There have been no easy decisions for Don Mattingly so far this season. He’s had to balance the objectives of developing young Marlins players while taking advantage of the unpredictability of a shortened regular season and expanded playoff field. In the middle of all of that, a COVID-19 outbreak within the club’s traveling party has sidelined more than half of the Opening Day active roster, including several of his productive individuals and veteran leaders.
Impressively, the Marlins managed to win seven of 10 games against the Phillies, Orioles and Mets (all series played at road ballparks), marking the best start to a season for the franchise since 2009.