The Arizona Diamondbacks are looking to avoid being swept by the Philadelphia Phillies (at home) this week.
Arizona has dropped the first two games of the series, and the two NL squads will play a Matinee contest on Wednesday afternoon, out in the desert.
Before the Phillies series finale, the D-backs dropped their lineup, and it notably doesn’t feature Ketel Marte, which has drawn a rash of reactions from Arizona fans, who are wondering, just like everyone else, what is wrong with Ketel Marte?
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Ketel Marte OUT of Lineup on Wednesday
When the Diamondbacks lineup was released on Wednesday afternoon, it did not feature Ketel Marte, who has played in the first two games of the series and was recently reinstated from the IL for this Phillies series, which has massive NL Wild Card implications.
Here is the full Arizona Diamondbacks lineup for 9/2, per @UnderdogMLB:
D-backs 9/2: “L. Nootbaar LF C. Carroll RF G. Moreno DH G. Perdomo SS N. Arenado 3B T. Tawa 1B J. McCann C I. Vargas 2B J. Lawlar CF T. Clarke SP”
L. Nootbaar LF C. Carroll RF G. Moreno DH G. Perdomo SS N. Arenado 3B T. Tawa 1B J. McCann C I. Vargas 2B J. Lawlar CF
T. Clarke SP
There are a number of notable reactions to the lineup news, especially when fans realized Marte is not featured:
@Jeii_Swaqq: “So marte is not playing today”
Diamondbacks star third baseman Nolan Arenado is tired of hearing about the Ketel Marte situation. Here’s what he said on Tuesday evening:
Taking a Look at Ketel Marte This Season
As Nolan Arenado noted, the Diamondbacks are much better with Ketel Marte on the field, and while nobody knows what’s truly going on with Marte except Marte himself, there have been anonymous reports from D-backs teammates that the group has grown frustrated with his antics.
With that being said, Marte has still been a productive hitter this season, as he’s batting .251 with 21 home runs, 67 RBI, and 119 hits in 120 games played this season.
He’s tied to a lucrative six-year extension, but after the season is over, there’s no doubt that the noise will get loud surrounding Marte’s future with the organization.
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