marlins claimed right-hander Kaleb Ort off waivers from Seattle. Ort was 1-2 with a 6.26 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 23 innings last season.

When asked what quality was most important to that rise, he was candid.

“I want to say patience, but I think I was guilty a lot of nights of not being patient,” Hyde said. “I think consistent around the players. I think I hid a lot of things from them — in a good way.”

Hyde was voted American League Manager of the Year on Tuesday night after guiding the Orioles to an AL-best 101 victories just two years after a 110-loss season. Miami’s Skip Schumaker won the National League award in balloting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

Hyde led Baltimore through some very lean years before the Orioles improved to 83-79 in 2022 and he finished second in voting to Cleveland manager Terry Francona.

“I had confidence that we were going to turn this thing around, but you struggle to see when,” Hyde said. “Last year, there came a point where you saw the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Baltimore was more than ready to take the next step this season thanks to a sparkling core of young talent. Orioles infielder Gunnar Henderson was a unanimous AL Rookie of the Year on Monday night.

“Watching Gunnar win that last night, that was an amazing feeling. So happy for him and his family,” Hyde said. “I’m fortunate to be around a great, great group of guys.”

Hyde received 27 of 30 first-place votes, with Bruce Bochy of Texas getting the other three. Two-time winner Kevin Cash of Tampa Bay finished third. Bochy and the wild-card Rangers swept AL East champion Baltimore in the Division Series on their way to winning the World Series.

Schumaker led Miami to an 84-78 record — including 33-14 in one-run games — in his first season at the helm.

“A lot of this season just didn’t make sense, and I think that’s why our staff would kind of look at each other and go, ‘Here we go again. You know it’s going to happen — down three in the eighth and you know what’s going to happen. It’s bound to happen,’” Schumaker said. “I would rather win by 10 than one, than to come from behind. There’s no doubt about that. But I think it wouldn’t have made it as special as it was this year.”

The Marlins lost to Philadelphia in the Wild Card Series.

Voting by the BBWAA occurred before the start of the postseason. Schumaker defeated Milwaukee’s Craig Counsell — who left to manage the Chicago Cubs last week — and Atlanta’s Brian Snitker in a tight race.

Schumaker received eight first-place votes, three more than runner-up Counsell. Snitker also got eight but had far fewer second- and third-place votes than Schumaker.

The Brewers remain the only current franchise that has never had a Manager of the Year. Counsell finished second for the fourth time in six years.

The Marlins have had four managers win the award — Schumaker, Don Mattingly in 2020, Joe Girardi in 2006 and Jack McKeon in 2003.

Schumaker is the ninth person to win Manager of the Year in his first full season as a big league skipper, joining Hal Lanier, Dusty Baker, Girardi, Matt Williams, Jeff Banister, Dave Roberts, Torey Lovullo and Rocco Baldelli.

“I didn’t expect to manage,” said Schumaker, who played for the Cardinals, Dodgers and Reds from 2005-15. “I dreamt of playing in the major leagues one day, and then I fell in love with coaching and then I got this opportunity.”

Hyde is the ninth Manager of the Year who didn’t play in the majors, joining Buck Showalter, Jim Leyland, Joe Maddon, McKeon, Jim Frey, John McNamara, Snitker and Mike Shildt.

Prior to joining the Orioles, Hyde was a bench coach for the Chicago Cubs under Maddon, and it was Maddon who announced the winners Tuesday night on MLB Network.

Hyde became the fourth Baltimore manager to win, following Showalter in 2014, Davey Johnson in 1997 and Frank Robinson in 1989.

When asked what quality was most important to that rise, he was candid.

“I want to say patience, but I think I was guilty a lot of nights of not being patient,” Hyde said. “I think consistent around the players. I think I hid a lot of things from them — in a good way.”

Hyde was voted American League Manager of the Year on Tuesday night after guiding the Orioles to an AL-best 101 victories just two years after a 110-loss season. Miami’s Skip Schumaker won the National League award in balloting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

Hyde led Baltimore through some very lean years before the Orioles improved to 83-79 in 2022 and he finished second in voting to Cleveland manager Terry Francona.

“I had confidence that we were going to turn this thing around, but you struggle to see when,” Hyde said. “Last year, there came a point where you saw the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Baltimore was more than ready to take the next step this season thanks to a sparkling core of young talent. Orioles infielder Gunnar Henderson was a unanimous AL Rookie of the Year on Monday night.

“Watching Gunnar win that last night, that was an amazing feeling. So happy for him and his family,” Hyde said. “I’m fortunate to be around a great, great group of guys.”

Hyde received 27 of 30 first-place votes, with Bruce Bochy of Texas getting the other three. Two-time winner Kevin Cash of Tampa Bay finished third. Bochy and the wild-card Rangers swept AL East champion Baltimore in the Division Series on their way to winning the World Series.

Schumaker led Miami to an 84-78 record — including 33-14 in one-run games — in his first season at the helm.

“A lot of this season just didn’t make sense, and I think that’s why our staff would kind of look at each other and go, ‘Here we go again. You know it’s going to happen — down three in the eighth and you know what’s going to happen. It’s bound to happen,’” Schumaker said. “I would rather win by 10 than one, than to come from behind. There’s no doubt about that. But I think it wouldn’t have made it as special as it was this year.”

The Marlins lost to Philadelphia in the Wild Card Series.

Voting by the BBWAA occurred before the start of the postseason. Schumaker defeated Milwaukee’s Craig Counsell — who left to manage the Chicago Cubs last week — and Atlanta’s Brian Snitker in a tight race.

Schumaker received eight first-place votes, three more than runner-up Counsell. Snitker also got eight but had far fewer second- and third-place votes than Schumaker.

