MIAMI
-- A gray cat went scrambling for cover in the Marlins Park outfield
midway through Tuesday night's game, and no wonder, given the barrage
off Marcell Ozuna's bat.
Ozuna homered twice and had a career-high six RBI to help Miami win its home opener against the Atlanta Braves, 8-4.
Announced attendance was 36,519, and that didn't include a cat that ran onto the field midway through the game. It scurried along the outfield warning track, ran away from right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, crawled up the center field wall and then appeared to get stuck in the animatronic home run sculpture .
Marlins president David Samson said if Ozuna had hit a third homer, the sculpture would not have been activated for fear of harming the cat.
"He stayed up there for four innings," said Ozuna, the Marlins' left fielder. "Every time I went on defense, I looked up there and the cat was hiding its head. I said, `What are you doing up there?' In the last inning I didn't see it. I don't know where he went."
Ozuna said he didn't buy the notion the cat brought good luck.
"I detest cats," he said.
Ozuna hit a sacrifice fly in the first inning, a three-run homer in the third and a two-run homer in the fifth, doubling his season RBI total and hiking his average to .423. The two-homer game was the second of his career.
Ozuna hit 23 homers last year but batted only .209 after the All-Star break, and manager Don Mattingly wants him to stop trying to knock the ball over the fence.
"I've talked to him about hitting more doubles and using the gaps," Mattingly said. "We've talked about him hitting 50 doubles, and to me he hits 30 homers by mistake."
Nick Markakis had a solo homer for the Braves, who fell to 1-6 with their fifth consecutive loss.
"It's a little bit of pressure on guys," second baseman Brandon Phillips said. "We might be trying to do too much."
Bartolo Colon (0-1) needed 35 pitches to get through the first inning. He allowed six runs in four innings.
"He got a little fat in the strike zone," manager Brian Snitker said.
Dan Straily (1-1) allowed three runs, two earned, in five innings for his first victory since joining Miami. When he hit former Reds teammate Phillips in the midsection with a fastball in the fifth inning, they shared a laugh.
"I said something like, `I know you still love me," Straily said. "It's good when a guy can take it that way."
Three members of the Marlins' 1997 World Series championship team threw out the ceremonial first pitch -- Livan Hernandez, Edgar Renteria and Charles Johnson. And then the 2017 Marlins came out swinging, taking a 3-0 lead in the first.
Later came the cat.
"I was hoping it wasn't black," Mattingly said.
REMEMBERING JOSE
The family of Jose Fernandez decided not to attend the Marlins' home opener because it would have been too emotional, Samson said. A tribute will be held later for the late ace, who died in a boat crash in September.
"It's still fresh. It still hurts," Samson said. "We want to wait for a little more healing."
Marlins players said they went into the home opener mindful of Fernandez.
"I said, `Let's go brother. I'm going to play for you always," Ozuna said.
HOME HONORS
Right-hander Julio Teheran was announced as the Braves' starter for their home opener in their new stadium Friday against San Diego.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Marlins: 3B Martin Prado (right hamstring) is scheduled to begin a four-day rehabilitation assignment Wednesday with Class A Jupiter. He said he intently watched telecasts of his team's road games last week. "Let me put it this way -- I was making plays on defense and diving on my bed," he said.
RHP Odrisamer Despaigne was reinstated from the 10-day DL and optioned to Triple-A New Orleans.
UP NEXT
RHP Jaime Garcia (0-1, 6.00) is scheduled to start Wednesday for the Braves against RHP Tom Koehler (0-0, 1.80).
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
Atlanta Braves
Ozuna homered twice and had a career-high six RBI to help Miami win its home opener against the Atlanta Braves, 8-4.
Announced attendance was 36,519, and that didn't include a cat that ran onto the field midway through the game. It scurried along the outfield warning track, ran away from right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, crawled up the center field wall and then appeared to get stuck in the animatronic home run sculpture .
Marlins president David Samson said if Ozuna had hit a third homer, the sculpture would not have been activated for fear of harming the cat.
"He stayed up there for four innings," said Ozuna, the Marlins' left fielder. "Every time I went on defense, I looked up there and the cat was hiding its head. I said, `What are you doing up there?' In the last inning I didn't see it. I don't know where he went."
Ozuna said he didn't buy the notion the cat brought good luck.
"I detest cats," he said.
Ozuna hit a sacrifice fly in the first inning, a three-run homer in the third and a two-run homer in the fifth, doubling his season RBI total and hiking his average to .423. The two-homer game was the second of his career.
Ozuna hit 23 homers last year but batted only .209 after the All-Star break, and manager Don Mattingly wants him to stop trying to knock the ball over the fence.
"I've talked to him about hitting more doubles and using the gaps," Mattingly said. "We've talked about him hitting 50 doubles, and to me he hits 30 homers by mistake."
Nick Markakis had a solo homer for the Braves, who fell to 1-6 with their fifth consecutive loss.
