MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (Interstat) — For eight innings on Sunday evening, the Colorado Rockies clung to a lead built in the game’s opening moments. For eight innings, the Miami Marlins patiently chipped away, waiting for their moment. That moment arrived with one devastating swing in the bottom of the ninth, as pinch-hitter Owen Caissie launched a two-run, walk-off homer to propel the Marlins to a dramatic 4-3 victory over the Rockies at loanDepot Park.

The win completed a three-game season-opening sweep for Miami, which improved to 3-0, while Colorado’s frustrating start deepened to 0-3. All three losses came by a single run, with the Marlins securing each victory in their final at-bat.

The game’s decisive sequence unfolded after Colorado’s Victor Vodnik, who entered in the eighth, retired the first batter in the ninth. Javier Sanoja then sparked the rally with a double to center field. That brought Caissie to the plate as a pinch-hitter. On a 1-1 offering from Vodnik, Caissie connected, driving the ball to right-center field for his first home run of the season, instantly transforming a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 celebration for the announced crowd of 17,355.

The stunning finish overshadowed a game that had been defined by early offense and subsequent stalemate. The Rockies ambushed Miami starter Max Meyer in the first inning, loading the bases with two outs on a single by Hunter Goodman and walks to Willi Castro and TJ Rumfield. Jordan Beck cleared them all, lacing a three-run double down the left-field line. Beck advanced to third on a throwing error by shortstop Otto Lopez, but was stranded, setting a pattern of missed opportunities that would haunt Colorado.

Meyer settled after the rocky first, ultimately working five innings and allowing three runs on five hits while striking out five. The Marlins immediately answered in their half of the first against Colorado starter Jose Quintana. After two quick outs, Jakob Marsee walked and scored on Lopez’s RBI double to right, cutting the lead to 3-1.

They drew closer in the second. Xavier Edwards singled, advanced to third on a Deyvison De Los Santos double, and scored on Austin Slater’s sacrifice fly to make it 3-2. That score would hold for the next seven innings, as both bullpens took control.

Quintana lasted 4 1/3 innings for Colorado, yielding two runs on four hits. He was relieved by Antonio Senzatela, who delivered 2 2/3 scoreless innings of one-hit ball, striking out three. Jimmy Herget added a critical 0 2/3 innings with two strikeouts to escape a bases-loaded jam in the eighth.

For Miami, the relief corps was flawless. Tyler Phillips provided two hitless frames, John King pitched a perfect eighth, and Michael Petersen earned the win with a dominant ninth, striking out two in a 1-2-3 inning. The Marlins’ quartet of relievers combined for four perfect innings, retiring the final 12 Rockies batters in order.

Colorado’s offense, after Beck’s first-inning double, mustered only four more hits and repeatedly failed to capitalize. They put a runner in scoring position in the third, fourth, and seventh innings but could not add an insurance run. The team finished 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base.

The Marlins, meanwhile, were kept quiet from the third through the eighth innings, stranding several runners of their own, including leaving the bases loaded in the eighth. Their persistence paid off in the ninth against Vodnik, who was charged with the loss.

Petersen moved to 1-0 with the win. Vodnik fell to 0-1.

The victory continued Miami’s perfect start under improbable circumstances, having now won three straight one-run games. The Rockies, conversely, head to Toronto for a three-game series beginning Monday searching for their first win after another crushing defeat. The Marlins will open a three-game set at home against the Chicago White Sox on Monday.

According to pregame projections, Interstat’s game simulator had predicted a 7-0 Miami victory, while its ELO system gave the Marlins a 71.6% probability to win. Miami was a 1.5-run favorite, and the total of seven runs went under the over/under line of 7.5.