The Brewers remain the only current franchise that has never had a Manager of the Year. Counsell finished second for the fourth time in six years.

The Marlins have had four managers win the award — Schumaker, Don Mattingly in 2020, Joe Girardi in 2006 and Jack McKeon in 2003.

Schumaker is the ninth person to win Manager of the Year in his first full season as a big league skipper, joining Hal Lanier, Dusty Baker, Girardi, Matt Williams, Jeff Banister, Dave Roberts, Torey Lovullo and Rocco Baldelli.

“I didn’t expect to manage,” said Schumaker, who played for the Cardinals, Dodgers and Reds from 2005-15. “I dreamt of playing in the major leagues one day, and then I fell in love with coaching and then I got this opportunity.”

Hyde is the ninth Manager of the Year who didn’t play in the majors, joining Buck Showalter, Jim Leyland, Joe Maddon, McKeon, Jim Frey, John McNamara, Snitker and Mike Shildt.

Prior to joining the Orioles, Hyde was a bench coach for the Chicago Cubs under Maddon, and it was Maddon who announced the winners Tuesday night on MLB Network.

Hyde became the fourth Baltimore manager to win, following Showalter in 2014, Davey Johnson in 1997 and Frank Robinson in 1989.

Miami-Dade County police chiefs took on the role of servers, offering meals to over 300 military veterans and active-duty members.

“We’re here today celebrating all the veterans in the area, commemorating, getting together, having some food, running into veterans we hadn’t seen in some years. I came to this the last two years in a row, and it’s always been wonderful,” said Veteran James Haritos.

The Marlins organize this event annually as a gesture of gratitude to veterans for their service, bringing the community together ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.

Bendix had spent his entire 15-year Major League Baseball career in the Rays’ front office, initially as an intern in 2009. He worked his way up to becoming the team’s senior vice president of baseball development, then general manager, a position he held since December 2021.

Tampa Bay had become his home. The team was his family. And he couldn’t see anything prying him away.

“I’m good where I am, truly,” Bendix recalled thinking when he learned of the Marlins’ interest. “I had a phenomenal situation with the Rays, been there for 15 years, had a lot of success, worked with phenomenal people. … The concept of not working there anymore, it needed to be the exact right situation with the right people in place, frankly, with the right owner.”

But in a deal that came together in just a few weeks, the Marlins convinced Bendix to leave Tampa Bay to become their new president of baseball operations. The Marlins announced the hiring last week, and Bendix was formally introduced by the team at its ballpark on Monday as the third president in club history.

What changed?

“I talked to Bruce,” Bendix said Monday, referring to Miami’s chairman and principal owner Bruce Sherman.

During a hiring process that Bendix described as “thorough,” his comfort with the idea of a career change grew as he realized that both he and Sherman’s principles were almost perfectly aligned.

“And that was enough to get me to say, ‘You know what, if I’m going to leave an excellent situation. It has to be the perfect fit,’” Bendix said. “And this is a perfect fit.”

Sherman said that Bendix was “one of many, many” names that the Marlins sifted through during their search for a new leader.

Bendix will take over the department previously overseen by Kim Ng, who had been Miami’s general manager for three seasons. Ng left last month after she and Sherman could not agree on the structure of the department going forward; the Marlins had exercised a contract option to keep Ng in 2024, but Ng declined.

“I was hoping Kim would stay,” Sherman said. “I wish Kim nothing but the best. Terrific lady. Not lost on me, we’re in the playoffs, and I think she’ll be just fine. We had hours and hours and hours of conversations, Kim and I. She made the election not to continue. I respect that decision she made.”

Ng had a hand in constructing a roster that put Miami in the playoffs for the first time since the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and the first time in a full season since the Marlins won the 2003 World Series. Miami lost to Philadelphia in the Wild Card Series last month.

The 38-year-old Bendix, a graduate of Tufts, outside Boston, has been part of a Tampa Bay team that has provided a blueprint for consistent success for nearly a decade. The Rays have made the playoffs in each of the past five seasons and have baseball’s fourth-best regular-season record over that span, behind the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston and Atlanta. Tampa Bay lost in the wild card round this year to eventual champion Texas.

The Rays’ success has come with a payroll that consistently ranks among the bottom third of the 30 teams, with many clubs spending at least $100 million more than Tampa Bay each year. The Marlins are another team that isn’t among the league’s big-spenders but are hoping to replicate some of Tampa Bay’s achievements.

“I’m not blind to Tampa’s success,” Sherman said. “We’re not going to be the 29th payroll. I think they’ve averaged the 29th highest payroll for about a decade or more, and they have the (fourth)-most wins. And that’s like off the charts on any statistical analysis. Whatever secret sauce he has … hopefully he brings that to this organization over multiple years.”

Sherman added he will give Bendix plenty of room to shape the organization. Sherman will weigh in as needed, but he expects that to be infrequently.

Bendix is inheriting a team with strong pitching but struggled before this season to attract high-profile hitters. Miami does have the National League batting champion Luis Arraez, who has expressed interest in a possible longterm contract.

Still, the Marlins recorded the sixth-fewest hits and fifth-fewest runs last season.

Bendix said he’s simply looking for “really good players” when asked his philosophy on roster construction.

“The thing that the Rays always told themselves that I will bring here is that it’s constant evaluation and it’s constantly looking to improve,” Bendix said. “And you have to always be looking to innovate, to try new things, to not be afraid to fail, because we need to maximize every part of the organization that we possibly can. We need to create every edge that we can. And it does not matter how successful any team has been to this point, you always need to be constantly improving.”

