Marlins' Dane Myers Carted Off Field With Knee Laceration; Season Ending Injury Complicates Playoff Push

Miami — Dane Myers, the Marlins' starting right fielder, was carted off the field after colliding with the right-field wall while pursuing a Max Kepler double in the second inning of Miami's 6-5 win over Philadelphia in 11 innings. The club later announced Myers had a knee laceration and will be placed on the injured list, ending his season with five games left in the regular season.

Manager Clayton McCullough described the injury as serious, noting that Myers routinely goes all out to make plays. The collision occurred as Myers leaped near the wall to chase the ball, lost his balance and collapsed on the warning track before being removed on the cart. The Marlins went on to win the game in extras, preserving a modest spark in their late-season push for a playoff berth.

Myers finished the season with a .235 batting average, six home runs and 31 RBIs in an injury-plagued year. He had previously missed time with an oblique strain, and he fractured his left ankle last season after an off-field incident involving a kicked door. The Marlins now face a five-game finishing sprint, four games behind the Mets for the final wild-card spot, with a two-game set against the Phillies and then a three-game series with the Mets at home.

Miami carried a 77-80 record into the end of September, riding an 11-4 run in the month that kept their faint postseason hopes alive. The club remains four games behind New York for the last wild-card spot, but the path requires winning out and hoping for help elsewhere as the regular season winds down.

The Marlins are scheduled to wrap the Phillies series on Thursday before welcoming the Mets for a three-game set that could decide whether they extend their season. Sandy Alcantara is slated to start Friday against New York, a key matchup as Miami tries to swipe one of the final playoff berths.