Why Marlins manager Clayton McCullough compared team’s 12-game losing streak to ‘The Odyssey’

The Marlins were one of the biggest surprises in baseball, until they weren't.

Miami went from 10 games under .500 and in playoff position to under .500 in an instant, losing 12 consecutive games after a dominant June. For manager Clayton McCullough, the journey was a reflection of one taken by Matt Damon.

McCullough compared his experience during the team's losing streak to that of Odysseus in "The Odyssey," taking a lighthearted approach before the Marlins snapped the skid with a comeback win over the Phillies on Monday.

Here's a look at why McCullough compared the Marlins' losing streak to "The Odyssey."

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Clayton McCollough compares Marlins' losing streak to ‘The Odyssey’

McCullough told reporters he recently saw "The Odyssey" in theaters on an off day and found that Odysseus' journey mirrors his own in some ways.

"I feel a bit like Odysseus," McCullough said. "Like I'm away from home for 10 years. At some point, I'm going to return home. I don't know what baseball god I infuriated, but it's where we're at, so today is an opportunity."

"Home," in this case, is the win column, and it's where McCullough and the Marlins returned on Monday when they overcame a ninth-inning deficit to walk-off the Phillies. 

Christopher Nolan might disagree that what the Marlins have been through directly mirrors what Odysseus endured during an arduous decade-long journey. Then again, McCullough had to watch his team lose 11 of those 12 games by three runs or fewer, six of which they led at some point. Odysseus couldn't say the same.

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Marlins losing streak

The Marlins were the talk of baseball after a terrific month of June, at one point reaching 10 games over .500 and moving into postseason position, but the wheels have fallen off in July.

Miami was swept by the Guardians going into the All-Star break and couldn't get out of that rut in the three series that followed, suffering sweeps at the hands of the Brewers, Astros and Padres. Most games were close — the Marlins only lost by more than three runs only once in that span, but their bullpen struggled to hold leads and their offense grinded to a halt.

After seeing an early 5-2 lead slip away against the Phillies, it looked like the streak would be extended to 13. The Marlins instead rallied to load the bases with no outs and won after RBI singles by Heriberto Hernandez and Griffin Conine.

GRIFFIN CONINE. BALLGAME. pic.twitter.com/tHJCmfZILU

Just like that, McCullough's long odyssey is over. The Marlins have plans to add on.

"As far as what this does, pressure's off," Conine said after his walk-off hit. "Now, we're on a winning streak. Now, we want more of it. So it's like forget the last two weeks and move on. I think we can learn from it, and I think that we will."

McCullough told reporters everyone in the clubhouse is "feeling much different" than they did before the game and said winning the series is the team's next goal.

Because the Diamondbacks lost Monday, the Marlins only find themselves two games out of a wild-card spot in the National League and could try to make another push after a report that they don't plan to trade any of their core pieces at the deadline.