Bendix had most recently been the Rays’ senior vice president of baseball operations and general manager. He and the Marlins struck the deal over the weekend, and Miami formally announced it Monday.

“Peter has a great reputation within baseball and is committed to achieving sustained excellence in all areas of Baseball Operations,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said in remarks distributed by the club. “I am looking forward to working alongside Peter to bring the Marlins back to the playoffs.”

The Marlins announced Bendix’s hiring one day before the start of baseball’s annual general managers’ meetings in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Bendix will take over the department previously overseen by Kim Ng, who had been general manager of the Marlins for the last three seasons. Ng elected to leave the team last month after she and Marlins owner Bruce Sherman evidently could not agree on the structure of the department going forward; the Marlins had exercised a contract option to keep Ng in 2024, but Ng declined.

“Peter is an established industry leader with an extensive skillset and deep experience that will continue the momentum we have made on the Major League level, while also strategically building the foundation for sustained success through player acquisition, development, and scouting at all levels,” Sherman said.

Bendix spent 15 seasons with the Rays, starting as an intern and getting promoted to senior vice president of baseball operations and general manager in December 2021.

The 38-year-old Bendix moved up the Rays’ ladder briskly: after his time as an intern, he became assistant of baseball operations, coordinator of baseball research and development, and director of baseball development — eventually becoming vice president of that department before getting promoted to the GM role.

“I would like to thank Bruce for his confidence in entrusting me with such an important role,” Bendix said.

Bendix has been part of a team that won consistently, something the Marlins haven’t been able to do. Tampa Bay has made the playoffs in each of the last five seasons — it lost a wild-card series this year to eventual World Series champion Texas — and have baseball’s fourth-best regular-season record over that span, behind only the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston and Atlanta.

The Rays did all that with a payroll that consistently ranks in the bottom third on the 30-team MLB list, with many teams spending $100 million more — sometimes much more — than Tampa Bay does on players each year.

He’ll be asked to do much of the same in Miami, another team that isn’t among the big-spenders but that made the wild-card round of this year’s playoffs. The Marlins lost that series to Philadelphia.

The Marlins have batting champion Luis Arraez coming back next season along with first baseman Josh Bell — who exercised his $16.5 million option — but will be without ace right-hander Sandy Alcantara, who will miss 2024 because of surgery on his elbow.

The 31-year-old Cuban agreed before the 2022 season to a three-year contract guaranteeing $36 million.

Soler hit .269 with 36 homers and 75 RBIs this year, becoming a first-time All-Star. This was his best season since he had an American League-high 48 homers and 117 RBIs for Kansas City in 2019.

A 10-year big league veteran, Soler has a .243 career average, 170 homers and 452 RBIs with the Chicago White Sox (2014-16), Kansas City (2017-21), Atlanta (2021) and Miami.

His Marlins deal included salaries of $12 million for 2022 and $15 million for 2023 and an option that escalated from $9 million to $13 million based on plate appearances this year.

Ng, 54, became the majors’ highest-ranking woman in baseball operations and the first female GM in the four major North American professional sports leagues in a groundbreaking hire in November 2020.

The Marlins exercised their team option for her to return for the 2024 season, Sherman said in a statement, but Ng declined her mutual option.

“Last week, Bruce and I discussed his plan to reshape the Baseball Operations department. In our discussions, it became apparent that we were not completely aligned on what that should look like,” Ng told the Athletic on Monday. “I felt it best to step away. I wish to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to the Marlins family and its fans for my time in South Florida. This year was a great step forward for the organization.”

When the Marlins first hired her, Ng said at the time that it was the product of years of determination and an honor.

“When I got into this business, it seemed unlikely a woman would lead a major league team,” she said then, “but I am dogged in the pursuit of my goals. My goal is now to bring championship baseball to Miami.”

The Marlins were a dormant franchise before they made the postseason during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, which was Year 3 in the rebuilding effort of former CEO Derek Jeter, who brought in Ng.

Miami reached the playoffs that year for the first time since 2003 and swept the Chicago Cubs in their Wild Card Series. Atlanta then swept the Marlins in the National League Division Series, but Miami showed flashes of promise and brought in Ng at the end of that season to help surge the club forward.

Ng won three World Series rings while spending 21 years in the front offices of the Chicago White Sox (1990-96), New York Yankees (1998-2001) and Los Angeles Dodgers (2002-11). Before joining the Marlins, she was an MLB senior vice president for nine years.

“Kim’s appointment makes history in all of professional sports and sets a significant example for the millions of women and girls who love baseball and softball,” baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said at the time of Ng’s hiring. “The hard work, leadership, and record of achievement throughout her long career in the national pastime led to this outcome.”

Miami went 220-266 during Ng’s tenure, including an 84-78 record this past season.

She oversaw the rebuilding of the Marlins’ roster into one that wants to contend in the future. Last October, she hired former Cardinals bench coach Skip Schumaker, and he helped lead the Marlins to a postseason berth in his first year as manager.

Miami lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in the Wild Card Series earlier this month.

Ng’s departure comes after Jeter, baseball’s first Black CEO, stepped down as both CEO and shareholder last offseason after being with the team since 2017.

Jeter said at the time that “the vision for the future of the franchise is different than the one I signed up to lead.”

Ng was the fifth GM in the Marlins’ history. Sherman said the club will immediately begin its search for new leadership.

“We thank Kim for her contributions during her time with our organization and wish her and her family well,” Sherman said.

“I give this game my all,” the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner said in a social media post. “I give this city my all, and so I promise I will not take a day off as I push to be back better than ever.”

