The Miami Marlins can only have 26 players active at any given time, but it will require way more than that for them to sustain their winning ways over the course of the season. Graham Pauley‘s pivotal plays on Friday night exemplified the importance of organizational depth.
Throughout the majority of May and June, Pauley was out of sight and out of mind, optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville for a total of 26 games across two separate stints due to his offensive shortcomings. He owned an atrocious .165/.211/.271 slash line (29 wRC+) with only one home run and one stolen base across 33 appearances for the Marlins.
Swapping spots with the slumping Connor Norby, Pauley was called up from Jacksonville for the series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals. Slotted at the very bottom of Miami’s lineup, he served as the unlikely hero with an RBI double to break the game’s scoreless tie, followed by a crafty slide to arrive safely at home with an insurance run in their 4-0 victory.
Both offenses were in hibernation for the majority of the night. Right-handers Max Meyer and Michael McGreevy exchanged zeroes through six innings, neither allowing so much as an extra-base hit. The farthest batted ball of the game to that point? Pauley’s 381-foot flyout to the right-center field warning track.
On the heels of an off day, the effective Marlins bullpen was fully rested, but with Meyer’s pitch count at just 66, sending him back out there for the bottom of the seventh was the obvious call.
Meyer rewarded his club’s trust in him, albeit with plenty of help required. The right-hander’s control was detriorating, resulting in a hit-by-pitch and two walks, loading the bases with only one out. His battery mate, Joe Mack, secured a crucial strike against Masyn Winn in a 2-0 count using the ABS challenge system, and Winn would eventually hit into a force out at home. Then, Nathan Church made two ill-advised swing decisions on Meyer’s misses outside the strike zone. He lined out to left for the final out of the frame.
Meyer lowered his season ERA to 2.60 and remains without a losing decision through 17 starts.
In the blink of an eye, the Marlins had a golden opportunity to take a lead in the top of the eighth when Esteury Ruiz led off with a single and stolen base. Pauley capitalized, catching up to George Soriano‘s 97 mph fastball and finding a gap in the infield near the first base line.
Down 1-0 with one out, the Cardinals aggressively tried turning a double play on Kyle Stowers’ grounder to the right side. Alec Burleson stepped on the first base bag, meaning that a tag was required on Pauley, who was charging home. The throw arrived in time and Pauley was initially called out, but upon further review, his left hand touched the plate before the tag was applied.
Slippin’ and slidin’ (he was safe) pic.twitter.com/wTNA3ZvS6M
— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) June 27, 2026
Jakob Marsee’s two-run single in the ninth provided the Fish with even more breathing room. Relieving Meyer, Michael Petersen and Calvin Faucher combined to complete the shutout.
Only a half-game separates these teams in the NL wild-card race. With Friday’s win, the Marlins have clinched at least a split of the season series.
They will be back in action at Busch Stadium on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. ET. Ryan Gusto is Miami’s scheduled starter.