Marlins fall to Cardinals in 9th straight loss to open season - ESPN

ST. LOUIS — The winless Miami Marlins, who are off to the worst start in the franchise's 33-year history, dropped their ninth consecutive game on Saturday, losing 3-1 to Steven Matz and the St. Louis Cardinals.

Iván Herrera and Brendan Donovan each had two hits for St. Louis. Jordan Walker contributed an RBI double.

Matz (2-0) surrendered four hits in five scoreless innings. Ryan Helsley pitched the ninth for his third save.

«I thought my fastball was working really well,» said Matz, who threw 85 pitches. «I'd definitely like to go deeper into the game. Bullpen did a great job. It was a good win.»

The Cardinals turned two double plays. Through nine games, St. Louis has not committed an error.

«Guys are continuing to play really good defense,» manager Oliver Marmol said. «Details matter. They're making it important.»

Miami's Trevor Rogers (0-1) was charged with three runs, two earned, and five hits in five innings. He struck out three and walked three.

«They're finding holes and they're finding grass.… My stuff feels good. It just didn't go my way,» Rogers said.

The 0-9 Marlins are the only winless team in baseball. The New York Mets, who dropped their first seven games, beat the Detroit Tigers 2-1 on Thursday for their first win.

Baltimore holds the big league record with 21 losses to start the 1988 season.

«It always starts with starting pitching,» Miami manager Skip Schumaker said. «No one ever has lost from a shutout before but that's asking a lot. I think collectively all together, we have to figure it out. I'm not telling people to do more than they can do. I don't need one guy to carry the team. We've talked. We don't need any more talking.»

Miami has lost 10 consecutive games dating to last season. It has dropped