Lately, the Florida Marlins appear to be a team out of sync. They can’t seem to get the whole team firing on all cylinders on the same night. The current four game series with the St. Louis Cardinals serves as the perfect example of a trend that has been emerging over the best 3 weeks of the season.

When the offense is on, the pitching is off. When a starting pitcher does well, the bullpen seems to blow the game later on. Or even worse, a starting pitcher puts in a solid effort and the bats just can’t contribute.

Monday night for instance, Anibal Sanchez put in a quality start for the team going 7 innings and allowing 3 earned runs while striking out 8. Runs or no runs, he kept his team in the game, and in the end the other 8 guys just couldn’t come up with any runs. The Marlins blew 3 solid chances in a run one game to tie or take the lead. All of this against the worst starter in the Cardinals rotation, a starter with an ERA over 5.

And then Wednesday night. Ricky Nolasco gave another solid effort for the team, going 6 innings giving up only 2 runs. Nolasco left the game tied at 2, and then the bullpen proceeded to fold and allow 4 runs and the Marlins lost 6-4.

If one thing is in sync for the Marlins, it is their competition in the NL East. Monday evening all three contenders, the New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, and the Marlins lost. Last night, though the Mets won, the Marlins lost and the Phillies lost their third straight game. As a result, the Mets and Phillies are tied for first place and the Marlins are now 1 1/2 games out of first.

However, luck is fickle, it is sometimes there when you need it and almost never there when you want it. If the Marlins want to take the NL East for the first time ever and go deep into the playoffs, they are all going to need to get on the same page. The bullpen needs to be prepared every night in case the starters struggle, and the batters MUST start bringing guys home when they have runners in scoring position. If the problem isn’t fixed soon, the NL East will become a two horse race and the effort the Marlins have given all season will be wasted.