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Starling Marte

Injury Notes: Duvall, Marte, Marlins

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Red Sox outfielder Adam Duvall left his game after suffering an apparent wrist injury while making a diving play in center field, as noted by Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe. As noted by Julian McWilliams of The Boston Globe, Duvall had x-rays done on his wrist, the same one on which he underwent season-ending surgery in 2022, following his exit from today’s game. No results have been announced regarding Duvall’s x-ray. Duvall signed with the club this past offseason on a one-year, $7MM guarantee.

Should Duvall miss significant time, Boston figures to rely on some combination of Raimel Tapia and Jarren Duran in center field, though the heavily left-handed Red Sox could also give Yu Chang additional starts at shortstop, allowing Enrique Hernandez to move from the infield back into center field, where he spent the majority of the past two seasons. Regardless of who ultimately replaces Duvall in the lineup, any missed time would be a real blow to Boston’s offense early in the season, as Duvall has raked to open the 2023 campaign. In his first 33 plate appearances this season, Duvall has slashed a whopping .483/.545/1.138 with four home runs, five doubles, and a triple while either scoring or knocking in 25 of the club’s 55 runs.

More injury updates…

  • Starling Marte left today’s game against the Marlins after the first inning due to what the Mets described as a neck strain.  Marte suffered the injury while stealing third base in the bottom of the first, as Marte’s slide took him headfirst into the knee of Miami third baseman Jean Segura.  He remained in the game for the remainder of the inning, but Jeff McNeil moved from second base to take Marte’s spot in the right field for the top of the second. Manager Buck Showalter expressed optimism regarding Marte, telling reporters (including Laura Albanese of Newsday) “so far so good” as it pertains to Marte having avoided a concussion. Any missed time by Marte seems likely to benefit outfielder Tommy Pham in terms of playing time, though it’s also possible that the club could call up a player like Danny Mendick to take some starts if Marte requires a trip to the injured list.
  • The Marlins had a pair of players leave today’s game as well, with Avisail Garcia exiting the game with what was termed “left hamstring soreness”, according to the Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson, while J.T. Chargois exited with an apparent injury just three pitches into the seventh inning. Chargois, who the Marlins acquired from the Rays via trade back in November, has been a useful reliever in recent years, recording a 2.36 ERA with a 23.6% strikeout rate and 8% walk rate in 80 innings since the start of the 2021 season. Garcia, on the other hand, is entering the second season of a four-year deal he signed with the Marlins prior to the 2021 season that he has struggled to live up to to this point. Despite entering the contract as a career 104 wRC+ hitter coming off a strong 29-homer season in 2021 where he posted a wRC+ of 116, Garcia has slashed just .216/.259/.310 (62 wRC+) in his first 106 games as a Marlin, with a 28.9% strikeout rate above his career norms and just nine home runs.

Injury Notes: Marte, Guzman, Guerrero, O’Hearn, Hall

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Starling Marte will undergo further tests on Monday after being hit in the head by an Elvin Rodriguez pitch in today’s game.  Marte was able to walk off the field by himself and initial concussion tests were negative, yet the Mets will naturally be very careful in monitoring any sort of head-related injury.

It was only Marte’s second game of Spring Training, as he didn’t take the field until last Friday due to the Mets’ desire to slowly bring Marte back up to speed following groin surgery in November.  The club expected the outfielder to be ready for Opening Day, and that should still be the case, if Marte has indeed escaped injury after today’s scary incident.