"It's a little bit of pressure on guys," second baseman Brandon Phillips said. "We might be trying to do too much."
Bartolo Colon (0-1) needed 35 pitches to get through the first inning. He allowed six runs in four innings.
"He got a little fat in the strike zone," manager Brian Snitker said.
Dan Straily (1-1) allowed three runs, two earned, in five innings for his first victory since joining Miami. When he hit former Reds teammate Phillips in the midsection with a fastball in the fifth inning, they shared a laugh.
"I said something like, `I know you still love me," Straily said. "It's good when a guy can take it that way."
Three members of the Marlins' 1997 World Series championship team threw out the ceremonial first pitch -- Livan Hernandez, Edgar Renteria and Charles Johnson. And then the 2017 Marlins came out swinging, taking a 3-0 lead in the first.
Later came the cat.
"I was hoping it wasn't black," Mattingly said.
REMEMBERING JOSE
The family of Jose Fernandez decided not to attend the Marlins' home opener because it would have been too emotional, Samson said. A tribute will be held later for the late ace, who died in a boat crash in September.
"It's still fresh. It still hurts," Samson said. "We want to wait for a little more healing."
Marlins players said they went into the home opener mindful of Fernandez.
"I said, `Let's go brother. I'm going to play for you always," Ozuna said.
HOME HONORS
Right-hander Julio Teheran was announced as the Braves' starter for their home opener in their new stadium Friday against San Diego.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Marlins: 3B Martin Prado (right hamstring) is scheduled to begin a four-day rehabilitation assignment Wednesday with Class A Jupiter. He said he intently watched telecasts of his team's road games last week. "Let me put it this way -- I was making plays on defense and diving on my bed," he said.
RHP Odrisamer Despaigne was reinstated from the 10-day DL and optioned to Triple-A New Orleans.
UP NEXT
RHP Jaime Garcia (0-1, 6.00) is scheduled to start Wednesday for the Braves against RHP Tom Koehler (0-0, 1.80).
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Atlanta - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Dan Straily pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Inciarte struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Swanson popped out to shortstop. | 0 | 0 |
| Freeman struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Bartolo Colon pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| Gordon singled to right. | 0 | 0 |
| Realmuto singled to center, Gordon to third, Realmuto to second advancing on throw. | 0 | 0 |
| Yelich singled to left, Gordon scored, Realmuto to third. | 0 | 1 |
| Stanton walked, Yelich to second. | 0 | 1 |
| Bour hit sacrifice fly to left, Realmuto scored, Yelich to third, Stanton to second. | 0 | 2 |
| Ozuna hit sacrifice fly to right, Yelich scored, Stanton to third. | 0 | 3 |
| Dietrich walked. | 0 | 3 |
| Riddle lined out to left. | 0 | 3 |
| 3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Dan Straily pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Markakis grounded out to pitcher. | 0 | 3 |
| A. García struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| Phillips doubled to left. | 0 | 3 |
| Phillips stole third. | 0 | 3 |
| Flowers struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Bartolo Colon pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| Straily lined out to right. | 0 | 3 |
| Gordon bunt grounded out to third. | 0 | 3 |
| Realmuto popped out to shortstop. | 0 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Dan Straily pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Bonifacio reached on infield single to shortstop. | 0 | 3 |
| Colón bunt popped out to first. | 0 | 3 |
| Inciarte grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Bonifacio out at second. | 0 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Bartolo Colon pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| Yelich reached on infield single to first. | 0 | 3 |
| Stanton struck out swinging. | 0 | 3 |
| Bour singled to center, Yelich to third. | 0 | 3 |
| Ozuna homered to right (411 feet), Yelich and Bour scored. | 0 | 6 |
| Dietrich flied out to center. | 0 | 6 |
| Riddle lined out to left. | 0 | 6 |
| 3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Dan Straily pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Swanson struck out swinging. | 0 | 6 |
| Freeman flied out to center. | 0 | 6 |
| Markakis homered to right (390 feet). | 1 | 6 |
| A. García grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 6 |
| 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Bartolo Colon pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| Straily struck out looking. | 1 | 6 |
| Gordon singled to right. | 1 | 6 |
| Realmuto grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Gordon out at second. | 1 | 6 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Dan Straily pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Phillips hit by pitch. | 1 | 6 |
| Phillips stole second. | 1 | 6 |
| Flowers walked. | 1 | 6 |
| Bonifacio walked, Phillips to third, Flowers to second. | 1 | 6 |
| Peterson hit for Colón. | 1 | 6 |
| Peterson grounded into fielder's choice to first, Phillips scored, Bonifacio out at second, Flowers to third, Flowers scored on error by pitcher Straily. | 3 | 6 |
| Inciarte flied out to left. | 3 | 6 |
| Swanson lined out to right. | 3 | 6 |
