Marlins complete first triple play in decades, can’t beat Astros as losing skid continues

The Miami Marlins turned a rare triple play on Tuesday night at Daikin Park. It just wasn’t enough to help them beat the Astros.

In the eighth inning of the contest in Houston, the Marlins managed to pull off a perfect, easy triple play off a ground ball to third from Jose Altuve. That saved Miami from letting the game get out of hand fast, too, after Yordan Álvarez and Isaac Paredes each hit a single before Altuve reached the plate.

Leo ➡️ X ➡️ Kyle 😮‍💨

A perfectly executed triple play 👀 pic.twitter.com/XKYVTOAu36

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— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) July 22, 2026

But with only one inning left, the Marlins’ defensive stand simply came too late. Javier Sanoja hit a ground rule double to open the ninth inning before the Astros picked up three quick outs to grab the 5-3 win. The triple play didn’t make a difference.

The Astros jumped out in front early after Jeremy Peña opened the game with a leadoff home run. Lucas Spence hit an RBI double in the second inning to push their lead, and then they added three more in the fifth off of a home run from Paredes. Houston now sits in third in the AL West race with a 49-54 record after the win.

The fielding triple play was just the second in Marlins history. The first one, according to MLB’s Sarah Langs, came back in 2002. It was also the first triple play that the Astros gave up since 2019, via The Athletic’s Chandler Rome.

The loss dropped the Marlins to 52-50 on the season. They’ve lost eight straight dating back before the All-Star break, and they’ve been swept in back-to-back series before arriving in Houston. They’ll wrap up the three-game series with the Astros on Wednesday night.