More injury updates from around baseball…

  • Ronald Guzman left today’s Cactus League game in obvious pain after throwing a pitch, and Giants manager Gabe Kapler told reporters (including Evan Webeck of the Bay Area News Group) that Guzman was undergoing tests for discomfort in his forearm.  It’s an ominous turn of events for Guzman, who has been one of Spring Training’s more interesting stories as he pursues a new chapter in his career as a two-way player.  The former Rangers/Yankees first baseman inked a minor league deal with the Giants, in large part because San Francisco was the only team willing to give Guzman a chance to pitch.
  • Knee inflammation kept Vladimir Guerrero Jr. from participating in the World Baseball Classic, and the Blue Jays slugger hasn’t played in any spring games since last Friday.  However, Guerrero has been facing live pitching and taking part in fielding drills, and manager John Schneider told reporters (including MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson) that Guerrero reported no issues after running the bases.  If all goes well after another base-running session tomorrow, the Jays will have a better idea of when Guerrero can get back to game action.  With over two weeks to go until Opening Day, it doesn’t yet appear as though Guerrero is in danger of missing any of the regular season, but more will be known once the first baseman is fully ramped up.
  • Orioles outfielder/first baseman Ryan O’Hearn is day to day with a sore knee.  The injury is a minor setback in what has been a red-hot Spring Training for O’Hearn, as he tries to win a job on Baltimore’s bench.  In other Orioles news, manager Brandon Hyde told MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski and other media that DL Hall threw “extremely well” during a live batting practice session, and is slated for another live BP on Tuesday.  Hall’s progress in camp has been slowed by lower-back problems and he has yet to pitch in a game, so the southpaw’s only chance of making the Opening Day roster is as a reliever.

NL Notes: Marte, Stephenson, Dodgers, Taillon

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Starling Marte underwent core surgery in November, and the outfielder talked with reporters (including MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo) today about the somewhat unexpected nature of that procedure.  Marte ended up requiring surgery on both sides of his groin, providing an unwelcome answer to he’d been bothered by leg and lower-body problems for a big portion of the 2022 season.  Marte played through quad and groin soreness but didn’t go on the injured list until he suffered a fractured finger in September, sidelining him until the playoffs.

Despite all the injuries, Marte’s first Mets season was a success, as he hit .292/.347/.468 with 16 homers over 505 plate appearances.  Both Marte and manager Buck Showalter indicated that the veteran outfielder will be ramped up somewhat slowly in the early days of Spring Training, yet Marte is expected to be ready to roll for the Opening Day lineup.

More from around the National League…

  • Pirates reliever Robert Stephenson is suffering from some right arm discomfort, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Jason Mackey tweets.  It seems to be a precautionary slowdown at this point, and Stephenson threw as recently as Saturday.  Heading into his first full season with the Pirates, Stephenson had a 3.38 ERA and a whopping 36% strikeout rate over 13 1/3 innings after the Bucs claimed him off waivers from the Rockies in late August.  Assuming that this arm issue isn’t overly serious, Stephenson is an interesting high-leverage bullpen arm for Pittsburgh, given that he posted good results in 2019 (with Cincinnati) and 2021 (with Colorado).
  • Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya and other reporters that J.D. Martinez will be the club’s designated hitter “99.9 percent of the time,” though Martinez isn’t necessarily expected to play all 162 games.  This plan differs from the Dodgers’ rotational use of the DH spot last season, and in particular, Will Smith will be slated for more full rest days with Martinez on board, as Los Angeles often used Smith at DH on days when he wasn’t catching.  As productive a bat as Smith has been, he might be even better with a bit more rest, and ideally Martinez’s offense would further enhance the Dodgers’ lineup punch.
  • Jameson Taillon is on a new team and he is now learning a new pitch, as the Cubs right-hander has started to work on a sweeping slider.  As Taillon tells The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma, he was one of the relatively few Yankees pitchers who didn’t use the “whirly,” as his 2020-21 offseason was spent recovering from Tommy John surgery and adjusting after being traded from the Pirates, and Taillon’s 2021-22 offseason work was hampered by the lockout and recovery from ankle surgery.  “This year, healthy offseason, I signed on the earlier end, got familiar with the pitching coaches and I’m comfortable with my delivery.  So I feel like it’s the perfect storm for being able to tinker a little bit,” Taillon said.  The righty inked a four-year, $68MM free agent deal with Chicago in early December.

Starling Marte Undergoes Surgery To Address Core Muscle Injury

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The Mets announced to reporters, including Tim Healey of Newsday, that outfielder Starling Marte underwent surgery on Tuesday to address a core muscle injury he sustained in the second half of 2022. He is expected to be “without restriction” by Spring Training and Mike Puma of the New York Post relays that the standard recovery time is about eight weeks. Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports relays that this is related to a groin injury he sustained in June.

