Marlins reinstate Starling Marte from IL following recovery from non-displaced rib fracture

The Marlins announced a series of roster moves this afternoon (via Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald). Center fielder Starling Marté has been activated from the injured list, while infielder Luis Marté has been selected to the roster. To clear active roster space, first baseman Lewin Díaz was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville, while shortstop Miguel Rojas was placed on the 10-day injured list with a dislocated left index finger. Miami already had an open spot on the 40-man roster, so no additional move was required to accommodate Luis Marté’s selection.

Starling Marté got off to a good start to the season, hitting .310/.414/.483 with a pair of homers over his first 70 plate appearances. That was halted when Marté suffered a non-displaced rib fracture on a swing in mid-April, sending him to the IL. He’ll now return to action a little less than six weeks later, where he’ll try to build on his solid work early in the year.

It’s an important season for Marté, who’s in the final year of the contract extension he signed with the Pirates in March 2014. The 32-year-old is a few months away from his first trip to the open market. Marté’s strong track record and expiring contract would also make him a plausible midseason trade candidate if Miami falls out of the National League postseason picture. The young Marlins have held around in a jam-packed NL East, going 24-26 over their first 50 games. Despite that, FanGraphs pegs the team’s playoff odds at a meager 1.5%, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Marté’s name floated in trade talks in the coming months.

Rojas suffered a “concerning” finger dislocation during Thursday’s game against the Phillies. It’s unclear how much time he’s expected to miss. The injury opened a spot for Luis Marté, who’ll be making his MLB debut the first time he gets into a game. The 27-year-old spent the first seven-plus seasons of his professional career in the Rangers system, topping out at Triple-A.

Marté was in the high minors with the Braves between 2018-19 and inked a minors deal with Miami over the winter. He’s never offered much at the plate, hitting .245/.263/.355 in four seasons at Double-A and .261/.284/.352 in nearly as much Triple-A time. Marté has ample experience all around the infield in the minors, though, and he’s hit three homers in 61 plate appearances this year with Jacksonville, albeit with similar on-base issues as he’s had throughout his career.