Starling Marte in lineup for Game 1 of wild card series

Oct 7, 2022 - 8:35 PM

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After being out for weeks with a finger injury and having virtually no ability to take part in any major baseball activities, it had seemed like all but a foregone conclusion that Starling Marte would miss at least the beginning of the postseason for the Mets, and possibly more than that. However, news broke earlier today that Marte had in fact made it on the Mets’ roster for the wild card series, and now the lineup for tonight’s game has revealed that he will be manning right field and batting sixth for the Amazins in their opening matchup against the Padres.

While the sight of Marte in the lineup card is certainly a sight for sore eyes, it remains curious that he is able to play after virtually all reports indicated his progress on returning from the injured finger was slow. And indeed, Buck Showalter has acknowledged that the team is unsure exactly how Marte will respond to game action and did not rule out having to take him out early. So it certainly seems as though the Mets are taking a gamble here. If Marte is able to successfully stay in the game, his presence will be a huge boon to a lineup that has missed him terribly. If he is not - and in the worst case scenario, if he aggravates his injury and is thus kept out of the lineup for the rest of October - then Showalter and the Mets will receive a lot of well-deserved scrutiny for their decision.