Signed in the offseason to a four-year, $78MM deal, Marte’s first year as a Met resulted in another strong season at the plate. He hit .292/.347/.468 for a wRC+ of 136, indicating he was 36% better than the league average hitter. The injury didn’t seem to hamper him much, as Marte’s month-to-month numbers were fairly steady until September, when a finger fracture limited him to just five games.

It doesn’t seem as though the Mets have reason to be terribly concerned about Marte going forward, given the timeline. Eight weeks from now would be around the time the calendar flips to 2023, giving Marte plenty of time to ramp up physical activities prior to the beginning of Spring Training in February.

Nonetheless, it is a situation worth monitoring given the outfield picture of the Mets. Incumbent center fielder Brandon Nimmo is a few days away from becoming a free agent, creating an opening up the middle. Some have wondered whether Marte could simply slide over to fill that gap, given his previous center field experience.

General manager Billy Eppler recently spoke on the subject, saying that the Mets are willing to play Marte up the middle. However, that path is not without risk. Marte is now 34 years old and a year removed from regular playing time in center, having spent most of 2022 in right. The year before, the advanced defensive metrics weren’t exactly wowed by his work in center, as he was pegged with a -4 by Defensive Runs Saved, 0.9 by Ultimate Zone Rating and zero Outs Above Average.

Perhaps it will end up being a moot point, since the Mets are reportedly making it a priority to retain Nimmo. Though if Marte’s progress is at all delayed, it might only increase the club’s desire to bring Nimmo back and keep Marte in right field.

Eppler: Mets Willing To Play Starling Marte In Center Field

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The Mets are facing a number of high-profile free agents as the offseason looms. Among them is center fielder Brandon Nimmo, who’s easily the best non-Aaron Judge free agent option at the position. Nimmo and his representatives at the Boras Corporation will soon hear from a number of interested teams, as they’re allowed to formally speak with clubs other than the Mets five days after the conclusion of the World Series.

New York will surely keep in touch with Nimmo themselves, but they do have a potential in-house replacement if he departs. Starling Marte had played exclusively center field with the D-Backs, Marlins and A’s from 2020-21, but he moved to right field in deference to Nimmo after signing a four-year free agent deal last offseason. Marte didn’t start a single game in center field in 2022, logging all of five innings at the position. He played just under 1000 innings in right field.

After spending a year playing in a corner and having recently turned 34 years old, it’s fair to wonder if Marte’s days as a regular center fielder could be behind him. Speaking with Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman of the New York Post on The Show podcast this morning (Twitter link), Mets general manager Billy Eppler said the team would be comfortable deploying Marte as their primary center fielder in 2023 if necessary.

“Can Starling still play center field? Yeah, we believe he can,” Eppler told the Post. “That opens up some optionality for how we ultimately fill out that outfield. … We do have the ability to slide Marte over to center for a number of games, over 50% of the games. He’s got that ability to do that. … We are comfortable with him in center field.”

That’s certainly not a declaration the Mets are closing the book on retaining Nimmo. Eppler called re-signing Nimmo “not a closed case by any stretch of the imagination” and broadly spoke highly of his ability. One can argue for the Mets bringing back Nimmo as the center fielder and a top-of-the-lineup presence while keeping Marte and Mark Canha in the corners. Yet as Eppler noted, the possibly for Marte to slide back up the middle offers some additional flexibility in building out the roster if Nimmo does depart.

Public defensive metrics were mixed on Marte’s performance in right field during his debut season in Queens. Defensive Runs Saved credited him as three runs better than the average right fielder. Ultimate Zone Rating and Statcast’s Runs Above Average metric each pegged him below par, with UZR assigning him a -8 mark and Statcast putting him at -2. Eppler didn’t address Marte’s defensive metrics specifically but noted the outfielder battled some tightness in his left groin midway through the season. That perhaps explains in part a dip in his range that shouldn’t linger into 2023 after an offseason of recovery. Marte had zero MLB experience in right field before 2022, but he’d been consistently excellent in the other corner spot throughout his career.

