There is no doubt that Kyle Stowers was the Miami Marlins’ most outstanding player last season, when he even received an invitation to the All-Star Game. That made his prolonged absence from the field twice, perhaps three times as painful for the fish at this start of the campaign.
Stowers, who went 2-for-3 in his return to the lineup for Clayton McCullough’s team on Sunday, had to wait 247 days to return to the field with his teammates in an official Major League game.
His return had an immediate impact on the Marlins, who on that Sunday put an end to a streak of four losses. It was not a coincidence and within the Miami clubhouse they know it very well.
“We need a spark right now,” said infielder Connor Norby, in statements reported by the club’s official website. “It feels like no rebound is coming our way. It’s frustrating. Long innings. It’s not good baseball. But with 20-odd games played, we still have a lot of time. There’s no panic. Obviously when you add Stowers’ bat it helps you a lot. He gives us that ability to hit a three-run home run, to hit a double when we need it. And from a clubhouse standpoint, he’s an incredible leader. I know I follow in his footsteps a lot and I lean on him a lot. To say we’re happy recovering it is obvious,” he added.
Before Stowers’ return on Sunday, the Marlins had lost seven of their last eight games and the team was averaging 3.5 runs per game.
Before suffering a season-ending oblique muscle injury last August, the outfielder had become one of the best hitters in the entire National League. In 117 games, he led his team with 25 home runs and recorded the second-most RBIs (73).
On April 10, Stowers began a rehabilitation assignment in the minors, as part of his recovery process after a second injury he suffered in recent months: a strained right hamstring.
The former Baltimore Orioles player recorded 19 plate appearances with Triple A Jacksonville, with whom he played in left field, as a designated hitter and even made his debut at first base.
The Californian will reinforce the middle part of a Marlins lineup that entered Sunday’s task tied with the third fewest home runs hit in the entire MLB.
“For him to come back and get a couple of hits was huge,” McCullough said. “Great for him to come back contributing and get off on the right foot. The swings looked very aggressive. He looked balanced. It’s good to have Kyle back to deepen our lineup.”
