As he faces his former team, Marlins’ Starling Marte reflects on baseball journey
Starling Marte stepped onto the field at PNC Park and had eight years of memories run through his mind.
So much felt the same even though the circumstances were oh so different.
He was in the visitor’s dugout down the first-base line. The sleeves of his pregame batting practice shirt had Miami blue instead of yellow to pair with the black on the torso. The cap he wears dons a fish instead of a capital P.
He waved and tapped his chest as he stepped into the batter’s box in the first inning while a tribute video played and the fans he once played for gave him a round of applause.
“This is one of the best cities. I think it’s the best,” Marte told a small group of reporters pregame Thursday as the Miami Marlins took batting practice before their first game of a four-game series with the Pittsburgh Pirates. “It was fun, everything they did for me. This is a big moment for me as I come back.”
For four days, and for the first time since he was traded prior to the start of the 2020 season, Marte was back at the site where his MLB career began.
Marte was quick to recognize the value Pittsburgh — the city and the team — had on his baseball career.
The Marlins, meanwhile, are quick to recognize the impact Marte — the player and person — has had on the club since they acquired him at the Aug. 30 trade deadline last season. He has stabilized their lineup as the No. 2 hitter and starting center fielder. He’s a veteran bringing a decade of big-league experience to a club that has its share of up-and-coming talent. And he finds a way to toe the line between staying low-key and humble while also displaying personality and swagger.
“His presence,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said, “changes our lineup.”
Marte a ‘complete package’ for Marlins
In 48 games with the Marlins, Marte has a .276 batting average with 12 doubles, seven home runs, 23 RBI and 30 runs scored while compiling a .816 on-base-plus slugging mark.
He has been their most consistent hitter this year, with his .320 batting average the best among players with at least 75 at-bats. He has at least one hit in all but four of the 20 games in which he has played so far this year.
But he’s doing more than just put the ball in play. This year, according to Statcast, Marte is hitting the ball harder, averaging a career best 90.4 mph exit velocity on balls put in play. He’s lifting the ball in the air more, with 56.4 percent of his balls in play being either fly balls or line drives (his career average is 43 percent). He has made solid contact on 12.7 percent of his batted balls, more than twice his career average and the MLB average of 5.6 percent.
“It’s a complete package with Star,” Mattingly said.
And his presence was missed when he was sidelined for more than a month after fracturing a rib 15 games into the season.
The Marlins went 17-18 in the 35 games he has missed, used four different players in center field and had five players bat in his customary No. 2 spot in the lineup in his absence.
“It’s very difficult,” Marte said. “All you can do is watch them play the game. You know you can help, but you can’t. All you can do is give them a little bit of advice if you see something is going on and get ready to be back in the game.”
Marte returned to the lineup on May 28 against the Boston Red Sox and picked up right where he left off. He has six hits — five doubles and a home run — with a walk, two RBI and two runs scored in the past five games.
Marte’s ‘special’ return to Pittsburgh
But before his time with the Marlins — and a 33-game stint with the Arizona Diamondbacks to start the 2020 season — Marte’s baseball career was carved out in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization
The Pirates signed him in as an international free agent in January 2007. He made his MLB debut with them on July 26, 2012, and was with the team through the 2019 season. He played in 953 big-league games for the Pirates, won two Gold Glove Awards (2015, 2016) and was a one-time All-Star (2016) along the way.
His career stats with Pittsburgh: a .287 batting average, 108 home runs, 420 RBI, 555 runs scored.
He proved himself to be premier defender, too. Marte’s 64 defensive runs saved ranks seventh among outfielders since he made his MLB debut, according to FanGraphs.
Pittsburgh also reached three consecutive postseasons from 2013 to 2015, which snapped a two-decade playoff drought. The Pirates’ outfield trio of Marte, Andrew McCutchen and Gregory Polanco paved the way for the postseason appearances.
McCutchen was one of the main players Marte said helped him adjust to big-league life the most.
“They always talked to me about the game and how to get better,” Marte said of his former teammates. “Right now, I’m taking that experience I got from those guys that they told me before and now I’m giving it to the young guys.”
“It’s great to be back and see the Pirates,” Marte said. “It’s very special coming in here and coming back to this park. The guys, the people around — it’s great. We’ve got to keep playing.”
Marte played a pivotal role in helping the Marlins end a playoff drought of their own last season. He shored up a top-of-the-lineup spot and created outfield stability after being acquired at the trade deadline. Miami won 15 of their final 28 games once they acquired Marte in 2020 to go 31-29 on the season and clinch a spot in the expanded playoffs.
“I come in here and do my job,” Marte said. “I’m going to continue to keep working to help the team.”
This story was originally published June 4, 2021 at 10:37 AM.
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