His recent center field work has been mixed but serviceable. Between 2020-21, Marte logged 1509 1/3 innings in center. Both Statcast and UZR rated him a hair better than average, while DRS had him at a below-average but not intolerable -6 runs over that stretch.

In any event, the Mets will have to add an outfielder this offseason. Retaining Nimmo and keeping Marte and Canha in the corners would be the most straightforward outcome. Still, a nine-figure Nimmo deal could be beyond their liking as they also see players like Jacob deGrom, Edwin Díaz, Chris Bassitt and Taijuan Walker (the latter two of whom are locks to decline options) hit the market. New York has as much spending capacity as any team under owner Steve Cohen, but they’re virtually certain to see at least a couple players of note depart for loftier guarantees elsewhere.

If Nimmo is among that group, the Mets would have more to work with attacking the corner outfield market than adding a center fielder. Aside from Judge and Nimmo, the top free agent center fielder is likely Kevin Kiermaier, who’ll be bought out by the Rays after an injury-plagued year. A Cody Bellinger non-tender would add an excellent glove to the mix and vault him above Kiermaier as the #3 option, but Bellinger is a .193/.256/.355 hitter over his past 900 plate appearances. There also aren’t any clear upgrades who’ll be available in trade, with players like Cedric Mullins and Bryan Reynolds looking unlikely to move.

The corner outfield market is a bit deeper. Judge is obviously the prize, but the middle tier of free agency offers options like Andrew Benintendi, Mitch Haniger, Joc Pederson, Joey Gallo, Michael Brantley and old friend Michael Conforto. There’s also a wider pool of potential trade candidates, with Hunter Renfroe, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Max Kepler and Anthony Santander among those who could be floated in talks over the coming months.

NL East Notes: Alcantara, Marte, Strider

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Sandy Alcantara’s season is officially over, as Marlins manager Don Mattingly told reporters (including the Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson) today that the star right-hander won’t be pitching in the Marlins’ season finale on Wednesday.  Alcantara pitched yesterday and would’ve been lined up to make his 33rd start in Wednesday’s game against the Braves, but Miami will instead close the book on what might end up as a Cy Young Award-winning campaign for the 27-year-old righty.

Over a league-high 228 2/3 innings, Alcantara has looked like an old-school workhorse in a sport increasingly dominated by pitch counts and bullpen usage.  Alcantara has a 2.28 ERA, 53.6% grounder rate, and 5.6% walk rate to go along with that big workload, and he earned his second All-Star nod.  While Miami is reportedly open to trading from its pitching depth this winter, Alcantara is known be off-limits, as his five-year, $56MM extension signed last November has made him a Marlins cornerstone.

More from the NL East….

  • Starling Marte is still recovering from his fractured right middle finger, as Mets manager Buck Showalter told Newsday’s Tim Healey and other reporters that Marte’s finger still hasn’t healed enough for the outfielder to start swinging or throwing.  Marte hasn’t played since September 6, but his attempts at making it back before the end of New York’s season have already resulted in one cessation of baseball activities, as Marte’s continued discomfort in his finger has prevented him from being able to properly ramp up his readiness.  With the regular season winding down, there must now be concern whether or not Marte will be ready when the Mets start the playoffs, whether that is on Friday (if the Mets are a wild card) or perhaps even on October 11 (if the Mets win the NL East).  Naturally, that latter date would give Marte more time to heal, but the Mets and Braves might be battling for the division title until the final day of the schedule.
  • The Braves are also missing a key figure from the pennant race, as Spencer Strider’s stint on the 15-day injured list will last until that 162nd and final game.  Strider has been dealing with an oblique strain, and manager Brian Snitker told reporters (including Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that there isn’t any update on whether or not Strider will be able to return for that last game.  The rookie right-hander has been getting treatment and doing core exercises, but while Snitker said that has been some improvement, Strider hasn’t yet started throwing.

