C. Notes: Noelvi Marte makes his outfield debut for Reds

New York Times

2 days ago

NEW YORK — As far as first tests go, Noelvi Marte's debut in the outfield for the Cincinnati Reds was pretty easy.
Through six innings in right field Sunday at Citi Field, Marte had exactly one ball hit to him, a third-inning grounder from New York Mets leadoff man Brandon Nimmo that got by second baseman Matt McLain.
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With Mets center fielder Tyrone Taylor on second, Marte had a play at the plate, but Taylor was about halfway between third and home when Marte scooped the ball to throw home. Marte's one-hop toss was on line, but too late to get the speedy Taylor, opening the game's scoring in an eventual 3-2 Mets victory Sunday.
'He came in on the ball — it was (a) very good (throw),' Reds manager Terry Francona said. 'He kept the ball down, one-hop. He's OK. He's going to be fine.'
Facing Mets lefty David Peterson, Francona put Marte in right field — marking the 23-year-old's first professional appearance in the outfield — to maximize the number of right-handed bats in the lineup. With Marte in right, the Reds' starting lineup had seven right-handed hitters, the switch-hitting Elly De La Cruz and left-handed hitting leadoff man TJ Friedl.
Austin Hays, who was the DH for Sunday's game, and Connor Joe, who specializes in hitting left-handed pitching, are the only regular right-handed hitting outfielders on the team's roster. Utilityman Santiago Espinal has made eight starts in the outfield after playing there for the first time last year, but at this point is a better defender at third base.
Several weeks ago, Marte, who played shortstop for most of his minor-league career before being traded to the Reds and moved to third base, was shagging balls in the outfield when Reds outfielder coach Collin Cowgill noticed him and thought he looked good out there. Since then, Marte had been working with Cowgill before games in the outfield. After Saturday's workout, Marte told Cowgill, 'I'm ready.'
The next day, Marte found himself in the lineup and in right field.
'I'm a person who likes challenges, I like experimenting different things,' Marte said before the game, according to team interpreter Tomás Vera. 'If the team needs me there, I'll be there.'
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Marte said as a kid he wanted to be an outfielder but was then moved to shortstop, where he was signed by the Seattle Mariners.
The 6-foot-2, 216-pound Marte has the arm strength and athleticism to play in the outfield. He's made five errors in just 70 chances at third this year and 12 in 130 last season. Espinal, who has played five defensive positions this season, has one error in 119 total chances at third base this season, one at second base (38 chances) and one in the outfield (eight chances).
The Reds already moved Marte from shortstop to third base because he was behind De La Cruz and McLain at the position, and another of the Reds' top prospects, Edwin Arroyo, also plays short.
'He's not going to be our everyday right fielder right now,' Francona said. 'There's going to be some days where it may be against a lefty that we think we can put a better team out there, and maybe — and hopefully — it helps us defensively.'
Marte said he wasn't worried about playing in the outfield, noting that all infielders think they can play outfield.
In Sunday's game against the Mets, the first ball hit in the air to right came with two outs in the seventh, after Jake Fraley had come into the game in the top of the inning as a pinch hitter against right-handed reliever Huascar Brazobán and Marte moved to third.
'I'm not sure we're dying to have guys start pelting balls to him in the outfield,' Francona said after the game. 'That's not the object here.'
For his part, Marte said he felt comfortable in the outfield and thought it went well. He's open to the challenge of playing there more, knowing it's a good chance to expand his playing time and role.
'It's an opportunity,' Marte said, according to Vera. 'And when you have an opportunity, you have to be open to it.'
Another of the Reds' top prospects is a third baseman. Sal Stewart, 21, was recently promoted to Triple-A Louisville after leading the Southern League in hitting. Two years ago, when Marte was 21, he started the season at Double-A Chattanooga before being promoted to Louisville and then made his big-league debut Aug. 19, 2023.
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When Francona was asked whether Marte's move was a precursor to Stewart's arrival, he shot down that speculation.
'Oh, you might be getting a little ahead of us there,' Francona said.
Francona said before Saturday's game against the Mets that Joe, who lost what would've been the final out of Friday's game in the lights and had it bounce off his glove, was distraught after the series-opening win.
'We would've had to talk him off the ledge if that'd ended (differently). Of course, I'd have been right there with him.'
Instead, the Reds pulled out the victory, so Joe was saved the embarrassment of his miscue leading to a loss.
