Marlins score 10 in 8th, rally for win
July 10, 2009
PHOENIX (AP)—Down by seven runs in the fifth inning, the Florida Marlins kepton hacking.
They didn’t stop until they had scored a franchise-record 10 runs in theeighth inning and stormed back for a 14-7 victory over the Arizona Diamondbackson Thursday night.
Pinch-hitter Brett Carroll’s(notes) three-run homer was the biggest hit in thebiggest inning in team history.
Florida matched the team record for the biggest comeback victory and Arizonaset a club record for the largest blown lead.
“I didn’t sense any panic,” Carroll said. “I think guys were stayingready, and we started to get a couple knocks.
“We were down and fought back, and that’s a good sign,” Carroll said.“Great win for us.”
And it was a stinging defeat for Arizona, which snapped a five-game winningstreak. When Florida’s eighth inning finally ended, the remnants of a ChaseField crowd of 21,558 stood and applauded derisively.
“It’s a bad loss, no doubt,” Arizona center fielder Chris Young said. “Itwas a weird game.”
Series at a Glance Florida 14 Arizona 7 Thu, Jul 9 – Final Florida at Arizona Fri, Jul 10 – 9:40 pm ET Florida at Arizona Sat, Jul 11 – 8:10 pm ET
Florida trailed 7-0 after five innings but rallied with three runs in thesixth and one in the seventh. Then the Marlins hit Arizona with the 10-spot inthe eighth to make a winner of Kiko Calero(notes) (2-0).
“I can’t really pinpoint exactly at what point I had the ‘uh-oh’ moment,that feeling, but it certainly is disappointing,” Arizona manager A.J. Hinchsaid.
The Marlins sent 14 batters to the plate in the eighth against threerelievers—Juan Gutierrez(notes), Scott Schoeneweis(notes) (1-1) and Blaine Boyer(notes).
After pinch-hitter Ross Gload(notes) drove in the first run with a fielder’s choicegrounder, Carroll hit a fastball from Schoeneweis for a three-run homer, givingFlorida an 8-7 lead. It was Carroll’s first career pinch-hit homer and the firstby a Marlin this season.
“The ball just kind of got in on me a little bit and I was able to kind ofmuscle it out there,” said Carroll, who has three homers.
The carnage was only beginning.
Florida Marlins' Brett Car… AP – Jul 10, 1:33 am EDT
Dan Uggla(notes), Cody Ross(notes) and Jeremy Hermida(notes) followed with RBI singles, and JohnBaker(notes) drove in a run with a double.
Another run scored on a passed ball charged to Luke Carlin(notes), and the finalrun came in on Gload’s second RBI fielder’s choice grounder of the inning.
The Diamondbacks helped out with two errors—one by Boyer and another byMark Reynolds(notes)—as their frustrated fans unleashed a torrent of boos.
“Guys didn’t give at-bats away, and we were able to capitalize on some oftheir mistakes and get some big hits and score a big number there in the eighthinning,” Florida manager Fredi Gonzalez said.
Three pinch-hitters—Gload, Carroll and Hanley Ramirez(notes)—each batted twicein the inning.
“I don’t know if I was prepared for the second one,” said Carroll, whogrounded to third base to end the inning. “I started to realize I was going toget another at-bat. I was kind of excited.”
Florida Marlins' Brett Car… AP – Jul 10, 12:42 am EDT
Arizona began building its lead in the first inning. Justin Upton(notes) broke outof a 1-for-12 slump with a two-run homer just inside the left field foul poleoff Andrew Miller(notes), who lasted only 2 2-3 innings, his shortest outing.
Arizona’s lead grew to 7-0 through five innings. But the Marlins closed to7-3 in the sixth on a two-run shot by Jorge Cantu(notes) to the left field seats and asolo homer by Hermida to the pool area in right-center field, both off Arizonastarter Yusmeiro Petit(notes).
The Marlins made it 7-4 in the seventh on Chris Coghlan’s(notes) RBI double.
“We could kind of sense that, hey, we’ve got to stay ready,” Carroll said.“This game is not over.”
NOTES: Uggla had four hits, all singles. … The Marlins overcame aseven-run deficit to beat Boston on June 28, 2003. Florida trailed 9-2 and won10-9. … Ramirez, who has a right hip flexor, did not start for the fifthstraight game, but he singled and walked as a pinch-hitter in the eighth. …Arizona RHP Tom Gordon(notes), out since May 4 with a strained left hamstring, willthrow a batting practice session on Friday and could begin a minor league rehabstint next week.