NL Notes: Marte, Cardinals, Cruz

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The Mets issued an official statement on Starling Marte’s fractured right middle finger, saying that a recent CT scan “showed improved healing,” and that the center fielder “will continue baseball activities as tolerated.”  This counts as good news, considering that Marte had to halt his first try at baseball activities last week, due to continued discomfort in his finger.  Marte hasn’t played since his finger was hit by a Mitch Keller pitch on September 6.

It remains to be seen if Marte will be able to make it back before the end of the regular season, let alone by his stated target date of Friday, when New York begins a critical three-game series with the Braves that could decide the NL East.  The Mets have continued to play well (a 12-6 record) since Marte was last in the lineup, but obviously having the All-Star center fielder back will boost the Mets’ chances of both capturing the division and potentially winning the World Series.  There hasn’t yet been any indication that Marte could miss any postseason action, but he’ll have less time to heal if the Mets have to settle for a wild card, and don’t receive a first-round bye.

More from the National League…

  • The Cardinals announced that Miles Mikolas and Jose Quintana will start on Tuesday and Wednesday in the team’s two-game series against the Brewers.  A sweep would clinch the NL Central for St. Louis, who have a commanding 6.5-game lead over Milwaukee but naturally want to get the division fully settled before looking ahead to the playoffs.  Since the Cardinals are a virtual lock to be the NL’s third seed, they’ll have to play in the wild card round, thus giving manager Oliver Marmol a lot to consider about how to best line up his postseason rotation.  Basically, everything is still to be decided, Marmol told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other reporters, including the possibility that the Cards might opt with something close to a standard five-man rotation (assuming they advance past the wild card series, of course).  The recent of struggles of Jordan Montgomery and Adam Wainwright — who is also battling a “dead arm” — have also added to the discussion, and St. Louis also has two remaining off-days in the regular season schedule.
  • In other Cardinals updates, Marmol told MLB.com’s John Denton and other reporters that it may be possible for both Jordan Hicks and Tyler O’Neill to be activated from the injured list before the postseason.  Hicks hasn’t pitched since September 14 due to neck spasms and fatigue in his right arm, but he is set to begin a throwing program on Tuesday.  O’Neill will also begin a running program on Wednesday, as he trise to make it back from a hamstring strain that sent him to the 10-day IL on September 17.
  • Oneil Cruz made two errors in the Pirates’ 8-3 loss to the Cubs today, giving the rookie shortstop 15 errors over 73 games this season at the position.  It made for some unfortunate timing for Pirates GM Ben Cherington, who said in his pregame radio interview (hat tip to Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) that “I see no reason why [Cruz] can’t play shortstop at high level at the major-league level.  I believe he can do it.  Time will tell.  And he’ll tell us.”  Evaluators have long been skeptical about whether or not the 6’7″ Cruz will eventually need a position change, though for the rebuilding Pirates, there really isn’t any reason for the team to not give Cruz a long look at shortstop before deciding if a change is necessary.  Cruz has also played in a handful of games in left field in the minors (and one game in left field in the bigs), which seems like it would be his eventual fallback position if he can’t stick at shortstop.

MLBTR Poll: Predicting The NL East Winner

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As the regular season nears its conclusion, the playoff picture has mostly come into focus. Of the 12 teams currently in playoff position, 10 have a cushion of at least 4 1/2 games. The Padres and Phillies are working to hold off the Brewers for the final two Wild Card spots in the National League, but the rest of the teams currently in playoff position have put themselves in a great spot to reach the postseason barring a major collapse. There’s an outside shot the White Sox track down the Guardians in the AL Central or the Orioles get back into the AL Wild Card race, but it’d take a major turn of events over the next two weeks.

There’s a similar lack of intrigue in most of the division races. The Astros and Dodgers have already clinched their respective divisions. The Yankees, Guardians and Cardinals all hold leads of six-plus games in theirs. The only division race that promises plenty of intrigue down the stretch: the battle for the NL East.

