Mets turn to rookie Zac Thornton vs. Marlins

The uncertainty of the trade deadline is far different for the New York Mets than it is for the Miami Marlins.

The Mets will inch closer to completing a sell-off while the Marlins will look to continue their late climb into the wild-card race Saturday afternoon when the teams continue their four-game series in New York.

Rookie left-hander Zac Thornton (2-1, 2.43 ERA) is slated to start against Marlins right-hander Tyler Phillips (2-5, 3.52).

The Marlins evened the series on Friday after Janson Junk earned the win by tossing five solid innings and Kyle Stowers homered while collecting two hits in a 5-2 victory.

Kodai Senga took the loss after throwing four innings as a surprise starter for the Mets, who scratched Freddy Peralta because New York is involved in trade talks involving the pending free agent.

The Mets are in last place in the National League East and 10 1/2 games out of a wild-card spot despite having the second-highest payroll in the sport. They began their teardown following Thursday's 4-2 win, when they dealt left-handed reliever A.J. Minter to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for prospects Bruin Agbayani and Billy Amick.

Peralta, fellow starting pitcher Clay Holmes, relievers Brooks Raley and Luke Weaver and outfielder Luis Robert Jr. are all candidates to be dealt before Monday's 6 p.m. (ET) deadline. Holmes, who is nearing a return from a broken right leg, is in line to potentially start Sunday if he isn't traded or scratched.

"Everybody's trying to focus on winning," said shortstop Francisco Lindor, who homered on Friday. "It's only human nature to be paying attention to what's happening out there."

Miami manager Clayton McCullough acknowledged the Marlins likely are thinking about the deadline, even though their direction is still unknown.

The Marlins won for the fourth time in five games Friday to pull within 1 1/2 games of the Philadelphia Phillies in the race for the final wild-card berth. But Miami's current surge was preceded by a 12-game losing streak.

The Marlins' lineup Friday was comprised entirely of players 29 years old or younger, while four of their five pitchers to take the mound were 30 or older. That means Miami could be a candidate to thread the needle by both buying and selling.

"Whatever's going to happen in the next three or four days -- whether it's our clubhouse, the Mets or anywhere else in baseball -- there's very little that as a player you can control," McCullough said. "We have to focus on winning a game. That's where our focus is going to continue to be."

Thornton continued establishing himself as a candidate for next year's Mets rotation by earning the win in his most recent start Monday night, when he gave up three runs over 6 1/3 innings in New York's 14-3 romp over the Atlanta Braves. The 24-year-old southpaw has lasted at least six innings in each of his last four starts.

Phillips didn't factor into the decision Monday night, when he allowed two runs over five innings in the Marlins' 8-7 win over the Phillies.

Thornton has never opposed the Marlins. Phillips is 0-1 with a 1.76 ERA and two saves in seven games (two starts) against the Mets. Both starts occurred in a six-day span in late May of this season.

--Field Level Media