The Miami Marlins finally slammed the door on their franchise-record 12-game losing streak Monday night, edging the Philadelphia Phillies 8-7 on Griffin Conine’s walk-off single at loanDepot park. Miami briefly coughed up a three-run cushion earlier in the game, then came roaring back with three runs in the ninth to steal it late and, for at least one night, quiet the “can’t-score” storyline that had been hanging over the clubhouse.
Ninth‑inning rally
Down 7-5 in the ninth, the Marlins refused to go quietly. Jakob Marsee and Otto López started the inning with singles, and Kyle Stowers took a pitch off his body to load the bases with nobody out. Heriberto Hernández followed by lacing a game-tying single straight up the middle, and Xavier Edwards dropped down a bunt that reset the traffic on the bases. With the infield in and the crowd on its feet, Conine lined a single just past second baseman Bryson Stott’s glove for the walk-off, the first walk-off hit of his career, according to MLB.com. The three-run ninth wiped away earlier missteps and turned the finish into pure chaos in Little Havana.
Pitching and turning points
Starter Tyler Phillips did his job and then some, giving Miami five innings and allowing two runs while striking out five, according to the box score at CBS Sports. On the other side, Zack Wheeler lasted only three innings and was charged with five runs before handing things off to a Philadelphia bullpen that mostly kept the Marlins in check until the ninth. That late-inning unraveling by the Phillies opened the door for the dramatic finish the home fans had been waiting for.
Closer blown, manager reaction
Phillies closer Jhoan Duran came in with a two-run lead in the ninth, only to hit Stowers with a pitch to load the bases and then watch the game slip away. He was charged with the blown save and the loss when Miami completed the rally, as reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer. A handful of defensive miscues earlier in the night had already helped Miami build an initial lead, turning this into an uncharacteristically sloppy outing for a Phillies staff that has spent the season eyeing October. Combined with the Marlins’ late surge, those mistakes created a gut-punch of an ending for the visitors and a night to savor for the home crowd.
Players and context
Conine and manager Clayton McCullough both pointed to the win as a pressure release and a reminder that the group is still willing to grind, according to reporting by the Miami Herald. Miami had been scraping together only about 2.5 runs per game during the skid, so an eight-run outburst capped by a walk-off felt like a much-needed reset, even if it only changes the narrative for one night.
Standings and what's next
The victory nudged Miami to 53-54 and kept the club hanging around the wild-card conversation, while the Phillies were left to regroup after a game that slipped from their grasp, per the game details at MLB.com. The series rolls on with a chance for the Marlins to turn this emotional win into real momentum and for Philadelphia to patch up the late-inning lapses that turned Monday into a Miami gut-check.
