Esteury Ruiz’s 11th-inning double rescues Marlins after Diamondbacks waste traffic in 4-2 loss

Eleven innings, one opening

The final margin says Miami won by two, but the shape of the game says something narrower and stranger. The Marlins were outhit 9-5, struck out 11 times, and carried a .135 team average into extra innings. Arizona, meanwhile, kept putting men on base, kept extending at-bats, and kept waiting for the second big hit that never came.

The first loud swing belonged to Gabriel Moreno, who put Arizona ahead in the opening inning with a 431-foot homer to left-center. That lead lasted until the fourth, when Griffin Conine answered with a 401-foot shot to right-center. After that, the scoreboard went quiet in the most stubborn way possible: six straight scoreless innings from both sides, a 1-1 tie still standing after 10.

The 11th finally cracked because Miami made its smallest collection of chances count all at once. Esteury Ruiz lined a double to center, and suddenly Otto Lopez, Jared Serna and Kyle Stowers all crossed to turn a deadlocked game into a 4-1 Marlins lead. Arizona answered only once in the bottom half, when Ketel Marte doubled to center to bring home Ildemaro Vargas. It trimmed the lead, not the verdict.

Arizona had the traffic, Miami had the damage

If you want the Diamondbacks' night in one sentence, here it is: nine hits, five walks, 48 plate appearances, and only two runs. Moreno did his part, going 2-for-4 with the home run and two walks. Marte added two hits in six at-bats and delivered the late RBI double. But the larger number hanging over Arizona was 29 runners left on base, an enormous total for a game it otherwise controlled in the box score.

Miami's offense was thinner, but it found the two moments that mattered most. Conine supplied the equalizer with his solo homer and finished with the club's only home run. Ruiz produced the decisive blow, driving in three on one double despite the Marlins collecting only one other extra-base hit all night. Lopez never got a hit, but two walks and a run still made him part of the winning inning. Stowers also scored without a hit. That is not a formula teams draw up, but in one game it can be enough.

There is a blunt lesson in that contrast. Arizona created more volume. Miami created more consequence. The Diamondbacks finished with the better hit total, the higher batting average for the night, and more total bases, yet the Marlins claimed the game because their few successful swings arrived in scoring moments instead of being scattered across 11 innings.

Our take: the bullpen did the heavy lifting, but both lineups left notes for tomorrow

Miami's pitching deserves the first nod because it had to survive the messier night. Janson Junk gave up Moreno's first-inning homer and five hits in his 3.0 innings, but the Marlins bullpen carried the rest of the game from there. Cade Gibson, Calvin Faucher, Tyler Zuber, Michael Petersen, Dax Fulton, Victor Vodnik and Josh Ekness combined for 8.0 innings, allowed four hits, gave up one run that was unearned, and struck out 10. For a staff that had to cover 11 innings and face 48 Arizona plate appearances, that is the reason Miami was still around for Ruiz to decide it.

Arizona will look at its pitching line and reasonably feel shortchanged. Michael Soroka was sharp over 5.0 innings, allowing two hits and one run while striking out six. Justin Martinez, Brandyn Garcia, Juan Morillo and Kevin Ginkel then stacked five scoreless innings before the game tipped in the 11th. The problem was that the Diamondbacks needed almost perfect run prevention because the offense never turned its volume into separation. When Taylor Clarke's inning unraveled with two walks and the Ruiz double, there was no earlier cushion to absorb it.

Our take: Arizona did enough to win except for the part that matters most. A lineup that leaves 29 on base and strikes out 14 times, with Lars Nootbaar and Jordan Lawlar combining for eight of those strikeouts, is asking its pitchers to throw a shutout or something close to it. The simplest improvement is not mystical or tactical; it is contact and conversion. Even a modestly cleaner night with men aboard changes this result.

For Miami, the win should not hide the warning lights. The Marlins scored four runs on five hits, but the rest of the offensive profile was lean: a .135 average, a .220 on-base percentage, and 14 runners left on base. Ruiz delivered the swing that will be remembered, yet Miami also spent most of the night one hit away from being shut down completely. On this night the Marlins earned praise for hanging around and then cashing the game's biggest chance. They also leave Chase Field knowing the margin for that style of win is awfully small.

Scoring moments

1. 1st Inning

   Moreno homered to left center (431 feet).

2. 4th Inning

   Conine homered to right center (401 feet).

3. 11th Inning

   Ruiz doubled to center, Lopez scored, Serna scored and Stowers scored.

4. 11th Inning

   Marte doubled to center, Vargas scored.