Holaday fills in for Realmuto, walks it off for Fish

July 10th, 2018

MIAMI -- After delivering a walk-off single in the 10th inning of the Marlins' 4-3 win over the Brewers on Monday night at Marlins Park, went directly to his phone and texted J.T. Realmuto.

"I got back and he said congrats. I was asking him if we had a baby yet ... if he had a baby yet," Holaday joked, while holding the hand of his 5-year-old son Thomas in front of his locker. "I'm still waiting to hear back from him."

Holaday got the start in place of Realmuto, who was named to his first All-Star team Sunday and placed on the paternity list Monday afternoon as he becomes a first-time father.

With one out in the 10th, reached on a hit-by-pitch by Brewers closer and walked. The two then perfectly executed a double steal, snatching second and third before Holaday's single up the middle. It was Holaday's first career walk-off hit and the Marlins' fifth of the season.

"That's kind of the way baseball goes," Holaday said of being the hero while filling in for his All-Star teammate. "I think you see stuff like that all the time. Maybe that put his wife into labor right there, watching that game."

In the 10th, escaped a one-out, bases-loaded jam by getting Brad Miller to ground into a 6-4-3 double-play. The veteran right-hander has now allowed one earned run in his last 20 innings.

Holaday noted that Ziegler getting out of that trouble gave the Marlins' plenty of momentum, and Rojas and Maybin were able to execute the crucial double steal.

"I was at first base and the guy was doing 1.5 [seconds] to the plate," Rojas said. "When I got to second base, I was saying, 'He's going to be even slower.' He's not worrying about me trying to steal the bag. I was just trying to go early and not later when he is focusing on the at-bat. When you're trying to steal that bag, it's going to be early in the count, so you give that [hitter a chance] to drive you in."

In the seventh inning, the Marlins rallied off All-Star left-hander , connecting on back-to-back home runs. capped an 11-pitch showdown with a full-count homer to left, and crushed a towering drive to left-center on the next pitch, putting Miami in front, 3-2.

It marked just the second time this season the Marlins have hit consecutive home runs. Castro and Realmuto did it against All-Star Max Scherzer on Saturday in Washington.

Castro's battle was one of the Marlins' best at-bats of the season. He fouled off six offerings before delivering his seventh long ball of the year. Anderson ambushed yet another fastball, sending it off the face of the sculpture in center field.

"[Hader] has been pretty good, probably one of the best in baseball this year," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "He fouled off a bunch of pitches. I'm not sure the usage he's been lately, but obviously just making him work, guys are eventually going to make a mistake. I think the slider he takes to get to 3-2, I think it was a slider, now you're forced to throw a strike. You want to throw a strike there. He got himself a good pitch to hit."

The National League-leading Brewers, however, wouldn't go down without a fight. After a leadoff base hit by in the eighth, right-hander allowed former Marlin to reach on a fielder's choice. Yelich took off and stole second, setting up a two-out RBI single to right to tie the game at 3.

Shaw's RBI was the first run allowed by Steckenrider since May 20 in Atlanta, extinguishing a scoreless streak of 19 2/3 innings over his last 20 appearances. It was the longest active streak in the Majors.

Coming off a debilitating four-game series with the Nationals, including an 18-4 defeat and losing a 9-0 lead, Mattingly was proud of his team's performance, explaining that this is the type of play he has been looking for all season.

"Each one you gotta be turning that page," Mattingly said. "That's what we've been trying to preach over the past few years. Continuing to move forward and focusing on that next series. That style of baseball ends up winning."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

The big at-bat in Ziegler's 10th inning was fanning , who knocked his NL-leading 23rd homer earlier in the game, for the first out. Shaw was intentionally walked, and Ziegler got Miller to tap to short to end the inning.

"When I got to 0-2 [on Aguilar], I decided to take one shot at a strikeout, and I fortunately got it," Ziegler said. "It's kind of a tough spot there because it sets up matchups against the lefty. I just did my best to execute a pitch and trust my defense. They made a turn."

As for the double play, Miller stepped into the box fully cognizant of what he needed to do but said that Ziegler simply made the perfect pitch.

"I know he's trying to get the double play. That's why they loaded it up there," Miller said. "I think with him, it's a really good sinker and you have to see it up and really stay on it. … I had the right idea, he just made a really good pitch and he got me to do exactly what he was trying to get me to do."

SOUND SMART

Anderson's single in the third inning made him the first rookie in Marlins franchise history to tally 100 hits before the All-Star break. Anderson passed Alex Gonzalez, who finished the first half of the 1999 season with 99 knocks.

HE SAID IT

"It's amazing how an opportunity can give you the chance to do something special. He's going to have an opportunity with J.T. out a couple of days. We miss J.T., but at this point, Holaday is having an opportunity to play in a couple of games. I'm excited for him that he was able to deliver the winner." -- Rojas, on Holaday getting the walk-off hit. Holaday also threw out a runner and recorded a sacrifice fly.

MITEL REPLAY OF THE DAY

With nobody out in the fourth following a JT Riddle walk, sliced a one-hopper to first baseman Aguilar, who fielded and fired to second, short-hopping shortstop while attempting to get the force. As Perez came in contact with second base, the ball dropped to the dirt. Second-base umpire Adrian Johnson initially called Riddle out, claiming the ball popped out of Perez's glove on the transfer, but upon further review, the call was overturned.

Maybin followed up with an infield single and Holaday capitalized with the bases loaded, driving in Riddle with a sacrifice fly and putting the Marlins on the board.

UP NEXT

Rookie makes his third career start at 7:10 p.m. ET on Tuesday when the Marlins face the Brewers at Marlins Park. Lopez learned you can't let up, even with a nine-run lead. There was a letdown in Lopez's last start, when Washington rallied from nine down to win. Milwaukee goes with .