Alcantara started experiencing discomfort in his arm during a Sept. 3 outing against Washington in which he pitched eight innings. His injury was initially reported as a forearm strain, but was later diagnosed as a UCL sprain — an injury that typically requires Tommy John ligament-replacement surgery. His timeline for return was unknown as he’d hoped to rejoin Miami for a late-season playoff push.

Alcantara experienced forearm tightness following rehab outing with Triple-A Jacksonville on Sept. 21, and the setback ended his season.

“Very frustrating for me, a guy who likes to compete,” Alcantara told reporters before a game against the Milwaukee Brewers last month. “I feel sorry for the fans, my family, my son, my friends because I’m not going to be out there this year. Just try to be ready for next year, I don’t know. Stay positive.”

In 28 starts this season, the 28-year-old Alcantara posted a 4.14 ERA and pitched three complete games. The right-hander went 7-12 in 184 2/3 innings, with 151 strikeouts and 48 walks.

The Marlins made the postseason as the NL’s second wild-card team and were swept by the Philadelphia Phillies in their three-game Wild Card Series.

Miami’s current rotation includes left-handers Jesús Luzardo, Braxton Garrett and Trevor Rogers, as well as 20-year-old right-hander Eury Pérez.

And while the Marlins’ postseason was short lived — ending Wednesday night after a loss to the Philadelphia Phillies — it marked a major milestone for Ng. In just three seasons as the Marlins’ top executive, Ng took what had been one of the lowest-ranked teams in its division to the postseason for only the fourth time in franchise history.

Ng was hired in late 2020 by then-Marlins CEO and part-owner Derek Jeter. It made her the first-ever woman general manager — not only in professional baseball, but in the four major North American men’s sports — and the second person of Asian descent to become an MLB GM.

Her hiring followed 30 years of experience in the MLB, including with the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers, two of the winningest teams in the league. Ng had also interviewed for other GM roles at least five times.

When she joined the Marlins, the team was facing serious struggles, including the loss of big-name players, low attendance and a limited budget. But Jeter knew that Ng, who had been the Yankees’ assistant GM during three straight World Series-winning seasons when he played with the team, was up to the task.

“Kim was the first person I called,” Jeter told the “Today” show in 2021 of Ng’s hiring. “She was the only person I called.”

The 2023 MLB season was Ng’s first full year without Jeter in the Marlins’ front office, after the former Yankees star stepped down as CEO and a shareholder of the team in February 2022.

His light trot, then — slam! — the thud of his bat as the lumber spiked the turf, well, Stott doesn’t remember that, either. This playoff highlight was a blur. He yelled something at his Phillies teammates, who had already turned the dugout into a jubilant mosh pit.

What did he say? Who knows? Stott couldn’t hear himself or anyone else near him — the slam set off pandemonium inside another packed Phillies ballpark.

“I was running around the bases in kind of a blackout,” Stott said. “I don’t know, I have to go back and watch it.”

Stott’s grand slam punctuated a postseason sweep and Aaron Nola tossed seven shutout innings in a performance worthy of a playoff ace that led to a 7-1 win over the Miami Marlins in Game 2 of their NL Wild Card Series on Wednesday night.

“We know we’re a really good team and we’ve just got to continue to do that,” slugger Bryce Harper said inside a rowdy, boozy clubhouse.

After making quick work of the surprising Marlins, it’s time for an anticipated rematch.

J.T. Realmuto also homered as the Phillies advanced to another best-of-five Division Series against Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson and the Braves. Game 1 is Saturday in Atlanta. The Phillies did not announce a scheduled starter.

The NL champion Phillies finished third last season in the NL East at 87-75, a full 14 games behind the 101-win Braves, only to beat them in four games in the NLDS. The Braves were even better this season with a major league-best 104 wins and a sixth straight NL East crown — clinched last month in Philadelphia — while the Phillies again earned a wild card with 90 wins.

“It’s going to be an electric series and we can’t wait,” Harper said.

More postseason thrills are surely ahead.

Stott provided one Wednesday when he turned on reliever Andrew Nardi’s first-pitch fastball in the sixth and launched it into the right-field seats for a 7-0 lead. He slammed his bat as he ran down the first-base line, and the Stott Shot sent Phillies fans into a delirious frenzy with the countdown to a clinch officially on.

Nola followed Game 1 starter Zack Wheeler’s excellent effort with one of his own, and had 46,000 fans on their feet chanting “Let’s Go, Nola!” when he needed a lift.

“He went through a lot this year because he struggled at times and there were the home runs and the big innings and things like that, but he just kept grinding and he kept fighting, kept working,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “Finally, he found some stuff at the end of the year, and he’s been lights out.”

The one knock on Nola, eligible for free agency after the World Series, is his trouble with shutdown innings. After Realmuto went deep to make it 3-0 in the fourth, Nola ran into a jam in the fifth. He put runners on first and second with one out before he got Jesús Sánchez to ground into an inning-ending double play.

Nola picked — more than pitched — his way out of Miami’s only other serious threat.

The Marlins briefly caught a break in the third when Jon Berti’s deep drive into the left-center gap knocked off left fielder Cristian Pache’s glove for a one-out double. Berti then inexplicably tried to steal third and was busted by Nola as the righty went into his delivery. Nola noticed Berti taking off and, instead of throwing a pitch, simply stepped toward third and threw him out.

“I feel like there was a little momentum shift,” Nola said. “For a pitcher, it’s definitely a plus to pick a guy off in a situation like that, especially when a guy that can run is on second base with less than two outs.”

Those are the kind of mistakes a postseason novice like the Marlins make.

“I think the culture changed,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “I believe that there’s a new standard in that clubhouse now. Now it’s up to them to protect that standard, honestly.”

