Miami Marlins starter Eury Perez pitched seven innings of perfect ball before being lifted by Marlins manager Clayton McCullough against the Sacramento A’s at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento on Sun Jul 5, 2026 (AP News photo)

The Sacramento Athletics spent most of the afternoon digging out of a perfect crater, nearly completing one of the season’s wildest comebacks, but still came up a run short in a heartbreaking 9-8 loss to the Miami Marlins.

A six-run deficit became an eight-run hole before the Green and Gold finally found life in the final two innings, but Miami held on to finish the sweep and hand Sacramento another frustrating defeat. The loss also continued a difficult stretch for an Athletics club that entered the day having dropped six of its previous seven games.

Miami wasted no time spoiling the day for rookie left-hander Gage Jump, who had been one of baseball’s hottest young pitchers since his promotion. Heriberto Hernández put the Marlins on the board in the first inning with a towering solo home run to center, and the visitors never let up. In the second, Otto Lopez lined a ground-rule RBI double into left-center before Liam Hicks lifted a sacrifice fly to center, stretching the lead to 3-0.

The third inning proved even more damaging. After Esteury Ruiz reached on an overturned challenge and promptly stole second, Leo Jiménez launched a two-run homer into the left-center-field seats. Later in the inning, Brian Navarreto ripped a ground-rule double before Lopez added another run with a sacrifice fly.

By the time the dust settled, Miami owned a commanding 6-0 advantage while Jump’s afternoon had come to an end after three innings. It was an unusual outing for the rookie, who entered with a 2.93 ERA after putting together one of the American League’s best rookie pitching months in June.

Sacramento’s offense had no answer for Eury Pérez. The hard-throwing right-hander carved through the lineup for seven perfect innings, as his fastball and breaking pitches kept hitters off balance throughout his dominant performance.

Miami kept adding insurance in the sixth when Lopez connected for a solo home run before Hernández struck again moments later with his second blast of the afternoon. Hernández finished with two home runs, a double, three RBIs and three runs scored, while Lopez reached base four times, homered, doubled, drove in three runs and scored three more. Jiménez also supplied a two-run homer as the Marlins built what appeared to be an insurmountable 8-0 cushion.

Much to the dismay of even Athletics fans, Pérez was pulled after seven innings denying him a chance to pursue a full perfect game. The decision was partly due to his recent return from injury and the fact that he had already thrown 92 pitches.

Still, the crowd of more than 8,000 was disappointed to lose the chance to witness a potentially historic performance, and fans made their frustration known to the Marlins throughout the rest of the game. However, Pérez’s exit finally opened the door for the A’s to stage their comeback.

It began in the eighth after Lawrence Butler drew a walk and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer followed with a single. Carlos Cortes ripped an RBI double into right field to get Sacramento on the scoreboard before Jonah Heim delivered the biggest swing of the afternoon. Facing reliever Lake Bachar, Heim crushed a grand slam to right field, instantly cutting the deficit to 8-5 and injecting life into both the dugout and the crowd.

Miami answered with an important insurance run in the ninth when Hicks grounded softly back to the mound, allowing Lopez to score from third and restore a four-run advantage.

Even that wasn’t enough to put the game away.

The Athletics loaded up one final rally against Pete Fairbanks. Zack Gelof opened the inning with a single before Butler doubled to put runners on second and third. A passed ball allowed Gelof to score, trimming the deficit to 9-6. Max Muncy later worked a walk, and Heim once again delivered in the clutch, lining a two-run single to center that brought Butler and Muncy home. Suddenly, Sacramento was within one run with the tying run aboard.

Miami finally escaped when Brian Serven grounded out to second base, ending an afternoon that nearly turned into one of the club’s most dramatic rallies of the season.

While the final score favored the Marlins, the Athletics did uncover a few bright spots. Heim finished with six RBIs thanks to his grand slam and two-run single, Cortes continued to swing a hot bat with a pair of doubles in as many games, and Kuroda-Grauer added another hit as he continues to impress early in his Major League career.

Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers also entered the day carrying the momentum of their first American League All-Star selections, another encouraging sign for a young core that continues to provide hope despite the club’s recent struggles.

The Athletics now head out on the road searching for a reset after dropping the series to Miami and ending a difficult homestand.

Next up, Sacramento opens a three-game series in Detroit on Tuesday, where Tarik Skubal (4-4, 3.15 ERA, 57 strikeouts) is scheduled to start for the Tigers, while the Athletics had not yet announced a probable starter as of Sunday afternoon. First pitch from Comerica Park is scheduled for 3:40 p.m. Pacific.

Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.

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