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The Marlins know they ‘have to win games now’ as the biggest series of their year begins

The Miami Marlins entered the ninth inning on Wednesday staring at a 20-run deficit. Their fate in their series finale against the Atlanta Braves was all but sealed.

But don’t tell this Marlins team that. They still had three outs to work with, three outs to show something even if the final result was inevitable.

Brian Anderson worked a 10-pitch at-bat before lining a fastball into center field for a single. Garrett Cooper followed with a single of his own three pitches later before a double play and a groundout ended their historic 29-9 loss to the Braves.

It was a sour ending after winning the first two games of the series 5-4 in extra innings on Monday and 8-0 on Tuesday.

But Marlins manager Don Mattingly credits the effort his team showed in the final innings despite the lopsided deficit.

“They pretty much played to the last out,” Mattingly said after the loss.

They need that same mentality now — and better results — as they embark on what can easily be viewed as the biggest series of their shortened 2020 season.

The Marlins (19-19) began a seven-game, five-game series at Marlins Park with the Philadelphia Phillies (21-18) on Thursday. It’s the start of Miami’s final homestand of the season that overall features three teams, four doubleheaders and 15 games in 11 days.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Marlins and Phillies are playing MLB’s first regular-season series of at least seven games since the Mets and Cubs played seven contests at Wrigley Field from Aug. 31-Sept. 3, 1967.

“They’ll be tired of us and we’ll be tired of them I’m sure by the time they leave here,” Mattingly said. “The one thing is we’re going to see their whole staff. They’re going to see our whole staff. ... I don’t want to make too much of the series, but we’re basically going to play a World Series in five days. We’ll see what it looks like.”

Mattingly has preached the importance of valuing every series and every game the same, especially when there are only 60 games this year compared to the usual 162, but the importance of these games are amplified.

The playoff field is expanded this year. The top two teams in each division and the next best two teams in each league reach the postseason.

Philadelphia enters the series in second place in the National League East, two games behind the division-leading Braves (25-18). The Marlins are one-and-a-half games behind the Phillies and hold the NL’s second wild card spot.

“We have to keep going now,” first baseman Jesus Aguilar said. “We’re at home. We have to be confident. We have to win games now.”

The next five days could solidify the Marlins’ playoff hopes. It could also sink them entirely.

That’s thinking too far ahead, at least in Mattingly’s eyes.

There were nine innings of baseball in front of him to focus on Thursday.

“The simplicity of this is we need to focus on trying to win a game tonight and doing everything we can to win a game tonight,” Mattingly said. “Hopefully, it’s a good outcome. If it’s not, you have to come back out tomorrow and do the same.”

Just as important as not thinking about the future is forgetting about the past.

The wins and losses that have already come aren’t going to change. Nor are they going to have any impact on what they can do in the present.

They’ve persevered through a COVID-19 outbreak, more than 140 roster moves and almost no off days during this season.

“We never give up,” Aguilar said. “We channel that mentality. I think we go out there and battle for every at-bat, every chance to do something. ... We showed we can do a lot of things.”

That needs to translate to the field in the present as the season hits its latest critical point.

Roster moves

The Marlins made another wave of roster moves ahead of Thursday’s series opener against the Phillies.

The rundown:

Second baseman Isan Diaz, right-handed pitcher Brett Eibner and left-handed pitcher Daniel Castano were added to the active roster

Pitchers Jordan Yamamoto and Alex Veisa were optioned to the team’s alternate training site in Jupiter.

Utility player Jon Berti was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right index finger laceration.

Catcher Francisco Cervelli (concussion) was moved to the 60-day IL.