Alfredo Marte Needs a Change of Scenery

Alfredo Marte needs to go to a different organization in order to get the chance to be a Major League player. Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Nick Evans was promoted to the Arizona Diamondbacks earlier this week from Triple A Reno. Good for him. Based on his numbers with the Aces, he deserves another chance in the Major Leagues. However, this meant a player had to be sent down. Unfortunately, that player was Alfredo Marte, who was brought up at the beginning of the month and received only 22 at-bats. After yet another short stint with the D’backs, it is clear, at least to this writer, that Marte will never get a fair shot to stick with the big club.

It is time for Marte to get a change of scenery.

How else do you figure that Ender Inciarte and Tony Campana, two players who do not possess the talent that Marte does,continue to pass him by? In April, Campana started seven of the final eight games of the month and he came into the eighth one in the later innings. He went 1 for 28 before finally being sent down. Inciarte started the first five games of the month and went 2 for 19. He is still here and his average is an anemic .146 with a frightening .186 on-base percentage. Meanwhile, Marte never started a stretch of game like the other two guys did and had only five starts spread out over three weeks. Three of them came upon his being recalled. After May 10th, he started on the 17th and the 25th. Not exactly a gauge of a guy’s ability. Marte had three doubles in 22 at-bats, or two more than Campana and Iciarte have combined for in 91 at-bats. I know Marte’s .227 batting average and on-base percentage isn’t exactly what we are looking for but it is much higher than either of the other two. It leads me to believe that, for whatever reason, management has no faith in him despite showing signs that he can be at least a capable fourth outfielder.

For his sake, Marte needs to move on to a different organization in order to be given a chance to see if he can be a Major League ballplayer. Maybe he proves he is one, maybe he doesn’t. He won’t get that opportunity with the Diamondbacks.