Surprising Marlins focus on Blue Jays as next order of business

The Miami Marlins, who are set to open a seven-game homestand on Monday night against the Toronto Blue Jays, are playing at a near-record pace

At 41-31, Miami owns the second-best 72-game record in franchise history. The Marlins are also 10 games over .500 for the first time since May 28, 2011

Under first-year manager Skip Schumaker, Miami’s win percentage of .569 is the third-best mark in the National League, trailing only the Atlanta Braves and the Arizona Diamondbacks.

“I’m proud of our guys,” Schumaker said on Sunday after Miami beat the Washington Nationals 4-2 to complete a three-game sweep. “Win or lose, we go about our business every day. That’s the culture we’re trying to set.”

Marlins second baseman Luis Arraez, who leads the majors with a .388 batting average, was rested on Sunday — his first time out of the lineup since May 25

Arraez, a 26-year-old native of Venezuela, is going for his second straight batting title after earning his first last year while playing for the Minnesota Twins. He is on pace for career highs in on-base percentage (.440) and slugging percentage (.480).

With Arraez sitting out on Sunday, the Marlins started a rookie in their middle infield as Jacob Amaya went 1-for-3 with one RBI and one run in his major league debut

In January, Amaya was acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for ex-Marlins captain Miguel Rojas. Last year Amaya hit a career-high 17 homers between Double-A and Triple-A, and he is a strong defender who could get a lot of run this week against Toronto

The Jays will enter Monday on a two-game losing streak, although Toronto manager John Schneider said his hitters have made some “loud” outs.

“The bats are there,” Schneider said. “We’re getting traffic on the bases.”

The Jays are under .500 on the road (20-21), while Miami is 21-13 at home.

Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk, who became a first-time All-Star last year, left Toronto’s 11-7 loss to the Texas Rangers on Sunday after getting hit by a pitch. Kirk, a native of Mexico who won an American League Silver Slugger award last year after slugging 14 homers and driving in 63 runs, sustained a laceration on his left hand

The good news for the Jays is that right-hander Jose Berrios (7-4, 3.28 ERA) will be going for his fifth straight win on Monday.

Berrios is 2-0 with a 1.37 ERA in three June starts. The Jays have won seven of his past eight starts, and he has not allowed more than two runs in any of those wins.

In his career, Berrios has faced the Marlins just once, earning the win for Minnesota on July 31, 2019, when he pitched seven scoreless innings, allowed two hits and struck out 11

Miami will counter with right-hander Bryan Hoeing (1-1, 3.12 ERA). Hoeing, who has never faced Toronto, will be making his 25th career appearance but just his fourth start.

Hoeing will face a Jays lineup led by shortstop Bo Bichette and first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Bichette, 25, leads the team in homers (14) and RBIs (46). Guerrero, already a two-time All-Star at age 24, has nine homers and 42 RBIs.

–Field Level Media