POV: it’s mid August, you haven’t checked the Marlins score in a while, and they’ve quietly won four games in a row.
Miami Should Be Paying Attention
That’s exactly where things stand right now. The Marlins are sitting eleven games back in their division, which sounds rough on paper, but division standings aren’t the story this season. The wild card race is, and Miami has firmly planted itself in that conversation. A 6-4 record over the last ten games, a four game winning streak heading into today, and a roster that’s playing with the kind of scrappy confidence that usually shows up in September, except it’s showing up in August this year.
Today’s matchup has the Marlins hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates at loanDepot park, first pitch at 1:10pm, and if you’ve been sleeping on this team, this is a good weekend to wake back up. Baseball in Miami has a complicated relationship with its fan base. Attendance numbers get talked about more than the actual baseball sometimes, which is a shame, because a team fighting for a wild card spot in August deserves a packed house, not a quiet one.
Here’s the thing about a wild card push:
It’s a different kind of exciting than a division race. Every single game in August and September starts to feel like it matters, because the margin for error shrinks fast. A four game winning streak right now isn’t just a nice stat line, it’s the difference between being in the conversation and being written off before Labor Day. If you’ve got a Thursday afternoon free, or you’re the type who has the game on in the background while you work from a cafe, this is the stretch of season where checking the score actually means something again.
For those of us running businesses out of this city, there’s something to take from this too. Nobody expected the Marlins to be relevant in a wild card conversation in mid August. They just kept showing up, kept stacking small wins, and now people are paying attention. That’s a pretty solid blueprint for anyone building something in Miami right now, whether it’s a baseball roster or a small agency. Consistency over hype, every time.
Catch the Marlins this week at loanDepot park downtown, or stream it if you’re stuck at your desk. Either way, this is the part of the season where paying attention actually pays off.