QUEENS, NY — The New York Mets are without another notable contributor for their Subway Series against the Yankees.
Veteran right fielder Starling Marte was placed on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 23, hours before first pitch of the series opener at Citi Field on Tuesday for what is being described as a “deep” right knee bone bruise, according to manager Carlos Mendoza.
He will be shut down from all baseball activities for at least two weeks while Mendoza admitted that his team will be without their starting right fielder for at least a month.
Taking his spot on the roster is outfielder Ben Gamel, who hitting .314 with a .961 OPS in Triple-A this season.
“We have good players, they’ll step up,” Mendoza said. “We have [Tyrone Taylor]… DJ Stewart has been getting a lot of playing time, we just called up Ben Gammel. Jeff McNeil can go out there depending on he matchups. We’ll be able to mix and match here.”
Marte had been dealing with a knee issue for most of the month, dating back to June 5, which forced him to sit twice in a three-game stretch last week. During the Mets’ 8-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs, he left during the second inning and sat during Sunday’s series finale.
The 35-year-old initially expressed optimism that an IL stint would be avoided, but further testing derailed those hopes. It brings what was a particularly hot stretch for Marte to a screeching halt. In his previous 15 games, he was batting .357 with a .937 OPS and five extra-base hits.
It would be understandable if the Mets were practicing extra caution with Marte. The engine of a 101-win team two seasons ago out of the No. 2 hole, complications from offseason double-groin surgery along with migraine and neck issues limited his 2023 season to just 86 games.
In 66 games this season, Marte was batting .274 with a .745 OPS with seven home runs and 30 RBI.
“This is a big loss for us,” Mendoza said. “But we feel good with what we have in there.”
