It's Time for the Marlins to Move On from Clayton McCullough

The Miami Marlins missed the Wild Card last season by just four games. Fast forward to this year, and they looked like a team ready to take the next step after putting together the best June in franchise history. Miami went 20-6, setting a franchise record for wins in that month while leading all of Major League Baseball in victories.

Everything was finally coming together.

Then July happened.

The Marlins followed their historic June with an infamous July, losing 12 consecutive games, another franchise record—but for all the wrong reasons.

In my opinion, much of the blame falls on manager Clayton McCullough.

Throughout his tenure, McCullough has consistently struggled with one of the most important responsibilities of a manager: handling his pitching staff. Time and time again, he has removed dominant pitchers too early while allowing struggling pitchers to stay in games far too long.

No example illustrates that better than Sandy Alcantara.

On April 7, 2026, Alcantara had thrown 8⅓ scoreless innings against the Cincinnati Reds and had the Marlins leading 2-0 entering the ninth. After allowing only a double and a walk, McCullough immediately walked to the mound and pulled his ace.

The decision proved costly.

The bullpen surrendered the lead, and the Marlins eventually lost 6-3 in extra innings.

What made the decision even more frustrating was the context. Alcantara had thrown a shutout in his previous start and was on pace to potentially record back-to-back complete-game shutouts, something no major league pitcher had accomplished in over a decade. As McCullough approached the mound, Marlins fans showered him with boos because they knew exactly what was coming.

Even Alcantara expressed his frustration afterward, saying he believed he deserved a say before being taken out of the game.

The moment immediately reminded me of another ninth-inning situation involving Alcantara—this one in June 2022 under former Marlins manager Don Mattingly.

That day, Alcantara was one out away from another complete game when he allowed a walk and a single, putting the tying runs on base. Mattingly came to the mound intending to remove him.

But Alcantara wasn't ready to come out.

After a brief conversation, Mattingly trusted his ace and returned to the dugout. Two pitches later, the Marlins turned a game-ending double play to seal the victory.

That's the difference.

Mattingly trusted his best pitcher.

McCullough never gave Alcantara that opportunity.

If he had simply listened to his ace—or trusted a former Cy Young winner's ability to finish what he started—the outcome may have been very different.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the end of McCullough's questionable pitching decisions.

In Alcantara's very next start against the Detroit Tigers, the complete opposite happened.

This time, Alcantara clearly didn't have his best stuff, yet McCullough left him in the game as Detroit continued to pile on runs. Alcantara finished with seven earned runs over six innings.

It felt like he did it out of spite.

After receiving heavy criticism for pulling Alcantara too early against Cincinnati, McCullough seemed determined to keep him in—even when the situation called for his removal from the game. Instead of managing each game independently, he appeared to manage based on the previous game's backlash, and the Marlins paid the price.

Alcantara isn't the only pitcher whose historic opportunity McCullough cut short.

On July 5, 2026, Eury Pérez carried a perfect game through seven innings against the Athletics. He had thrown only 92 pitches, but because he had recently returned from being out a month with an inner-thigh strain, McCullough decided to remove him.

Yes, protecting a young pitcher coming off an injury is understandable.

But perfect games don't come around often.

For most pitchers, they never come at all.

McCullough inserted Lake Bachar, who immediately walked the first batter to end the perfect game before allowing a hit to erase the no-hitter as well. Things quickly spiraled out of control. Bachar surrendered five runs, including a grand slam, while recording zero outs before finally being removed.

Fortunately, Miami had built an 8-0 lead beforehand and escaped with a 9-8 victory, but what should have been one of the greatest moments in franchise history turned into a nerve-racking finish.

Could Pérez have completed the perfect game?

No one knows.

But he deserved the chance to try.

Even Pérez admitted afterward that he was disappointed to leave the game, despite understanding the organization's desire to be cautious with his health.

The decision was so unpopular that even Athletics fans began chanting "Shame!"

Unfortunately, the questionable decisions haven't stopped there.

McCullough continues to rely on Bachar in high-leverage situations despite repeated struggles. In one of his most recent appearances against the San Diego Padres on July 26, 2026, Bachar surrendered four runs in one inning, including two home runs.

At some point, these decisions stop looking like isolated mistakes and start looking like a pattern.

What's even more concerning is that these aren't new issues.

McCullough made many of the same pitching-management mistakes last season. This isn't a rough stretch or a learning curve anymore—it's becoming part of his managerial identity.

Ironically, his predecessor, Skip Schumaker, often faced criticism for the opposite reason. Schumaker had a tendency to leave struggling pitchers in too long, waiting until the damage was already done before making a move.

McCullough has somehow managed to repeat many of those same mistakes while creating new ones of his own.

The Marlins are still just three games out of a Wild Card spot, despite this disastrous losing streak.

The season isn't over.

But if the organization truly believes this team is capable of making the postseason, it can't afford to keep giving away games because of poor in-game decisions.

That's why I believe it's time for Marlins owner Bruce Sherman to make a decision.

Relieve Clayton McCullough of his managerial duties while there's still time to salvage the season.

The Marlins have shown they're talented enough to compete.

Now they need a manager who gives them the best chance to win.