The Diamondbacks announced that Ketel Marte sustained a left hamstring strain in this evening’s win over the Nationals. The star second baseman pulled up lame as he ran out a first-inning double. He left the game immediately and was replaced by pinch-runner Garrett Hampson.
Manager Torey Lovullo suggested postgame that Marte was likely headed to the 10-day injured list (h/t to Megan Plain of Fox 10 Phoenix). The team will presumably have a better idea of how long he’ll be out as he goes through testing over the next couple days. Any absence is a significant blow on the heels of Marte’s first top-three MVP finish.
The two-time All-Star drilled 36 home runs with a .292/.372/.560 slash en route to a Silver Slugger award last season. Marte had been out to a strong start this year. Today’s double pushed him to 9-26 on the young season. He has drawn six walks while only striking out four times. The injury comes two days after Marte signed an extension that added four years and $64MM while deferring a decent chunk of salary to give the team more payroll flexibility in the short term.
Hampson is the only backup infielder on the active roster. He’s a light-hitting utility player who posted a .230/.275/.300 line over 113 games for the Royals last season. Blaze Alexander has been down since February because of an oblique strain. Grae Kessinger and Tim Tawa are on the 40-man roster if the D-Backs want to promote a backup infielder while drawing Hampson into the lineup at second base.
The higher-upside play would be to promote top prospect Jordan Lawlar, who hasn’t appeared in the majors since a late-season call in 2023. Lawlar missed most of last season to injury. There wasn’t a path to everyday playing time behind Marte, Geraldo Perdomo and Eugenio Suárez, so the D-Backs optioned him back to Triple-A Reno to begin the season. He’s hitting .273 without a home run through his first six games. Primarily a shortstop, Lawlar made his third start of the season at second base in Reno’s game tonight. He has also made one start at third base and three at shortstop.
I guess he signed his extension at the right time.
Funny comment, but this guy is one of those guys. I believe the term they use nowadays is “he’s a dog”. Nothing but bad timing, hey every injury is.
Maybe it’s a ‘hyper’ extension?
Nah, just a Ketel chip.
This gives Arizona a free audition for Jordan Lawlar. They’re most likely stress testing a contingency plan they’ll desperately need if Marte’s decline accelerates. If Lawlar proves viable, they’ve got a cheap, controllable replacement to offset the payroll albatross that is Marte.
“… if Marte’s decline accelerates.”
What decline are you referencing? He was 3rd in NL MVP voting last year.
He’s literally getting better
@GabrielMorenoSuperfan
Soft-tissue injury recurrence risk in MLB players over 30 likely rises 15-20% annually, consistent with age-related trends in professional sports.
My point isn’t present decline—it’s Arizona preempting a future drop-off, using Lawlar to stress-test a roster pivot while Marte’s $16MM/year deal looms.
@Angels & NL West
I’m not claiming current decline—his .292/.372/.560 season proves peak form. The “if” hinges on future risk: at 31, with a hamstring strain now (April 2025) and a prior IL stint in 2023, his injury history signals a statistical probability of physical erosion by 2026-29, when his $64MM extension peaks. Arizona’s Lawlar test isn’t about today’s Marte—it’s a hedge against that actuarial curve, securing a cost-controlled exit if his body falters mid-contract.
Well technically if he finishes 4th in NL MVP voting in 2025, it is still a decline.
Old York why do you always post such factually incorrect gibberish
@choof
What’s factually incorrect gibberish?
The contract is not an albatross for one….
@choof
Maybe extend upon your defense instead of one liners. But I get it. Most internet users have an attention span of a goldfish.
My friend, I’d love to give you more in depth responses but I simply don’t have the time to elaborate long (perhaps AI written) takes on a baseball website. I have a job and responsibilities to tend to
I’m guessing the severity of strain dictates the move. 4-6+ weeks and giving Lawlar an extended run makes plenty of sense, but a 2-3 week cautionary move keeps the kid in Reno.
Great player, has been hurt a lot unfortunately.
Why would you sign a 31yo to a 7yr extension when he has 4yrs of control left? A mistake.
Seems like more and more GMs are thinking through their coffees these days instead of their heads. Glad we have a righteous sober individual leading the way in Jeter for us.
At least he has all that money now
Seems like there are a lot more injuries these days then there were during the 1960-1990s period. I think excessive weight-lifting is the main culprit.
Players are just softer
In the ol days they played with broken limbs bc they had no choice. If you were hurt you could get cut or replaced . Then you’re back to bagging groceries at the local supermarket. These days players are spoiled, soft, weaklings. Players go on 10 day Dl with a broken fingernail for f sake. If they sneeze the wrong way they’re out 6-8 weeks
Is it being soft or being smart? Probably all trained medical professionals would suggest not doing high-intensity physical activity, like playing professional baseball, while recovering from a broken bone. If you have a broken bone, you’re probably in a cast or brace to start with, which you’re not playing thru regardless of how tough you are. Probably all players could play through a simple broken nail, but their performance would likely be bad. So much of baseball is having the right hand placement on the bat or throwing the ball, and not having full range of motion of even a single finger could be a detriment of how hard a batter swings, or how a batter swings in general. What’s better? Playing through an injury, but having diminished performance and potentially aggravting it more, or waiting a week to come back and able to perform at 100%?
Maybe dont play with a broken arm or leg
But guys these days go on DL bc they slipped in the shower & sprained an ankle or bc they picked up a heavy suitcase & now their back is sore. reasons for injuries are equally insane & comical in recent memory
In the ol days they’d rub some dirt on it & be in the lineup very next day
These days tms have 37 doctors, 29 trainers, perform 46 xrays & mri’s and the players still miss 2 years bc their @ss itches too much
I’m not saying strange injuries don’t happen, but again, it’s not they can’t play through it, but would probably be less effective if they did, and potentially aggravate it more. What positive is there in dimished play and maybe making it worse?
Injury detection has also gotten a lot better. You’re using the 1960s-1990s as an example, but the MRI didn’t exist for a large portion of that time. They weren’t invented until the late ’70s, and approved by the FDA in the early/mid-80s. It’s standard procedure now to undergo an MRI in any case of muscle issues, but only 45-50 years ago, the MRI wasn’t even a thing. Ultrasounds didn’t get full 3d rendering until the early-90s. Plus most players aren’t missing over a year unless they have a huge surgery (like Tommy John), or have chronic issues, like Kris Bryant’s back issues.
Maybe don’t comment with such an ignorant mindset, chandlerbing, now would be the right time to start.
It’s a shame that he’s out with injury already, but hopefully they get a handle on this early.
Sure Lawlar is the high-upside play, but he also hasn’t been hitting exceptionally well (at least not to the point that you see immediate MLB success coming) and has very limited reps at 2B.
Tawa has been clubbing in his limited play time, but he also hasn’t played any 2B to this point of the season.
Alexander still isn’t back and I don’t know what they see in Kessinger (aside from a SS glove), but here’s there lol. Hopefully Marte isn’t out too long.
Wallet too heavy now…
Overextended.