By WARREN MAYES Associated Press
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The winless Miami Marlins, who are off to the worst start in the franchise’s 33-year history, dropped their ninth consecutive game on Saturday, losing 3-1 to Steve Matz and the St. Louis Cardinals.
Iván Herrera and Brendan Donovan each had two hits for St. Louis. Jordan Walker contributed an RBI double.
Matz (2-0) surrendered four hits in five scoreless innings. Ryan Helsley pitched the ninth for his third save.
“I thought my fastball was working really well,” said Matz, who threw 85 pitches. “I’d definitely like to go deeper into the game. Bullpen did a great job. It was a good win.”
The Cardinals turned two double plays. Through nine games, St. Louis has not committed an error.
“Guys are continuing to play really good defense,” manager Oliver Marmol said. “Details matter. They’re making it important.”
Miami’s Trevor Rogers (0-1) was charged with three runs, two earned, and five hits in five innings. He struck out three and walked three.
“They’re finding holes and they’re finding grass. … My stuff feels good. It just didn’t go my way,” Rogers said.
The 0-9 Marlins are the only winless team in baseball. The New York Mets, who dropped their first seven games, beat the Detroit Tigers 2-1 on Thursday for their first win.
Baltimore holds the big league record with 21 losses to start the 1988 season.
“It always starts with starting pitching,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said. “No one ever has lost from a shutout before but that’s asking a lot. I think collectively all together, we have to figure it out. I’m not telling people to do more than they can do. I don’t need one guy to carry the team. We’ve talked. We don’t need any more talking.”
Miami has lost 10 consecutive games dating to last season. It has dropped 13 of its last 16 at Busch Stadium.
“We’ve got to find ways to win,” Schumaker said. “That’s the tough part. We have to figure it out pretty soon.”
The Cardinals scored two runs in the fourth. After Herrera singled and Nolan Gorman walked, Walker doubled down the left-field line. Walker was called out at second, but the call was overturned after it was challenged by St. Louis.
Gorman was thrown out at home on a grounder to third, but Walker scored on an errant pickoff throw to first by Rogers.
“That mental error — the pickoff move — can’t happen,” Rogers said. “Got to make that play. It’s something I’ve done since I was a little kid.”
The Marlins have allowed 10 unearned runs season.
St. Louis added a run in the fifth. Herrera singled home Donovan, who led off with a double.
“Little things add up to big things,” Donovan said. “Everybody’s showing up and pulling on the right end of the rope.”
Miami scored in the eighth against Andrew Kittredge. Luis Arraez doubled and scored on a single by Josh Bell, who had two hits.
“Other than that, we just couldn’t get anything going,” Schumaker said.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Marlins: RHP Eury Pérez will undergo Tommy John surgery on Monday. He has been transferred to the 60-day IL.
Cardinals: C Willson Contreras (left hand) was scratched as the designed hitter 45 minutes before the game as a precautionary measure. He did not play in Thursday’s home opener. He was hit by a pitch Wednesday at San Diego.
UP NEXT
Marlins: RHP Max Meyer (0-0, 3.60 ERA) will make his second start of the season on Sunday. It also is his fourth career major league start.
Cardinals: RHP Kyle Gibson (1-0, 2.57 ERA) starts the series finale for St. Louis.