With fans again waving their red rally towels, many wearing Phillies overalls popularized by backup catcher Garrett Stubbs, and the team on the brink of a clinch, the Phillies had their way with Miami starter Braxton Garrett.

Philadelphia again had six 20-homer hitters in the lineup but — a night after failing to go deep in Game 1 — again stitched together runs against Garrett.

Kyle Schwarber ripped an RBI double to right in the third that scored Pache for a 1-0 lead. Pache raced around the bases from first, his helmet still bouncing on the dirt as he slid headfirst into home. Trea Turner, the $300 million shortstop, smacked an RBI single that scored Schwarber for a 2-0 lead.

By then, the Game 2 victory seemed inevitable.

After all, there’s a reason the Phillies call the postseason Red October: They just don’t lose at Citizens Bank Park. At least, not often.

The Phillies, who won the 2008 World Series at home, moved to 24-11 in the postseason at the ballpark, the top postseason winning percentage for any team in any park (minimum 20 games).

Realmuto crushed his fourth career postseason homer off David Robertson in the fourth to make it 3-0.

“I think we’ve got a really good club, and I think we’re built for series-type baseball,” Thomson said.

BRING A BROOM

The Phillies joined Minnesota, Arizona and Texas in pulling off first-round sweeps as all four Wild Card Series ended in two games. There have been seven sweeps — including the Phillies over St. Louis last season — in the eight Wild Card Series during the first two years of expanded playoffs.

SLAM STAT

Shane Victorino hit the other postseason grand slam for the Phillies in Game 2 of the 2008 NLDS off Milwaukee’s CC Sabathia.

The game would have been resumed Monday had it impacted the postseason but was not because the Marlins were assured of the second NL wild card and Arizona the third.

Major League Baseball, after consulting the Elias Sports Bureau, said Wednesday the score reverted to 1-0 under 7.02 (b) (4) (A) of the Official Baseball Rules, which deals with suspended games.

“If one team is ahead, the team that is ahead shall be declared the winner (unless the game is called while an inning is in progress and before the inning is completed, and the visiting team has scored one or more runs to take the lead, and the home team has not retaken the lead, in which case the score upon the completion of the last full inning shall stand,)” the rule states.

Bryan De La Cruz singled leading off the ninth against Grant Hartwig and Garrett Hampson struck out. Jazz Chisholm Jr. greeted Anthony Kay with a double and scored on Yuli Gurriel’s pinch-hit single. Xavier Edwards flied out and Jon Berti singled Gurriel to second before the game was interrupted by rain at 9:41 p.m. Umpires waited until 12:58 a.m. and then suspended the game.

All those statistics have been wiped out.

Hartwig gets a win, raising his record to 5-2. Jesús Luzardo drops to 10-10 after allowing a leadoff single in the eighth to Brett Baty, who scored on Rafael Ortega’s two-out single against Andrew Nardi.

Miami finished 84-78, earning the second wild card on a tiebreaker over the Diamondbacks because the Marlins won the season series 4-2.

New York wound up 75-87, fourth in the NL East and their poorest record since 2017.

Mets manager Buck Showalter, who was fired Sunday, gets an additional win. He was 176-148 in two seasons with New York and has a 1,727-1,665 record in 22 seasons as a major league manager, including stints with the New York Yankees (1992-95), Arizona (1998-2000), Texas (2003-06) and Baltimore (2010-18).

The ring one, of course. Nick Castellanos had no desire to turn his moment on second base into a NSFW moment in the postseason.

The All-Star slugger did — with millions briefly confusing the gesture for the obscene finger — direct his ring finger toward a joyous Phillies dugout, sending a message that the defending NL champions are chasing the World Series ring they were denied by Houston last year.

“That’s why we’re playing this month,” Castellanos said.

Zack Wheeler struck out eight in a sensational effort, José Alvarado preserved the lead with a pivotal strikeout and Philadelphia opened a resolute postseason push with a 4-1 win over the Miami Marlins in the opener of their NL Wild Card Series on Tuesday night.

“As soon as I stepped foot out of the dugout to go stretch out there in the bullpen, the crowd went nuts and I got chills,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler quickly started dealing and got the run support needed to put the Marlins on the ropes.

Led by Kyle Schwarber’s 47 homers, the Phillies had six players in the Game 1 lineup with at least 20. But they didn’t need the Schwarbombs and Alec Booms to get the job done, as every starter had at least one hit, without a home run.

Castellanos added an RBI double in the eighth inning to score Bryce Harper — who knocked off his helmet as he steamrolled past a stop sign — and the Phillies moved within a victory of an NL Division Series matchup against Atlanta.

“Bryce does that all the time and he’s miraculously safe more often than not,” Castellanos said with a laugh.

Wheeler allowed one run in 6 2/3 innings. Craig Kimbrel worked a scoreless ninth for the save.

Phillies fans held signs that read “Un-phinished Business” and they were downright delirious when injured slugger Rhys Hoskins fought back tears and threw the ceremonial first pitch.

Castellanos did, too. He wore Hoskins’ No. 17 on the side of his cap this season in tribute to the first baseman who spiked his bat on a home run last season in an NLDS victory.

“He symbolizes Philadelphia, honestly more than any of the signees that have come here after the fact,” Castellanos said.

The Phillies won 11 postseason games last season, two shy of the ultimate goal and their first World Series title since 2008. The theme of unfinished business — as it is for so many World Series losers — was a key element that permeated throughout the clubhouse this season.

“We’ve got to get back after it this year, and it’s a different team,” manager Rob Thomson said. “I believe it’s a better team, to be honest with you.”

Here they are again, this time with star shortstop Trea Turner, playing big games in October — and with Wheeler in top form.

