Through 19 games, the Marlins are historically bad

With a 10-6 loss to the Reds this afternoon, the Miami Marlins dropped to 4-15 on the season. Not that it is a shock to anyone, but they are by far the worst-hitting team in baseball: their .242 weighted on-base average (wOBA) is well below the second-worst Mariners’ .279. The starting pitching has been decent, but the five-to-seven innings of good starting pitching is quickly undone by the bottom-feeding bullpen which includes such luminaries as John Maine and Chad Qualls.

The Marlins’ start through 19 games is historically bad. They have never won fewer than five games in their first 19 in franchise history — they started 5-14 in 1995, 1998, and 1999.

The Marlins, with 43 runs scored through 19, become the 19th team in baseball history to host such an anemic offense and only the fourth to do it in the 2000’s. The full list:

Team	Date	Wins	WP	RS	RA	RunDiff
CLV	5/27/1884	6	.316	42	108	-66
IND	5/30/1884	2	.111	42	133	-91
BSN	5/6/1905	6	.333	39	101	-62
STL	5/5/1907	3	.158	41	88	-47
BRO	5/11/1907	2	.111	21	70	-49
STL	5/10/1908	5	.263	41	57	-16
WSH	5/12/1909	6	.316	34	78	-44
NYG	5/12/1909	8	.421	41	54	-13
SLB	5/12/1910	4	.222	43	78	-35
STL	5/19/1919	5	.263	40	81	-41
CHW	5/16/1943	8	.421	40	51	-11
KCA	5/7/1966	5	.263	36	83	-47
CHW	5/5/1968	5	.263	40	65	-25
MIL	5/13/1972	6	.316	38	65	-27
BAL	4/26/1988	0	.000	36	118	-82
DET	4/23/2003	2	.105	43	100	-57
MON	4/25/2004	5	.263	34	72	-38
PIT	4/27/2012	8	.421	42	57	-15
MIA	4/21/2013	4	.211	43	89	-46

And with a -46 run differential, the Marlins become the 15th team since 1975 to start the season off so poorly and the eighth of the 2000’s. The list:

Team	Date	Wins	WP	RS	RA	RD
BAL	4/26/1988	0	.000	36	118	-82
ATL	4/30/1988	3	.158	50	104	-54
MIN	4/24/1994	6	.316	91	147	-56
BOS	4/22/1996	4	.211	72	119	-47
CIN	4/22/1997	6	.316	69	116	-47
DET	4/24/1998	4	.211	65	127	-62
DET	4/25/2000	5	.263	70	126	-56
TBD	4/22/2001	5	.263	66	121	-55
DET	4/23/2002	4	.211	76	125	-49
CIN	4/20/2003	6	.316	90	144	-54
TEX	4/20/2003	8	.421	77	125	-48
DET	4/23/2003	2	.105	43	100	-57
PIT	4/26/2010	7	.368	65	147	-82
MIA	4/21/2013	4	.211	43	89	-46

If the team gets any worse, Jeffrey Loria will have to find another fan or two to alienate.

The Astros have acquired shortstop Aledmys Díaz from the Blue Jays in exchange for minor league right-hander Trent Thornton, the teams announced Saturday.

Díaz, 28, was originally acquired by the Blue Jays last winter in a swap for minor leaguer J.B. Woodman. He spent the entirety of his 2018 campaign in Toronto, where he slashed .263/.303/.453 with a .756 OPS and career-best 18 home runs through 452 plate appearances. While Díaz spent the bulk of his year filling in for an injured Troy Tulowitzki at short, he has experience at second and third base and may prove useful to the Astros as an extra outfield option, too.

Per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Díaz will serve as protection if the Astros lose shortstop/utility player Marwin González to free agency this winter. González did not receive a qualifying offer from the club this month and has reportedly drawn interest from 29 of 30 clubs in the league.

Thornton, 25, was selected by the Astros during the fifth round of the 2015 draft. The right-hander was promoted to Triple-A Fresno in 2017 and has been up-and-down since then, though 2018 saw some modest improvements across the board as he turned in a 9-8 record through 22 starts with a 4.42 ERA, 2.2 BB/9 and 8.8 SO/9 through 124 1/3 innings. He was one of several minor league players the Astros would have needed to protect in advance of the Rule 5 Draft on Tuesday.