| 2 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Mike Foltynewicz pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| Foltynewicz relieved Colón. | 3 | 6 |
| Yelich singled to right. | 3 | 6 |
| Stanton struck out swinging, Yelich stole second. | 3 | 6 |
| Bour fouled out to third. | 3 | 6 |
| Ozuna homered to left (393 feet), Yelich scored. | 3 | 8 |
| Dietrich struck out swinging. | 3 | 8 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Brad Ziegler pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Ziegler relieved Straily. | 3 | 8 |
| Freeman singled to left center. | 3 | 8 |
| Markakis grounded out to first, Freeman to second. | 3 | 8 |
| A. García singled to left center, Freeman scored. | 4 | 8 |
| Phillips grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, A. García out at second. | 4 | 8 |
| Flowers flied out to left. | 4 | 8 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Mike Foltynewicz pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| Riddle struck out swinging. | 4 | 8 |
| Moore hit for Ziegler. | 4 | 8 |
| Moore struck out swinging. | 4 | 8 |
| Gordon singled to right. | 4 | 8 |
| Realmuto grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Gordon out at second. | 4 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Kyle Barraclough pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Barraclough relieved Ziegler. | 4 | 8 |
| Bonifacio struck out swinging. | 4 | 8 |
| Camargo hit for Foltynewicz. | 4 | 8 |
| Camargo struck out swinging, Camargo safe at first on wild pitch by Barraclough. | 4 | 8 |
| Inciarte singled to right, Camargo to third. | 4 | 8 |
| Inciarte stole second. | 4 | 8 |
| Swanson walked. | 4 | 8 |
| Freeman struck out swinging. | 4 | 8 |
| Markakis flied out to left. | 4 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Eric O'Flaherty pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| O'Flaherty relieved Foltynewicz. | 4 | 8 |
| Yelich grounded out to first. | 4 | 8 |
| Stanton struck out looking. | 4 | 8 |
| Bour grounded out to second. | 4 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| David Phelps pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Phelps relieved Barraclough. | 4 | 8 |
| A. García struck out looking. | 4 | 8 |
| Phillips doubled to center. | 4 | 8 |
| Flowers flied out to right. | 4 | 8 |
| Bonifacio struck out looking. | 4 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Ian Krol pitching for Atlanta | ATL | MIA |
| Krol relieved O'Flaherty. | 4 | 8 |
| Ozuna walked. | 4 | 8 |
| Dietrich grounded into double play, first to shortstop, Ozuna out at second. | 4 | 8 |
| Riddle grounded out to first. | 4 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Atlanta - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| AJ Ramos pitching for Miami | ATL | MIA |
| Ramos relieved Phelps. | 4 | 8 |
| Rojas at third base. | 4 | 8 |
| d'Arnaud hit for Krol. | 4 | 8 |
| d'Arnaud struck out swinging. | 4 | 8 |
| Inciarte grounded out to second. | 4 | 8 |
| Swanson struck out looking. | 4 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
Atlanta Braves
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inciarte CF | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | .152 | .176 | .182 |
| Swanson SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 24 | .156 | .206 | .281 |
| Freeman 1B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 13 | .333 | .375 | .633 |
| Markakis RF | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 21 | .296 | .406 | .556 |
| A. García 3B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 17 | .185 | .241 | .222 |
| Phillips 2B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | .333 | .400 | .444 |
| Flowers C | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 23 | .294 | .333 | .294 |
| Bonifacio LF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 25 | .143 | .250 | .143 |
| Colón P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
a-Peterson PH
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .300 | .364 | .600 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | |
b-Camargo PH
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | |
Krol P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
c-d'Arnaud PH
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | .250 | .250 | .250 |
| Totals | 34 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 157 | |||
| a-grounded into fielder's choice to first for B Colon in the 5th b-struck out for M Foltynewicz in the 7th c-struck out swinging for I Krol in the 9th | ||||||||||
| BATTING 2B: Phillips 2 (3, Phelps, Straily) HR: Markakis (1, 4th inning off Straily 0 on, 2 Out) RBI: Markakis (3), Peterson (2), A. García (2) 2-out RBI: Markakis GIDP: Inciarte Braves RISP: 1-7 (Freeman 0-1, Bonifacio 0-1, Markakis 0-1, Peterson 0-1, Flowers 0-2, A. García 1-1) Team LOB: 7 | ||||||||||
| BASERUNNING SB: Phillips 2 (3, 3rd base off Straily/Realmuto, 2nd base off Straily/Realmuto); Inciarte (1, 2nd base off Barraclough/Realmuto) | ||||||||||
| FIELDING DP: 2 (Swanson-Phillips-Freeman, Freeman-Swanson). | ||||||||||
Game Notes
| The game is underway after a 33 minute delay. |
Game Information
| Stadium | Marlins Park, Miami, FL |
| Attendance | 36,519 (97.6% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 2:54 |
| Weather | indoors |
| Umpires | Home Plate - John Tumpane, First Base - Ted Barrett, Second Base - Angel Hernandez, Third Base - Lance Barksdale |
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