Wheeler, on the short list of great free-agent signings in team history, brought the heat from the start. He threw nine fastballs in the 97-99 mph range in the first inning, the hardest a pitcher who struck out 212 batters has thrown all season.

The veteran right-hander never backed down as 45,662 fans at Citizens Bank Park roared on every K.

Wheeler’s slider, nasty. His sinker, filthy.

Wheeler is simply grateful for another postseason shot a year after he was lifted with a 1-0 lead in the sixth inning of Game 6 in the World Series against Houston. Yordan Alvarez hit a three-run homer off Alvarado later in the inning and the Astros soon clinched the World Series.

That was last season.

This time, Wheeler took a two-hit shutout into the seventh and was pulled after allowing consecutive infield singles with two outs, the second one by Bryan De La Cruz driving in Miami’s only run.

Alvarado struck out pinch-hitter Yuli Gurriel with two runners aboard to protect a 3-1 lead. The left-hander retired two batters in the eighth, and Jeff Hoffman got the third out of the inning.

The Marlins finished with seven hits.

“I think they know what’s at stake,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “They know what tomorrow means. We’re going to do the same thing we’ve always done.”

Wheeler threw only 46 pitches through four innings — while Marlins starter Jesús Luzardo labored through 90 over the same span.

The 26-year-old Luzardo was raised in South Florida and grew up rooting for Marlins stars such as Juan Pierre and Miguel Cabrera.

Luzardo was 6 years old when he attended Game 3 of the 2003 World Series, won by the Marlins, and was thrilled when he was traded to Miami ahead of the 2021 season.

His first postseason start for his childhood team hardly went as planned.

Johan Rojas, the No. 9 hitter, hammered away at Luzardo with a nine-pitch at-bat for a single that opened the third. He scored on Alec Bohm’s RBI double to left field.

Luzardo gave up run-scoring singles to Bryson Stott and Cristian Pache that made it 3-0 in the third.

“We’ve just got to keep this going,” Harper said. “Leave no doubt.”

FIRST PITCH

Hoskins choked back tears, patted his chest in appreciation and even waved a rally towel before he threw the first pitch. The slugging first baseman has not played this season after he suffered a torn ACL in his left knee. The 30-year-old Hoskins — playing on a $12 million, one-year contract — might have made his last appearance at Citizens Bank Park.

Hoskins said he will head to Florida on Wednesday to face live pitching with hopes he could return to the Phillies if they make the World Series.

“As much as I want to be here, this is part of the way that I get a chance to be on the field with these guys again,” Hoskins said. “I’ve got to do everything I can to give myself that opportunity.”

MANUEL RECOVERS

Former Phillies manager Charlie Manuel posted a picture on social media of him watching the game from a hospital room. Manuel led the Phillies to the 2008 World Series title. He suffered a stroke in September.

UP NEXT

The Marlins send LHP Braxton Garrett (9-7, 3.66 ERA) to the mound Wednesday night against Phillies RHP Aaron Nola (12-9, 4.46). Nola went 2-2 in last year’s postseason — winning a game in each of the first two rounds, then losing one in each of the next two. Garrett gave up three runs over five innings in each of his two starts vs. the Phillies this season.

The first female GM of a major North American sports franchise understood she was a pioneer. A symbol, too. She embraced the daunting task of taking a franchise with limited support and turning it into a contender while being careful to avoid setting a timetable for success.

Timetables invite judgment. Ng simply doesn’t see the world that way.

“You’re never sure when it’s all going to come together,” Ng said.

So rather than create some arbitrary deadline, Ng focused on the process of drafting and developing talent and sifting through rosters elsewhere in search of pieces she felt might fit.

The process gained traction last winter with the hiring of relentlessly upbeat first-year Skip Schumaker, who won the job during the first hour of his interview with owner Bruce Sherman. It picked up speed with the arrival of All-Star second baseman Luis Arraez and the addition at the trade deadline of veterans like first baseman Josh Bell.

And suddenly there Ng was on Saturday night, her hair drenched in a mix of Budweiser and bubbly, wearing a black T-shirt that read “Take October” in the Miami Marlins’ signature teal. The clubhouse mood was giddy after the Marlins clinched the franchise’s fourth playoff berth in its 31-year history with a 7-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Asked how a team that will finish the season with a negative run differential around 50 and injury issues made it to the postseason, Ng smiled as she tried and occasionally failed to dodge a steady stream of beer showers.

“This team has just exemplified heart and they know it,” she said. “And I think that is the driver of this group.”

Miami likely will have the worst run differential of a postseason team in major league history. The Marlins lost ace Sandy Alcantara to an elbow injury in early September while lineup fixtures like Arraez and Jorge Soler battled health issues down the stretch.

Still. Miami entered Sunday a remarkable 33-13 in one-run games, the best winning percentage (.718) in the National League since 1980, a full 13 years before Charlie Hough threw the franchise’s first pitch.

“They’ve proved to themselves they can do it,” Schumaker said.

Over and over and over again.

Miami’s clinching victory in some ways symbolized its season. Star centerfielder and video game cover model Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit an early homer. A walk, a bunt single, a sacrifice and a forceout grounder gave them the lead for good. Eight relievers combined to get 27 outs, the last four by newish closer Tanner Scott.

It is not the way Schumaker drew it up. Yet the utility player who got every bit of ounce he could out of his talent during an 11-year big-league career has become the manager perhaps uniquely qualified to handle a roster that is better than the sum of its parts.

“He said (during his interview) ‘I have certain unconditional aspects of how I manage’ and boy, he managed that way,” Sherman said. “The motivation he got from these guys, unbelievable.”

