The Diamondbacks have moved Ketel Marte from the restricted list to the 10-day injured list after an absence that raised plenty of questions around the team, according to USA TODAY.
In USA TODAY’s Aug. 21 report, Marte missed Monday night’s game in Boston, and the club later said he had returned to Phoenix for medical tests on his knee. The update came after Marte met with general manager Mike Hazen and manager Torey Lovullo to talk through the circumstances surrounding his disappearance, which the team did not publicly detail.
Lovullo told USA TODAY that he was frustrated Marte had not communicated his whereabouts or status during that stretch, leaving coaches and teammates unable to reach him. That kind of uncertainty is tough on any clubhouse, especially when a player’s status is changing in real time and the team is trying to keep its focus on the field.
Hazen later said Marte received a knee injection to address inflammation found on an MRI, and he described the conversation with Marte as productive. Still, Hazen said he would not go into specifics about what was discussed. He also said Marte would speak to his teammates soon, with the team then looking ahead together.
One important wrinkle, as USA TODAY noted, is that Marte’s time on the injured list cannot be applied retroactively to Sunday because he had been on the restricted list. That means the 10-day injured list period begins Thursday, and Marte will be out for at least the next 10 days.
For the Diamondbacks, it’s the kind of off-field storyline that can hang over a team just as much as an injury update. The hope now is that the conversation behind closed doors clears the air and lets the club move forward with a little more certainty.
