What does Miami's draw in D.C. mean for its League Cup, Supporters Shield chances?

Heavily rotated Inter Miami squad manages a draw at D.C. United

Inter Miami could lift as many as three trophies in 2025, but with a congested match schedule, coach Javier Mascherano must carefully prioritize his players' minutes for the next "most-important-match."

That wasn't Saturday's Major League Soccer clash against Eastern Conference cellar-dweller D.C. United; instead, Los Garzas have their sights set squarely on their Leagues Cup semifinal Wednesday against in-state rival Orlando City SC. A Herons' win would pit them against the L.A. Galaxy-Seattle Sounders winner for the Leagues Cup championship, guarantee a 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup berth, AND avenge two regular-season losses to Orlando.

With all that riding on the midweek cup match, Mascherano chose to field the equivalent of a Herons' junior varsity 11 against D.C. United. Lionel Messi, Jordi Alba and Oscar Ustari skipped the trip to Washington and Sergio Busquets, Luis Suarez and Rodrigo DePaul started on the bench. Rocco Rios Novo replaced Ustari in goal, Noah Allen played left back in Alba's absence, and Tadeo Allende moved into the lone striker role usually filled by Suarez. Fafa Picault and Benjamin Cremaschi played on either side of Telasco Segovia in the attacking midfield, Tomas Aviles -- a center back -- and David Ruiz -- who hadn't played since March because of a hamstring injury -- played in the defensive midfield, and Gonzalo Lujan and Ryan Sailor -- who had just five minutes in three appearances this year -- played center back. Chelo Weigandt was the right back.

Mascherano said the United match provided an opportunity to give his lesser-used players experience while resting his regulars

“We have played 41 games, more than any other team, our players needed some rest, we have an important game Wednesday ... so we decided this game was an opportunity to give minutes to players who have not played much this season because we will need them later,” Mascherano said.

The squad's performance was, predictably, inconsistent, but second-half reinforcements helped Miami salvage a 1-1 draw. Substitute Baltasar Rodriguez smashed the equalizer into the back of the net with a fantastic volley from an out-swinging DePaul corner kick that missed everyone and bounced on the 18-yard line before Rodriguez booted it from about 20 yards.

Inter Miami (13-5-7, 46 points) won the Supporters Shield, presented to the MLS team with the best regular season record, with a league-record 74 points in 2024. The Herons, with nine regular season matches remaining, could reach 73 points if they win out. Six of the seven teams ahead of Los Garzas in this year's race have just six matches left, and the seventh, Vancouver, has seven to play.

Only eight points separate Miami and the Philadelphia Union (16-6-6, 54 points), which sits atop the Eastern Conference and Supporters Shield tables. The Herons are just a point behind fourth-place Charlotte FC (15-11-2, 47 points) and fifth-place Orlando (13-7-8, 47 points). The Pink lead Columbus (45 points), New York City FC (44), New York Red Bulls (39), and Chicago Fire (39) in the playoff chase. The first seven finishers in each conference automatically qualify for the MLS Cup playoffs, with the top four guaranteed to host at least one match. The eighth- and ninth-place finishers will play for the final spot in their conference bracket.

So, what does Saturday's draw mean for Miami's trophy hopes? Well, that depends entirely on what happens Wednesday against Orlando City, but I have to think it helped to give Messi, Alba and Ustari a game off to recharge and recuperate and the other regulars a lighter workload. Dropping two points to an eminently beatable team (D.C. United played without its best player, defending Golden Boot winner Christian Benteke, who was sidelined due to yellow card accumulation) might haunt the Herons. On the other hand, winning the Supporters' Shield is a long shot, and not Miami's top priority. And, at 46 points with three games in hand over most MLS teams because of its participation in the Champions Cup and Club World Cup tournaments, Inter Miami is in excellent position to secure a top four spot and home-field advantage in at least the first round of the MLS Cup playoffs.

Inter Miami will host Orlando City at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale. The Lions beat the Herons 3-0 there in May and 4-1 in Orlando on Aug. 10. If a rested Rosanegra dispatch the Purple, the Pink & Black Peanut Gallery won't remember the draw in Washington.