Motivation that wavered but never fully waned, even as Miami trudged through an uneven first five months of the season in which it did little more than find a way to hang around.

“There’s been like four times this year where I just to myself I’m just like ‘Man, I don’t know if we can do it,’” catcher Jacob Stallings said. “Just treading water and every time we (seem close to out of it), I mean we just do something crazy.”

Like sweeping rival and NL East winner Atlanta in mid-September immediately after a draining series loss in Milwaukee threatened to blunt their momentum.

Like rallying for two runs in the ninth inning at Citi Field against the New York Mets on Thursday, a game suspended by rain at nearly 1 a.m.

Like coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the eighth inning on Friday night, the sixth time this season they’ve roared back from three runs or more after the seventh, the most by any team in the majors in the modern era.

Miami’s 17-9 sprint through September culminated in a postgame party near the mound at PNC Park on Saturday night while a small cadre of fans behind the dugout shouted “Lets Go Marlins!”

Heady territory for a team with an opening day payroll of a relatively modest $91 million, a team that had dropped at least 93 games in each of the last four non-pandemic-shortened seasons.

“It’s not about payroll, it’s about what you got in here,” Sherman said, pointing to his heart. “And these guys had it in here.”

Maybe because the people like the woman Chisholm calls “Momma Kim,” showed them the way.

“Our staff, our front office, they’re a family and they showed us how to be a family,” Chisholm said. “And it starts at the top with Sherman, to Kim to Skip. It all starts from there. We just watch them and they help us. It’s fun to see how much work they put in.”

A job that Ng insists is still far from finished.

“I need to go back to my (introductory) press conference where I said ‘Failure is not an option,’” she said. “And that has really come full circle … So we’re here but we still have more work to do.”

Jazz Chisholm hit his 19th home run, Josh Bell delivered a late two-run double and the Marlins clinched the fourth playoff berth in franchise history with a 7-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night.

Miami locked down one of the two remaining National League wild card spots behind Chisholm’s drive, a dash of small ball and another lockdown performance by a bullpen that has carried a sizable share of the load over the last month.

A.J. Puk (7-5) and seven other relievers kept the Pirates in check, rendering any scoreboard-watching pointless.

“I feel like we’re just the biggest family in the league,” Chisholm said in a giddy postgame clubhouse. “I feel like nobody is as connected as us as a team. I feel like when someone gets going, everybody gets going. That’s the plan here and we’re just family and we’re coming in together.”

Miami began the day with its magic number whittled to one following another late comeback victory on Friday night.

One officially dropped to zero when closer Tanner Scott wrapped up his 12th save by striking out the side in the ninth, setting off a celebration on the field and behind the Miami dugout, where a small clutch of fans chanted “Lets Go Marlins!”

“Before the game we called it ‘Clinch Day’ and we weren’t expecting any other day to be Clinch Day except today,” Chisholm said. “And that’s what we did and we handled it today.”

Buoyed by first-year manager Skip Schumaker’s relentless optimism and a “why not us” approach, the largely anonymous Marlins — who finished with 93 or more losses in each of the previous four non-pandemic-shortened seasons — will be in the playoffs next week while big spenders like the New York Mets and San Diego Padres will be watching from home.

“We’ve been living for six years with ‘Let’s Go Mets’ in our stadium all the time,” Marlins owner Bruce Sherman said. “Mets didn’t finish. Yankees didn’t finish. San Diego didn’t finish. Payrolls three times our and look what we did.”

What the Mets and everyone else will see is a team that keeps finding a way despite a roster bereft of stars outside of the electrifying Chisholm, who was 5 years old growing up in the Bahamas in 2003 the last time the Marlins made the playoffs at the end of a 162-game regular season.

Little was expected in 2023, yet the Marlins entered September at 67-67 and on the fringe of an underwhelming wild card race before hitting the gas over the last four weeks.

Miami used a 17-9 September surge to vault over San Francisco, Chicago and surprising Cincinnati in the standings.

Jon Berti had three hits for the Marlins and started the go-ahead rally with a leadoff walk in the sixth off Quinn Priester (3-3), beginning a sequence that symbolized Miami’s “whatever it takes” approach.

Garrett Hampson bunted for a hit when Nick Gonzalez was late covering the bag at first. Both runners advanced on a sacrifice by Jacob Stallings and Berti put the Marlins in front 3-2 by beating shortstop Liover Pegeuro’s throw home on a sharp grounder by Jorge Soler. Bell’s sacrifice fly pushed the advantage to 4-2.

Bell — who spent five years with the Pirates from 2016-20 before bouncing from Washington to San Diego to Cleveland to Miami — provided the Marlins with some welcome insurance in the eighth with a long drive to center that drove in Berti and Soler.

“Thought I’d celebrate here years and years ago,” Bell said. “But just to be able to celebrate here now, is icing on the cake.”

A night after rallying from three runs down after the seventh inning for the sixth time this season — the most by any MLB team since 1900 — the Marlins made sure no such dramatics were required.

“This team has just exemplified heart and they know it,” said general manager Kim Ng, the first female GM in Major League Baseball history. “And I think that is the driver of this group.”

Endy Rodriguez had three hits and drove in a run for the Pirates. Jared Triolo and Ke’Bryan Hayes added two hits each. Bryan Reynolds provided an RBI single in the bottom of the eighth that trimmed Miami’s lead to three, but the Pirates would get no closer.

Priester, a first-round pick in the 2019 amateur draft, put together 5 1/3 workmanlike innings as he tries to position himself for a spot in the starting rotation in 2024. Priester allowed four runs on 10 hits with a walk and three strikeouts to finish his rookie season with a 7.74 ERA in 10 games (seven starts).

