Marlins outfielder Starling Marte suffers hand fracture in win over Cubs; status unclear moving forward
While the Marlins are riding high after Wednesday’s Game 1 victory over the Chicago Cubs, the team could be without one of its best hitters moving forward.
Miami outfielder Starling Marte suffered a non-displaced fracture of his fifth metacarpal after being plunked on his left hand, a source confirmed to the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
The injury occurred in the ninth inning of Wednesday’s 5-1 win over the Cubs in the National League wild-card series. Facing Cubs reliever Dan Winkler, Marte took a 92-mph fastball off his left hand in his fifth at-bat of the day. Grimacing in pain, Marte was forced to exit the game, finishing 2 for 4 with a double and a run scored.
The 31-year-old veteran is listed as day-to-day.
With the injury, his status for the remainder of the best-of-3 series is in doubt. The Marlins will face Chicago in Game 2 on Thursday at 2 p.m. If Marte is unable to play, Lewis Brinson would be the most likely candidate to replace him in the starting lineup.
Acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks at the trade deadline, Marte has been one Miami’s most reliable hitters. For the season, the outfielder is hitting .281/.340/.430 with 14 doubles, six home runs and 10 stolen bases. An All-Star in 2016, Miami landed the talented veteran for pitchers Caleb Smith, Humberto Mejia and Julio Frias.
Despite playing in 60-game shortened season, Marte has been hit by 10 pitches this season. In Sunday’s regular-season finale versus the New York Yankees, the outfielder was hit in the helmet by a pitch and subsequently exited the game.
Following Wednesday’s game, Marlins manager Don Mattingly wouldn’t speculate on Marte’s status moving forward.
“(Marte) has been hit like three times on that hand since we’ve acquired him,” Mattingly said. “He gets hit in the head the other day. He’s been like a target almost. He’s been bouncing back from everything else, so hopefully we get good results with everything and we’ll see where he’s at.”
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