With loss to Angels, Miami Marlins fall to 0-5 for first time in franchise history

For the first time in franchise history, the Miami Marlins have started a season with five consecutive losses.

The Marlins lost their series opener to the Los Angeles Angels 7-4 on Monday at loanDepot park after also dropping all four games of their season-opening series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Prior to this season, the longest the Marlins have ever gone without a win to begin a season was four games — in 1995 and 2001.

The Marlins on Monday watched a 4-0 first-inning lead disappear after Nolan Schanuel and Mike Trout hit back-to-back home runs in the sixth inning against George Soriano. Trout’s home run was his second of the day, as he also homered in the fourth. The Angels scored their first run in the second inning on an Aaron Hicks RBI groundout that plated Taylor Ward, who led off the innings with a double.

The Angels (2-2) then took the lead for good in the eighth after Marlins reliever Tanner Scott loaded the bases with three consecutive walks before a Ward groundout scored Anthony Rendon from third base.

A Jo Adell RBI single off Anthony Bender and a Burch Smith balk with a runner on third gave the Angels a pair of insurance runs.

The Angels’ comeback spoiled Max Meyer’s return to the big leagues after missing all of 2023 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Meyer, the Marlins’ No. 3 overall prospect and their first-round pick from the 2020 MLB Draft, held the Angels to two runs on two hits and two walks while striking out four over five innings.

The Marlins gave him a 4-0 lead after one inning on back-to-back RBI singles from Jake Burger and Jazz Chisholm Jr along with a Nick Gordon two-run double. But Miami failed to tack on from there. The Angels then mounted their comeback, and the Marlins left the field dejected for a fifth consecutive time to begin the 2024 season.