MIAMI – Over the past two challenging seasons, Nick Fortes has heard manager Skip Schumaker and field coordinator Rod Barajas reiterate “catch first, hit second.”
In Friday night’s 8-0 Marlins victory over the Mets at loanDepot park, Fortes saw both elements of his game soar to new heights as Miami won its third in a row and four of five.
Not only did Fortes reach base a career-high-tying four times, he also navigated his third straight shutout, marking the third time in franchise history and first since 2005 that the Marlins achieved that feat. Per Elias Sports Bureau, their scoreless-innings streak of 28 is the longest in the Majors this season.
“Definitely most proud of the shutouts,” said Fortes, who became the first backstop in club history to catch three shutouts in a row. “I think it’s a really cool accomplishment, and it’s the No. 1 priority of my job. I take a lot of pride in that, so that’s definitely the coolest part. But it was definitely nice to add the offense on top of that to help the team.”
