MIAMI — April Fools’ Day. Sandy Alcantara wasn’t joking.
The Miami Marlins ace threw the first complete game shutout of the 2026 MLB season Wednesday afternoon — nine innings, three hits, zero runs, 93 pitches. That last number matters: a complete game shutout in fewer than 100 pitches — known in baseball as a Maddux. In an era of pitch counts and quick hooks, it’s one of the rarest feats a starting pitcher can still achieve. It was the second of Alcantara’s career, and the 13th complete game of his life. Miami won 10–0.
“First I want to say thanks to God for keeping me in this game,” Alcantara said afterward. “All my family is here. Today was a great day for me.”
Miami is 5–1 — their best start since 2020. The homestand is over. The Marlins go on the road having established something real.
Seven strikeouts, pitch by pitch
Alcantara had a difficult 2025 — a 5.36 ERA, too many home runs, too many walks. The questions heading into 2026 were legitimate. Through two starts, he has answered every one of them. His scoreless streak now stands at 16 innings. Here’s how the seven strikeouts came:
K1 — Andrew Benintendi, 1st inning: Eight pitches. Fastball, two changeups, cutter, two more changeups, sinker, and finally an 85.6 mph slider Benintendi chased. Patient work to open the game.
K2 — Everson Pereira, 2nd inning: Four pitches. Sinker foul, slider foul, fastball foul, then an 84.3 mph slider to finish. Short and decisive.
K3 — Munetaka Murakami, 3rd inning: Six pitches, three changeups mixed with sliders. Murakami worked a full count before an 85.6 mph slider ended it. The Japanese slugger never found a pitch he could handle.
K4 — Everson Pereira, 5th inning: Four pitches. Sinker, changeup, sweeper, then a 97.1 mph four-seamer Pereira swung through. Pure velocity to close the inning.
K5 — Munetaka Murakami, 6th inning: Four sliders — 83 to 85 mph — then a 92.5 mph sinker to finish. Alcantara had Murakami’s number all afternoon.
K6 — Colson Montgomery, 7th inning: Changeup foul, slider swinging strike, changeup ball, then a 97.8 mph four-seamer called strike three. Alcantara reached back for his best fastball of the game.
K7 — Andrew Benintendi, 9th inning: Three pitches. Changeup, changeup, changeup. All swings and misses. Alcantara ended the shutout the way he’d pitched all afternoon — on his terms, with command.
Two starts. Two wins. 16 innings. Zero earned runs.
Hicks is historically good right now
Liam Hicks drove in four more Wednesday. He now has 12 RBI through six games — the most in Major League Baseball by a significant margin. The Rule 5 pickup from Detroit is the most productive run producer in the sport through the first week.
Miami Marlins’ Liam Hicks, center, signals to Connor Norby as they both come home on a single by Owen Caissie during the first inning of a baseball game, Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox, April 1, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Here’s what his four plate appearances looked like:
1st inning — RBI single: First pitch from Shane Smith, 68.8 mph off the bat, line drive to center. Marsee scored. Simple, immediate, and on pitch one.
2nd inning — Two-run homer: Smith threw three straight sinkers and fastballs for balls, then a slider for a called strike. On the next pitch — another 89.7 mph slider — Hicks drove it 347 feet to right at 98.8 mph. His third homer of the season. The umpires reviewed it and upheld the call.
4th inning — Hit by pitch: Lucas Sims ran two fastballs inside, then caught Hicks with an 83.3 mph sweeper. Hicks took his base.
6th inning — RBI single: Worked a 1-2 count against Chris Murphy — swinging strike on a slider, sweeper for a ball, fastball foul — then put a 79.9 mph curveball into right field at 92.6 mph for his fourth RBI of the day.
When asked about Hicks, Alcantara said it simply: “Everybody did a great job. I believe in every lineup we put out there.”
Alcantara Dominates as Marlins Beat Rockies 2–1 on Opening Day in Miami
The first inning built everything
Jakob Marsee walked to open the first. Xavier Edwards reached. Otto Lopez hit a fielder’s choice and Smith threw the ball away, putting Marsee ninety feet from home with one out. Hicks singled to score him. Norby doubled to score Lopez. Caissie singled to score two more. Four runs before Chicago recorded an out that mattered, and Alcantara had all the runway he needed.
Javier Sanoja‘s two-RBI single in the third extended it to 8–0. Otto Lopez tripled in the sixth and homered in the eighth — a 392-foot shot at 102.8 mph — finishing with seven total bases on the afternoon. Graham Pauley doubled twice.
Shane Smith lasted three innings, allowing eight runs and seven hits. In his first two starts, he has now given up 12 runs across 4⅔ innings. The White Sox have a rotation problem.
Miami Marlins third baseman Javier Sanoja, right, hugs starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara after he pitched a complete game shut out against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
5–1, best start since 2020
Six games. Five wins. The Marlins finish the homestand having swept the Rockies on Opening Day, built on it with Eury Pérez’s eight-strikeout performance in Game 2, and finished it with Owen Caissie’s walk-off homer to complete the sweep. Against Chicago, they absorbed a 9–4 loss when Miguel Vargas took over loanDepot park, then answered back-to-back with a 9–2 rout Tuesday and Alcantara’s Maddux to close it Wednesday.
The rotation has Alcantara at 0.00 ERA. The bullpen has been reliable. Hicks leads the majors in RBI. Caissie and Lopez have shown up in big moments. This looks like a real team.
Eury Pérez starts the opener of a three-game road series at the New York Yankees. The first road test starts now.
Photo: Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara reacts after throwing a complete game shutout against the Chicago White Sox at loanDepot park, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) | Graphic: World Baseball Network
