After stumbling through the last part of April, the Miami Marlins have sprung into spring during the month of May. The team is riding a five-game winning streak that started on the first of the month. On Sunday afternoon, the Marlins will try for a sweep of the Padres and their sixth consecutive win.
A red hot Ricky Nolasco gets the call for Miami. Nolasco is 3-0 with a 2.76 ERA in five starts this season. More impressive is that the right-hander has walked just eight batters in almost 33 innings of work, while striking out 18. Working in Nolasco's favor this season is a dramatic jump in his ground ball rate, 51.9 percent, almost seven points higher than his previous best.
Joe Wieland is on the hill for the Padres. The right-handed Wieland has lost his last four starts.
The game is schedule for a 4:00 p.m. Eastern start. It can be seen on Fox Sports Florida, and local fans can listen to it on MAJIC 102.7 or WAQI 710.
We'll have plenty more on this series throughout the weekend on SB Nation Tampa Bay, so keep it locked to this StoryStream for all of the latest news and updates. As always, please head over to Fish Stripes for more on this series and all things Miami Marlins baseball. For some perspective from the other dugout, you can check out Gaslamp Baseball, SB Nation's San Diego Padres blog. For more on this and every other MLB series please check out theSB Nation Major League Baseball hub page.