Joe said his teammates and coaches told him to shake it off, and they knew it was just one play. So did Francona, but he also had the power to actually show Joe that he still trusted him by putting him in left field as a defensive replacement in the eighth inning Saturday.
'It was a concerted effort,' Francona said Sunday. 'I don't think when something like that happens, you put someone in the penalty box. He just missed the ball.'
For as small a thing as it is to put someone in left field for two innings, it has an outsized meaning to both Joe and his teammates.
'I really appreciated it,' Joe said Sunday. 'I think that's him. Everything I've heard about Tito is on par with that exact moment and that exact showing. These are big, meaningful games, and we want to do nothing but win, and for him to put that trust in me in a big, big situation goes a long way with me and means a lot to me.'
Joe said as soon as he got back on the field, he forgot about Friday's error — 'once you get out there, it's status quo.'
But he won't forget what Francona did by showing his trust.
'For him to do that when the game is on the line, it goes further than what anyone could tell me,' Joe said.
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After one game this spring, Francona noted Stewart was as good a young hitter as he'd seen in a long time. Stewart is one step closer to being seen by Francona regularly.
Stewart and outfielder Héctor Rodríguez were promoted from Double-A Chattanooga to Triple-A Louisville last week.
'With those two guys, I think we all feel like they're a part of what we're going to be and we're excited about that,' Francona said. 'We want to make sure they understand that it's not just getting to Cincinnati, but get here ready to help us win.'
At Chattanooga, Stewart hit .306/.377/.473 with 10 home runs and 19 doubles. When promoted, Stewart was leading the Southern League in batting average and was third in OPS. Sunday, in his third game at Triple-A, Stewart hit his first home run at that level.
'(The minor-league staff has been) staying on Sal about not having the ups and downs of if I get hits or if I don't. Cause when you get here, you don't get hits every day and you've still got to be a good player,' Francona said. 'I think we tried to impress that upon Sal — we're not picking on you, we f—ing love you, but we're going to stay on you.'
The message to Rodríguez has been similar. A converted infielder, the 21-year-old Rodriguez was acquired from the Mets in the deal that sent Tyler Naquin to New York near the 2022 trade deadline. Rodríguez was second in the Southern League in batting average (.298) and slugging percentage (.481), and he was fourth in OPS (.838) and fifth in home runs (12).
In the Reds' system, he's played all three outfield spots, but has been in right field this season. In his second game at Triple-A on Saturday, Rodríguez reached base four times, going 2-for-3 with a double and a walk.
'They both have a chance to really help us,' Francona said.
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De La Cruz (0-for-2) and Andrew Abbott (1 inning pitched) appeared in the All-Star Game in Atlanta. The Reds began the second half by taking two of three from the Mets in front of three sellout crowds at Citi Field. The Reds' series win in New York, coupled with an Arizona Diamondbacks sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals, moved Cincinnati into third in the National League Central, 7 1/2 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs, and 2 1/2 games behind the San Diego Padres for the third wild-card spot.
The Reds go to Washington for three against the Washington Nationals, with rookie right-hander Chase Burns making his fifth start Tuesday. After a day off Thursday, the Reds return home to start a long homestand beginning with three games against the Tampa Bay Rays.
• RHP Hunter Greene (right groin strain) is expected to start a rehab assignment in Arizona this week before moving to Triple-A Louisville.
• RHP Carson Spiers (right shoulder impingement) was returned from his rehab assignment with right biceps soreness. Spiers threw 75 pitches in 3 1/3 innings in his start Saturday. He gave up three runs on four hits with four walks and three strikeouts.
• RHP Ian Gibaut (right shoulder impingement) has begun throwing.
• LHP Wade Miley (left flexor strain) has been playing catch and hopes to return this season.
• Triple-A Louisville (41-55): OF Rece Hinds notched his first multihomer game of the season Saturday, going 3-for-5 with two home runs.
• Double-A Chattanooga (47-39): OF Austin Hendrick hit his second career leadoff home run in Saturday's Lookouts win. He has 10 home runs on the season. The 24-year-old, who was the team's first-round pick in 2020, is having his best season yet as a pro, hitting .266/.342/.462 in 60 games.
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• High-A Dayton (28-59): SS Carlos Sanchez is hitting .290/.400/.435 with a pair of home runs in 18 games at Dayton after his promotion from Class-A Daytona. In 60 games with the Tortugas, the 20-year-old Sanchez hit .308/.429/.449 with four home runs.
• Class-A Daytona (41-47): C Alfredo Duno extended his on-base streak to 39 games Sunday (not including his appearance in the Futures Game) with a pair of walks. Over his streak, he has 41 walks to go along with 41 hits and four home runs.