Starling Marte and the Mets simply ran out of time in 2023.
Manager Buck Showalter announced on Wednesday that the veteran right fielder would be shut down for what’s left of the little-remaining regular season as he continues to recover from a lingering groin injury.
“The risk-reward is just not there,” Showalter said before his team’s doubleheader against the Miami Marlins. “He was built up to about five innings but there’s no way to get him past that.”
Marte underwent double groin surgery in November but the buildup of scar tissue continued to cause him pain. He began seeing a new doctor in Philadelphia last month to address the issue and made progress to the point that another surgery was taken off the table while hope remained that he would get back on the field.
“He’s shown really good groin and core strength,” Showalter said. “His sprint speed and hitting metrics are back to his baseline. I feel confident that we’ll have a healthy player going forward.”
It puts an end to an injury-riddled campaign for the 34-year-old, who had not appeared in a game since Aug. 5. Aside from the groin injury, he dealt with a neck issue in early spring and migraines that landed him on the injured list in July.
After putting together an All-Star season last year — his first in Queens with the Mets — Marte’s numbers suffered due to his health issues. He batted .248 with a .625 OPS, five home runs, and 28 RBI in 86 games.
