Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte publicly apologizes for missing games after All-Star break
Some of Marte's teammates were reportedly frustrated by his absence in July
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Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte addressed the media on Monday night, following a 3-1 loss against the Cleveland Guardians (box score), about a report from last week that suggested teammates were frustrated with his absence from the team coming out of the All-Star break and his frequent day-off requests.
Marte's in-season house was burglarized during the All-Star break, yet he missed the first three games of the second half because he returned to the Dominican Republic. Other Arizona players were miffed by that decision, in part since the Diamondbacks were attempting to improve their standing and fend off a potential deadline firesale. (The Diamondbacks went 3-0 without Marte, but the front office still elected to trade away Eugenio Suárez, Merrill Kelly, and Josh Naylor.)
"Initially the intent was to come back on Thursday and be with his team and practice,'' Marte said through team interpreter Rolando Valles. "He wants to publicly apologize for not backing that up. I mean, he obviously knew the circumstances of his situation. He got frustrated and was in a bad spot. He truly wants to apologize for his teammates and everybody else."
Marte had also received criticism for how often he asked for days off. To that brickbat, he pointed out that his playing schedule is dictated by the team and training staff, with an eye on keeping him healthy over the course of a 162-game season. It should be noted that Marte has started all but two games since rejoining the club, and that in the previous three seasons he had averaged more than 130 appearances a year.
Marte, 31, entered Tuesday hitting .295/.395/.553 on the season with 23 home runs and three stolen bases. Per Baseball Reference's Wins Above Replacement metric, he's been the second most productive position player on the Diamondbacks, trailing only double-play partner Geraldo Perdomo.
