Starling Marte was a vital part of the New York Mets lineup in 2022. Coming over from the Oakland Athletics in free agency, Marte slashed .292/.347/.468 in his first season in New York and emerged as one of the best No. 2 hitters in baseball and helped the Mets win over 100 games.
The Mets September collapse in 2022, coincided with Marte’s trip to the injured list after suffering a partial non-displaced fracture in his right middle finger. Following the end of the 2022 season, the All-Star outfielder underwent core muscle surgery to repair an injury he sustained in the second half of the season.
While he was expected to be ready for the start of the 2023 season—and was—Marte clearly was not healthy, as he struggled offensively and defensively, after undergoing surgery on both groins in November. And as the Mets move through the remainder of the regular season and look to get ready for the offseason and beyond, they could be without Marte for a while.
According to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, Marte hopes to play again this season after working with the same physical therapist in Philadelphia, who has helped the likes of Tiger Woods and Sidney Crosby.
However, while Tim Healey of Newsday reported on Sunday that Marte had a productive physical therapy session, if he doesn’t continue to progress, he might need another surgery—the same as he had last offseason. It’s fair to say that both he and the Mets are hoping to avoid that.
The news of Marte potentially having to undergo the same surgery in consecutive offseasons met with a lot of angst.
Marte, who has labored through the 2023 campaign, slashing just .248/.301/.324 with five home runs and 28 RBIs in 86 games, was placed on the injured list back in July because of migraines. After returning to the lineup, he was sidelined again, this time by a right groin strain.
And remember, Marte is just two years into a four-year, $78 million deal.
Teams are obviously going to be cautious with players coming off a significant injury. If Marte can progress to the point where he doesn’t need to undergo the knife again, it’ll be nothing more than a speedbump, and a fairly minor one, at that. If, however, this something that lingers and Marte ends up having to miss regular season time in 2024 or his performance continues to suffer, it’s a major blow to the Mets’ offense.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.