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: 2B Luis Arraez did not play while nursing an ankle injury. Arraez’s batting average remains a major league-leading .354 as he closes in on becoming the first player in MLB history to win batting titles in different leagues in consecutive seasons.

UP NEXT

The series wraps up on Sunday. It’s unclear whether the Marlins will have to return to New York on Monday to finish a suspended game against the New York Mets.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Yuri Gurriel had consecutive run-scoring hits that put the Marlins ahead 2-1 Thursday night, but umpires soon ordered the tarp on the field and the game was suspended by rain at 12:58 a.m. after a 3-hour, 17-minute delay.

“Without getting into the details, obviously, this is an unfortunate incident,” said Marlins general manager Kim Ng, who declined comment when asked if the suspension could have been avoided or if the game could have been completed in the ninth.

Miami moved into the third and final NL wild card spot when the Chicago Cubs lost at Atlanta.

Miami (82-76) is a half-game ahead of the Cubs (82-77), who finish with three games at NL Central champion Milwaukee. The Marlins close with three games at Pittsburgh and would have to return to New York on Monday to complete the game against the Mets if it’s needed to determine a postseason spot.

Miami holds the tiebreaker against the Cubs after winning the season series 4-2.

San Diego (79-80) avoided elimination for another night because Miami couldn’t finalize a win.

The game would be resumed at the point of suspension if needed to determine a playoff berth. Under rule 7.02 (b) (4) (A), if the game isn’t needed to decide a postseason spot, the game would be called and the score would revert to a 1-0 Mets victory.

Ng spoke for less than a minute. No other players or staff members spoke with reporters as the Marlins prepared for their flight to Pittsburgh.

With rain letting up slightly, the tarp had been removed around 12:20 a.m. Miami manager Skip Schumaker became involved on the field in an animated conversation with umpire crew chief Alfonso Márquez, a member of the Mets’ grounds crew and New York senior vice president of ballpark operations Sue Lucchi.

A few minutes later, the tarp went back on the field. The Mets vacated their dugout shortly thereafter.

“We had two or three potential start times,” Mets manager Buck Showalter said. “We were ready to go and then it kept closing. It would open and we would go quick and pull the tarp, but underneath is wet too.”

The opening game of the three-game series was postponed Tuesday due to soggy conditions at Citi Field, where the infield was uncovered for at least some of the four straight days in which Tropical Storm Ophelia pelted New York City.

“The other day was a little bit of a show — there’s a word in front of it,” Schumaker said Thursday afternoon as rain fell during his pregame availability.

The rainout Tuesday necessitated a doubleheader Wednesday, affecting Miami’s pitching plans in the final days of a playoff race and angering team officials, according to a report by The Athletic. Mets owner Steven Cohen apologized to the Marlins before the teams split Wednesday’s doubleheader.

The heaviest rains Thursday weren’t expected to arrive until closer to midnight, but after Rafael Ortega snapped the scoreless tie with an RBI single in the eighth inning, the Marlins mounted their rally in a downpour.

Bryan De La Cruz singled leading off the ninth against Grant Hartwig and Garrett Hampson struck out. Chisholm greeted Anthony Kay with a double and scored on Gurriel’s pinch-hit single. Xavier Edwards flied out and Jon Berti singled Gurriel to second before the game was interrupted at 9:41 p.m.

“We knew that they obviously wanted to play and that game has implications for them,” Mets starter David Peterson said. “So we were kind of just told to wait and hang around and see what happens.”

Marlins starter Jesús Luzardo allowed four hits, struck out 10 and walked one in 7 1/3 innings Thursday. His 208 strikeouts are the most for a Miami left-hander.

Peterson struck out eight in seven innings for the Mets, lowering his ERA to 5.03. He was demoted to Triple-A on May 16 with an 8.08 ERA but recorded a 3.38 ERA in his final 19 appearances following his recall June 26.

“Long, pretty boring,” Peterson said of the delay. “Ready to go home.”

THEY WEAR IT WELL

Mets announcers Gary Cohen, Ron Darling and Keith Hernandez wore suits honoring the trio of Ralph Kiner, Bob Murphy and Lindsey Nelson, who were the team’s radio and TV broadcasters for the franchise’s first 17 seasons. Cohen, Darling and Hernandez are concluding their 18th season in the SNY booth.

Cohen wore a checkerboard suit similar that evoked memories of the striped suit worn by Murphy. Hernandez wore a plaid suit, a la Nelson, while Darling sported a beige suit similar to the single-colored jacket worn by Kiner.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: RHP Tanner Scott returned from paternity leave, one day after his wife gave birth to a son. RHP Emmanuel De Jesus was optioned to Triple-A New Orleans. … INF Luis Arraez (left ankle), who leads the NL with a .353 average, took batting practice but didn’t play. … OF/DH Jorge Soler returned to the lineup as the DH after sitting out Wednesday’s second game with a sore side.

Mets: CF Brandon Nimmo is slated to have an MRI Friday afternoon after hurting the AC joint in his right shoulder while making a diving attempt to catch Soler’s sinking liner in the fourth. … IF/OF Jeff McNeil (left elbow) was placed on the injured list after an MRI revealed a slightly torn UCL. New York recalled IF Danny Mendick from Triple-A Syracuse. … RHP Denys Reyes was recalled from Syracuse and LHP Joey Lucchesi was optioned to the same affiliate.

UP NEXT

Marlins: Have yet to announce their pitching plans.

Mets: With rain in the forecast all day Friday, New York RHP Tylor Megill (8-8, 4.92 ERA) is slated to start Friday against a former teammate, Philadelphia RHP Taijuan Walker (15-5, 4.35 ERA).