|
PHOENIX(AP) Down by seven runs in the fifth inning, the
Florida Marlins
kept on hacking.
They didn't stop until they had scored a franchise-record 10 runs in the eighth inning and stormed back for a 14-7 victory
over the
Arizona Diamondbacks
on Thursday night.
Pinch-hitter
Brett Carroll
's three-run homer was the biggest hit in the biggest inning in team history.
Florida matched the team record for the biggest comeback victory and Arizona set a club record for the largest blown lead.
''I didn't sense any panic,'' Carroll said. ''I think guys were staying ready, and we started to get a couple knocks.
''We were down and fought back, and that's a good sign,'' Carroll said. ''Great win for us.''
And it was a stinging defeat for Arizona, which snapped a five-game winning streak. When Florida's eighth inning finally ended,
the remnants of a Chase Field crowd of 21,558 stood and applauded derisively.
''It's a bad loss, no doubt,'' Arizona center fielder
Chris Young
said. ''It was a weird game.''
Florida trailed 7-0 after five innings but rallied with three runs in the sixth and one in the seventh. Then the Marlins hit
Arizona with the 10-spot in the eighth to make a winner of
Kiko Calero
(2-0).
''I can't really pinpoint exactly at what point I had the 'uh-oh' moment, that feeling, but it certainly is disappointing,''
Arizona manager A.J. Hinch said.
The Marlins sent 14 batters to the plate in the eighth against three relievers -
Juan Gutierrez
,
Scott Schoeneweis
(1-1) and
Blaine Boyer
.
After pinch-hitter
Ross Gload
drove in the first run with a fielder's choice grounder, Carroll hit a fastball from Schoeneweis for a three-run homer, giving
Florida an 8-7 lead. It was Carroll's first career pinch-hit homer and the first by a Marlin this season.
''The ball just kind of got in on me a little bit and I was able to kind of muscle it out there,'' said Carroll, who has three
homers.
The carnage was only beginning.
Dan Uggla
,
Cody Ross
and
Jeremy Hermida
followed with RBI singles, and
John Baker
drove in a run with a double.
Another run scored on a passed ball charged to
Luke Carlin
, and the final run came in on Gload's second RBI fielder's choice grounder of the inning.
The Diamondbacks helped out with two errors - one by Boyer and another by
Mark Reynolds
- as their frustrated fans unleashed a torrent of boos.
''Guys didn't give at-bats away, and we were able to capitalize on some of their mistakes and get some big hits and score
a big number there in the eighth inning,'' Florida manager Fredi Gonzalez said.
Three pinch-hitters - Gload, Carroll and
Hanley Ramirez
- each batted twice in the inning.
''I don't know if I was prepared for the second one,'' said Carroll, who grounded to third base to end the inning. ''I started
to realize I was going to get another at-bat. I was kind of excited.''
Arizona began building its lead in the first inning.
Justin Upton
broke out of a 1-for-12 slump with a two-run homer just inside the left field foul pole off
Andrew Miller
, who lasted only 2 2-3 innings, his shortest outing.
Arizona's lead grew to 7-0 through five innings. But the Marlins closed to 7-3 in the sixth on a two-run shot by
Jorge Cantu
to the left field seats and a solo homer by Hermida to the pool area in right-center field, both off Arizona starter
Yusmeiro Petit
.
The Marlins made it 7-4 in the seventh on
Chris Coghlan
's RBI double.
''We could kind of sense that, hey, we've got to stay ready,'' Carroll said. ''This game is not over.''
NOTES: Uggla had four hits, all singles. ... The Marlins overcame a seven-run deficit to beat Boston on June 28, 2003. Florida
trailed 9-2 and won 10-9. ... Ramirez, who has a right hip flexor, did not start for the fifth straight game, but he singled
and walked as a pinch-hitter in the eighth. ... Arizona RHP
Tom Gordon
, out since May 4 with a strained left hamstring, will throw a batting practice session on Friday and could begin a minor
league rehab stint next week.
|