Both the Mets and Braves are already guaranteed to make the postseason. They’re each likely to surpass 100 wins. Yet one of those teams will come up just shy of a division title, leaving them as the #4 seed in the National League. That means a three-game series against the #5 seed in a first-round Wild Card set under the playoff format introduced in this spring’s collective bargaining agreement. Obviously, both teams would much prefer to secure the division title (and almost certainly the NL’s #2 seed and accompanying first-round bye). Which one is the frontrunner for the division crown? Let’s take a look at the remaining road for each and their current health outlook.

Mets (95-56 record, +147 run differential)

Remaining schedule: at Oakland (three games), vs. Miami (two games), at Atlanta (three games), vs. Washington (three games)

The Mets have 11 games remaining. Eight of them are against teams 28 games or more below .500. The other three: a crucial series next weekend in Atlanta. New York welcomed back Max Scherzer from a brief injured list stint on Monday. He came out with six perfect innings against the Brewers, striking out nine, before being lifted due to a pitch count limitation. The Mets rotation is at full strength at the right time, pushing players like Tylor Megill and David Peterson into the bullpen.

The biggest current injury for the Mets is on the position player side. Right fielder Starling Marte has yet to return after suffering a non-displaced fracture in his right middle finger two weeks back. Anthony DiComo of MLB.com tweeted this afternoon that the All-Star outfielder is hopeful he’ll be back in time for next weekend’s series with the Braves. Center fielder Brandon Nimmo, meanwhile, left today’s game with left quad soreness. Mike Puma of the New York Post relays that he’s likely to go for imaging tomorrow but Nimmo downplayed the severity of the issue postgame.

Braves (93-56 record, +171 run differential)

Remaining schedule: at Philadelphia (four games), at Washington (three games), vs. Mets (three games), at Miami (three games)

The defending champions dug themselves an early hole with a mediocre first two months, but they’ve been incredible since the calendar flipped to June. They’re a staggering 70-28 over the past three and a half months, nearly erasing a deficit that was once as high as 10 1/2 games in the process. They’ve pulled even with the Mets in the loss column but have two fewer wins, leaving them with a bit more work to do to get ahead in the standings.

The Braves kick off a four-game set with the Phillies tomorrow. That’s a much more difficult series than any the Mets will play (aside from the Braves themselves), but Atlanta just swept Philly last weekend.

Like the Mets, Atlanta doesn’t have any key starting pitchers currently on the injured list. Rookie star Spencer Strider is battling some oblique soreness and had today’s scheduled start pushed back slightly, but there’s no indication an IL stint is currently under consideration. As with New York, Atlanta is down one star position player thanks to a fractured finger though. The Braves lost Ozzie Albies to a right pinky fracture over the weekend. There’s a chance he returns in the postseason but he’s not expected back before the end of the regular season. Rookie Vaughn Grissom filled in well in recent weeks while Albies was rehabbing a broken foot; he’ll be asked to do the same for the stretch run.

Tiebreaker procedure

The final three games between the Mets and Braves obviously loom as the largest remaining on the schedule for both clubs. Not only are they the most directly impactful in the standings, they also carry implications for the tiebreaker. The new CBA did away with the traditional Game 163 in favor of a tiebreaker system. If two clubs finish the season with the same record, the team with the better head-to-head mark gets the nod in the standings. The Mets lead this year’s season series 9-7, meaning Atlanta would need to sweep their final meeting to secure the tiebreaker.

How does the MLBTR readership expect things to play out? Which team will celebrate an NL East crown two weeks from now?

(poll link for app users)

 

Mets Notes: Marte, Megill, Nogosek, Givens

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Starling Marte attempted to start some baseball activities a few days ago, but the outfielder told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo) that the hitting and throwing drills were stopped since Marte’s fractured right middle finger “was still bothering me a good amount.”  Since Marte’s injured-list placement was retroactive to September 7, he won’t be activated after just the minimum 10 days, and it isn’t yet certain when or even if Marte could be back before the end of the regular season.

For his part, Marte feels he will be able to play again, though manager Buck Showalter was more circumspect about the possibility.  Naturally, getting Marte back onto the field as soon as possible would be ideal for all parties, especially if he can get some swings under his belt to ensure that his finger is fully healed heading into the playoffs.  But, with a postseason trip all but officially assured, the team isn’t going to rush Marte back, since a re-aggravation of the injury could threaten his availability for October.

