Marlins Bats Come to Life Against the Rays in Bullpen Game

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MIAMI, FL – After a game where they mustered just two measly hits in a decisive loss, the Marlins gave the Rays some much-deserved payback. Both teams started off slow with no offense until Miami changed that in the fifth inning. The bats came to life for the Miami Marlins in their 4-3 victory against the Tampa Bay Rays in a bullpen game.

Bullpen Shuts Down the Rays Through Eight

Lake Bachar was unstoppable on the mound against Tampa Bay. He made his second straight start, tossing three innings of scoreless baseball with three strikeouts. In his two starts, he’s lowered his ERA from 3.77 to 3.15.

The final line for Lake Bachar:
3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 38 NP (24 Strikes) #Marlins pic.twitter.com/pSrB6hwdNs

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) June 6, 2026

Bachar has six strikeouts in 5.2 innings pitched with a 0.38 WHIP and no hits or runs allowed in June. Today, he relied heavily on his fastball, which accounted for 19 of his 38 pitches. The pitch generated 11 swings and two punchouts. He went 89% on first-pitch strikes.

Anthony Bender entered the game in the fourth and pitched 1.1 innings of scoreless work with two strikeouts. He has enjoyed two consecutive bullpen outings of no hits or runs in June.

The sweeper was his go-to pitch, being used on 11 of his 22 pitches. The Rays swung at seven of those pitches and struck out once. His sinker was effective as well, getting three swings and a strikeout.

John King faced just two hitters, ending the fifth inning with a double play. King earned the win, improving to 3-1.

Calvin Faucher allowed the Rays their first pair of hits in the sixth inning. Still, he didn’t let that bother him as he went on to strike out three hitters in two innings.

He had the hardest thrown pitches of this game, averaging 97 MPH on his cutter and 94 on his cutter. His top speed was 97.6. Faucher has allowed no runs and just three hits in his three appearances in June.

Yandy Diaz gave the Rays their first run on a double off Michael Petersen. He tossed an inning and recorded two strikeouts on his fastball, which was thrown on 73% of his total pitches.

Ballgame#Marlins edge out a 4-3 over the Rays
– Javier Sanoja lead the offense with three hits and two RBI
– Miami gets 10 hits, Otto Lopez has a multi-hit game
– Bullpen was phenomenal through eight with John King picking up the win
– Tyler Zuber saved the game in the ninth pic.twitter.com/NgeXH7FI88

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) June 6, 2026

Javier Sanoja Leads the Way with Three Hits

A Javier Sanoja single in the second inning was the only hit in this game until the fifth. He led off the inning with the first run of the game, his second home run of the season, to make it 1-0.

Javier Sanoja takes Shane McClanahan deep with a solo home run

Launch Angle: 34
Distance: 362#FightinFish #Marlins pic.twitter.com/QtsWdh0eN2

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) June 6, 2026

Sanoja’s second homer of the season left the ballpark with a total distance of 362 feet at a launch angle of 34 degrees.

After Esteury Ruiz walked, he stole second and then advanced to third on a throwing error from Nick Fortes behind the dish. Joe Mack then gave Miami their second run of the game with a sharply hit double into center field.

Joe Mack extends the #Marlins lead with a double. They lead 2-0. #FightinFish pic.twitter.com/ZQrs0MgDPn

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) June 6, 2026

The Marlins picked up where they left off in the sixth with two more runs. Heriberto Hernandez and Leo Jimenez both singled. Then, Sanoja came up big again with his third hit, scoring Hernandez from second base.

Javier Sanoja drives in his second of the day, hitting into the opposite side of the field. #Marlins lead 3-0 #FightinFish pic.twitter.com/WDXoX79mDE

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) June 6, 2026

After Ruiz got hit by a pitch, the bases were loaded for Liam Hicks to make a huge impact. He almost did, falling just short of a grand slam. Instead, he made it a 4-0 game with a sac fly.

Miami was successful with runners in scoring position, going 4/9 in those situations. Otto Lopez had a multi-hit game while Sanoja led the offense with a three-hit, two0RBI game. The Marlins finished with 10 hits.

Tyler Zuber Saves Game in the Ninth

Things did not go to plan for Pete Fairbanks in the final frame. He struggled to maintain himself. Right when anyone thought this game was one pitch away from being over, it wasn’t.

Fairbanks kept getting himself on the wrong side of unfortunate events. With Ben Williamson and Taylor Walls on base, he allowed Williamson to score and Walls to advance to third after throwing a wild pitch.

Then, Chandler Simpson tested his patience on Fairbanks’ command. He won, getting walked. Yandy Diaz stepped up to the plate and drove in Walls with a base hit, making it a close 4-3 game.

Yandy Diaz drives in his second run of the game and suddenly the games becomes closer than expected. #Marlins lead 4-3 but the Rays have runners on the corners. pic.twitter.com/7sHSqjVcK4

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) June 6, 2026

A walk to Jonathan Aranda was the final straw in Pete Fairbanks’ outing. He surrendered two hits, two runs, and three walks in two-thirds of the inning. Fairbanks threw the most pitches out of all seven Marlins who made an appearance, with 39 pitches.

With the bases loaded and the tying run 90 feet away on third base, the pressure was on for Tyler Zuber. He was able to secure the game’s biggest out by striking out Junior Caminero on five pitches.

Huge save for Tyler Zuber, who recorded the game's biggest out without question on a Junior Caminero strikeout to end the game #Marlins pic.twitter.com/gXZeoQCR5I

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) June 6, 2026

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