The Braves will attempt to do what’s never been done: eliminate the Marlins from the postseason.
After going 6-4 against the Marlins this season, the Braves will play at least another three games against Miami. The Marlins defeated the Cubs 2-0 on Friday afternoon in Chicago, sweeping the two-game wild-card series to advance to their first National League Division Series since 2003.
This will be the third phase in which the Braves and Marlins have faced off this season. They played two exhibition games at Truist Park just before opening day, played 10 times head-to-head in the 60-game season and now will play the best-of-five NLDS beginning Tuesday in Houston, where the NLDS will be held as part of MLB’s 2020 bubble plan.
The Marlins went 31-29, finishing second in the NL East, four games behind the Braves. The Braves won three of four against the Marlins at Truist Park during the last week of the regular season, during which the Braves clinched the division and the No. 2 seed. Miami is the No. 6 seed, upsetting third-seeded Chicago.
The Braves have feasted on the Marlins in recent years, though those Miami teams weren’t nearly as talented as the 2020 version. The Braves went 29-9 against the Marlins across their 2018-19 division-title runs. Coincidently, that’s also the score of the Braves' record offensive explosion in a game against Miami earlier this season.
In their 10 meetings this season, the Braves outscored the Marlins 68-44, but take away the 29-9 score, and the Braves lead was 39-35 over the other nine games. Miami’s turnaround has been fueled by its rotation, which is headlined by Sixto Sanchez, Sandy Alcantara, and Pablo Lopez.
All-time, the Braves are 277-191 against the Marlins, including a 120-66 mark in the past decade before this season. They’ve met once in the postseason, when Miami eliminated the Braves in six games to win the 1997 NL Championship Series.
The Braves, coming off their first postseason series win in 19 years, are trying to advance to their first NLCS since 2001. This is Miami’s third trip to the postseason, with the previous two resulting in World Series championships (1997, 2003). They’re 7-0 in all-time postseason series.
