Marlins ace Max Meyer hits IL with neck strain

That doesn’t bode well for Meyer returning to make a meaningful contribution down the stretch. With two weeks of no throwing and about five weeks of buildup, the best-case scenario is probably him making three starts before the end of the regular season. He could potentially make it back earlier as a reliever, if the Marlins wanted to go that route.

Meyer was up to 74 pitches after a 31-pitch third, so the Marlins employed a quick hook in his first start in 11 days. With the team in contention, Meyer figures to finish the year in the rotation. Still, more early exits seem likely. He finished today at 111 innings, leaving him just four shy of his career high from 2024. He came in at 64 2/3 last year before undergoing hip surgery missing the final four months. Meyer is due to face the Padres next weekend.

Meyer had his final first-half start skipped for workload reasons and he declined to pitch in the All-Star Game for the same reasons. The 27-year-old former top pitching prospect finally delivered his long-awaited sustained breakthrough with a phenomenal first half, pitching to a 9-1 record with a sparkling 2.58 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 116/38 K/BB ratio across a career-high 108 innings over 19 starts. There are zero physical concerns for Meyer as he opens the second half with a tough road matchup in Milwaukee.

Sunday will be a bullpen game due to a career-high workload for Meyer in the season’s first half. He’ll also sit out the All-Star game despite being selected. Meyer has been phenomenal in working to a 2.58 ERA in the season’s first half, going 9-1 and striking out 116 batters in 108 innings pitched.

Meyer was cruising early on in this one, holding Seattle to just a pair of runs into the sixth inning before being pulled after loading the bases with nobody out. He finished with four strikeouts and issued two walks. Fortunately, reliever Michael Petersen came on to put out the bases-loaded fire without any runs crossing the plate. The 27-year-old All-Star righty holds a strong 2.58 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 116/38 K/BB ratio across 108 innings of work. He’ll get the ball for Sunday’s first-half finale against the Guardians.

It’s a colossal bummer for baseball fans hoping to see Misiorowski hurling triple-digit heaters during next week’s Midsummer Classic, but this was always the expected outcome here. Skenes, Misorowski and Meyer are all taking the ball for their respective club’s first-half finales on Sunday, which means there was zero chance they would be able to pitch in the All-Star Game just three days later. Luzardo, Ashcraft and O’Brien are headed to the game for the first time in their respective careers. It’s likely going to be Shohei Ohtani taking the ball to start for the National League based on how things are lining up from a schedule standpoint.

Meyer’s lone earned run in this game came via a long Mickey Moniak home run in the first inning. Then, he cruised all the way until the fifth inning when his defense let him down. After a leadoff single by Troy Johnston, Javier Sanoja booted a Kyle Karros ground ball at second base. Then, after a fielder’s choice and a groundout, Moniak got Meyer again with a two-run triple before Hunter Goodman socked a two-run homer on the very next pitch. Suddenly, this game had spun out and a heap of unearned runs were on Meyer’s ledger. Still, as far as starts in Coors Field go, this is a fine result. He’s scheduled for a two-start week against the Mariners and Guardians, both at home, as we head into the All-Star Break.

Meyer struck out five and walked two while induing mostly soft contact tonight; just three of the 17 balls in play against him were hit hard. It’s the fourth time in 17 starts this year that Meyer has gone without allowing a run and the 13th time that he’s allowed two runs or fewer. It remains to be seen whether he can really make 30+ starts, but there’s no denying how impressive he’s been in going 9-0 with a 2.60 ERA so far. For what it’s worth, his previous career highs are 111 innings and 22 starts in 2021, which he split between Double- and Triple-A. Meyer figures to make his next start Wednesday in Colorado.

As anticipated, Meyer will rejoin the Marlins in time to make his scheduled start against the Cardinals on Friday. The 27-year-old hurler has been utterly dominant since the start of June, posting a 2.31 ERA and a 28/9 K/BB ratio over 23 1/3 frames during that four-start stretch.

The 26-year-old hurler returns back to Triple-A after spending three games with the Marlins, though he didn’t appear in a ballgame. The Marlins will announce a corresponding move prior to Friday’s battle against the Cardinals, which is expected to be the return of Max Meyer.