Credit: John Jones-USA TODAY Sports
It’s been an uncharacteristic start to the year for Starling Marte. After an incredibly productive 2022 campaign, Marte has started off the 2023 season slowly, not producing in many facets of his game. Before the doubleheader, a piece was published on MMO that highlighted his struggles so far this season. Offensively, through 41 games and 147 at-bats, he slashed a meager .231/.298/.279 along with a .577 OPS. This was a staggering .237 less than his superb OPS figure from 2022.
The most concerning issue centered around Marte’s lack of power. As of May 19, Marte was 19 games removed from his last extra-base hit. As someone who made it his job to get extra base hits, it was extremely alarming that he only had five so far this season. Unfortunately for both Marte and the Mets, offense was not the only part of his playstyle that took a hit. Last season, Marte ranked in the league’s 31st percentile in outs above average and the 58th percentile in outfielder jump. This season, those rankings had fallen to the league’s fifth and 12th percentiles, respectively. His speed on the basepaths was minimized, his outfield range was severely affected, and his power at the plate seemed to have diminished.
As the eighth inning of Game 1 of Sunday’s doubleheader at Citi Field approached, Marte had endured a streak of 107 consecutive at-bats without an extra-base hit, which was significantly longer than any other active player in the majors. Earlier in the season, Marte had been troubled by a neck injury and the lingering effects of offseason groin surgery, causing him to struggle and step away from the play style that earned him some consideration for the National League MVP last year. Currently in the second season of a four-year, $78 million contract that will keep him with the team until his age-36 season, he showcases an exceptional skill set all-around when healthy and in a groove. When performing at his peak, Marte exhibits one of the most dynamic skill sets in baseball, as demonstrated by his impressive performance last season with 16 home runs and 18 stolen bases.
However, Marte’s fortunes began to change recently, as he managed to put together several games with multiple hits earlier in the month. By the bottom of the eighth inning on Sunday, he exuded confidence that suggested an incoming breakthrough. That came to fruition as Marte smashed a go-ahead two-run homer to the opposite field off Guardians reliever Trevor Stephan, propelling the Mets to a thrilling 5-4 victory over Cleveland. This marked the Mets’ fourth consecutive win and their third consecutive triumph in dramatic come-from-behind fashion during that stretch.
For over a month, Marte had been on a quest to turn things around. Despite putting in additional practice time in the batting cage, Marte struggled to rediscover his power and was unable to find his usual strong hitting form. Judging off Sunday’s performance, it seems as if his hard work is beginning to pay off. A Starling Marte resurgence can come at a time where the Mets lineup has been infused with energy from the “Baby Mets” as coined by shortstop Francisco Lindor. The welcome parties of Francisco Álvarez, Brett Baty and Mark Vientos, added to the recent offensive outburst from Pete Alonso means that a Marte resurgence will fit in nicely for a club that is looking to storm back into the playoff hunt.