The Mets are trying to hold off the Braves for first place in the NL East, and the division crown carries even more importance given the new playoff format.  While a late surge from the NL Central-leading Cardinals can’t be ruled out, the NL East winner is likely to finish with the second-best record in the National League, and will thus earn a first-round bye.  That bye is valuable for countless reasons, including the fact that getting over a full week off would allow a team more time to get its players (like Marte) rested and recovered from injuries.  Of course, not having Marte available will make it all the more difficult for New York to stay ahead of Atlanta down the stretch.

While Marte’s status is still a question mark, the Mets are at least getting some reinforcements back on the pitching side.  Max Scherzer is tentatively scheduled to be activated from the 15-day IL in time to start Monday’s game against the Brewers, and Tylor Megill is also slated to be activated from the 60-day IL when the series begins in Milwaukee.

Megill suffered a shoulder strain in mid-June, and after starting all 27 games of his brief MLB career, the righty is being targeted for a bullpen role upon his return.  Between his shoulder injury and another long-month IL stint due to biceps inflammation, Megill has barely pitched in 2022, with just 41 1/3 innings over his nine appearances.  While his SIERA is an impressive 3.28 and his strikeout and walk rates are both above-average, Megill’s real-world numbers include a 5.01 ERA.

The Mets also welcomed righty reliever Stephen Nogosek back from the 15-day IL today, and played Mychal Givens on the injured list in the corresponding move.  There was no stated reason for Givens’ placement, indicating that the right-hander has been placed on the COVID-related version of the IL.  It isn’t known if Givens has tested positive for COVID-19, or is just suffering from symptoms.

Nogosek has missed the last four weeks due to an oblique strain.  Now in his third MLB season, Nogosek has a career-high 19 1/3 innings, and a solid 2.79 ERA.  New York has shuttled Nogosek up and down from Triple-A on multiple occasions this year, but with the Triple-A season almost over, Nogosek figures to stick in the majors and provide more depth in the Mets’ bullpen.

Mets Place Starling Marte On 10-Day Injured List

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The Mets have placed Starling Marte on the 10-day injured list, with the placement backdated to September 6.  Marte’s IL stint opens a roster spot for prospect Mark Vientos, whose promotion was reported earlier today.

Marte hasn’t played since Tuesday, when he suffered a partial, non-displaced fracture in his right middle finger after being hit by a pitch by Pirates righty Mitch Keller.  New York delayed in placing Marte on the IL in the hopes that he could recover enough to return to the lineup without an extended absence, but Marte still seemed very limited in terms of baseball activities.  Newsday’s Tim Healey wrote prior to Friday’s game, Marte only “participated lightly in pregame drills” without any throwing or swinging.

The veteran outfielder will now get a full week off to recuperate, though given the nature of the injury, it isn’t a given that Marte will spend only the minimum amount of time on the injured list.  The Mets surely don’t want to rush Marte back and risk further injury, which would then possibly put Marte’s availability for the playoffs in question.  While the Mets are in a tight race with the Braves for the NL East title, the Mets are basically a lock to reach the postseason as at least a wild card team, and Marte will be a big part of any push throughout October.

Through 505 plate appearances, Marte is hitting .292/.347/.468 with 16 homers.  This translates to a 134 wRC+, tying the career-best mark Marte posted just last season.  Marte was named to his second All-Star roster earlier this summer.  It has been an immediate impact for Marte in Queens, and the Mets’ four-year, $78MM free agent deal with the outfielder back in November currently looks like one of the winter’s wisest investments.

Tyler Naquin has taken over in right field in Marte’s absence, and it seems likely that the left-handed hitting Naquin and the right-handed hitting Darin Ruf will work in a platoon until Marte is able to return.  The two trade deadline acquisitions have pronounced splits over their careers, and for 2022, Naquin is hitting .264/.329/.495 in 228 PA against righties, while Ruf has slashed .224/.329/.455 in 167 PA against southpaws.

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