Go ahead and get your hottest Ketel Marte take out of the way
Spencer: Takes? I barely have any information about the situation. Having a take would be nothing more than pandering to the lack of patience and basic empathy/sympathy of society.
James Attwood: As long as Lovullo and the players are welcoming him back into the fold, I’m content to let him continue helping the team make a push for October baseball.
DBacksEurope: He either has mental problems or is a total goose. Most likely a combination of both.
Makakilo: Perhaps he was disappointed at this season’s
down performance, and disappointed at tweaking his knee. His judgement was flawed. Perhaps he decided (wrongly) that a day off would help him perform better (without the involvement of medical personnel), and decided (wrongly) that he did not need to communicate his decision to his team. He gave too little thought about the impact on the team (including Torey Lovullo). Now that he is on the injured list, I wonder why he is not in the dugout cheering for his teammates.
Ben: I don’t have a hot take. I’m just sad and frustrated. It’s a distraction from the game for the team at a crucial time of the season. There’s a lot we don’t know and that we don’t need to know. It’s clearly personal and there’s a limit to what we as fans need to know for personal situations like this.
Do you have any issues with how the team has handled the situation? Directly with him, communication with the fans and press, etc?
Spencer: Do we actually know how they’ve handled it? Or are we listening to media (and twitter) of people invested in making readers angry/passionate? From what I actually know (he no-call no-showed, the team put him on the RL, and the two sides talked it over), they handled it appropriately. Timing is maybe questionable, but life gets in the way and we don’t know much else. Could easily be the front office and ownership wanted Torey in their meeting, which means they had to wait for the team to return to Phoenix (delayed by Mama Nature). I honestly don’t find anything fishy or suspicious about the situation right now.
James Attwood: Not really. Whatever is going on with Ketel Marte is between him and the team (including the front office, players, and coaches). Those people expecting a full accounting of all the details to come out are going to be sorely disappointed.
DBacksEurope: To be honest, I think the Diamondbacks did a great job. They haven’t tried to hide anything, really. Lovullo has been very open. Hazen gave the club’s side of views and so did Hall. Pretty surprised by how much the club has been transparent. In many other sport, such as soccer, it would have been silenced.
Makakilo: No issue.
Ben: I think the team has been mostly good in their communication. Obviously, as a fan, I want to know as much as I possibly can as soon as possible, but I don’t know how realistic that actually is at this point. It does seem like there are certain members of the press however that appear to have a specific agenda against Marte and are trying to write about the situation beyond what’s appropriate.
During the game on 8/21, Marte was seen at a casino for an extended period of time. Disrespectful, an appropriate use of free, unscheduled time, or something else?
Spencer: Hadn’t heard this until now. I’ve known plenty of people like this in my career. Doesn’t make it ok, but people make their own decisions. I would imagine there was a discussion about whether or not he should be at the game with the team. My guess is the team asked him to avoid the clubhouse for now but put no other stipulations on him. He’s allowed to do what he wants in that case. If he’d been seen at a restaurant, movie theater or some other form of “good” entertainment would anyone care? Or are we expected to be upset because casinos are “bad?”
,James Attwood: The optics are certainly terrible, that’s for damn sure. Marte did spend the entire day across the street at Salt River Fields and is scheduled to be at the complex again this (Saturday) morning. Marte did not break any rules concerning where he spent his time. The team (and most of the Valley) knew where he was and he was on his “own time”. That said it does show a careless disregard of the anxiety his recent behaviour has caused the fandom and his teammates. Without knowing what Marte is going through or what came of his conversations with the front office, it is difficult to judge him more than that. He made what is a poor public relations decision. But, he may truly not give a damn about the optics. That is an entirely valid approach. even if it is going to annoy many of us.
DBacksEurope: Disrespectful. It probably shows what a bad attitude he has. Obviously, every pro is allowed to do what he wants when he is on the IL, but his IL placement is already bullshit, of course, and then going to a casino, of all places??? It shows what kind of personality he has.
Makakilo: I can imagine better ways to lower his stress. Perhaps he did not think clearly before acting.
Ben: I don’t necessarily have a problem with him getting some recreation time while he’s injured (assuming that’s the ultimate reason for his absence), but it’s certainly not a great look. I think I would be more sympathetic if it were a different activity (going to a concert for instance), but I think that’s more related to my general distaste for gambling than it is for Marte to be seen at a casino.
Does Marte play here next season?
Spencer: Yes.
James Attwood: Probably He has 10/5 rights to block any move he isn’t a fan of. Mike Hazen may try again to move him this winter, but there are some issues there. First, if there is a lockout, it will start at the final out of the World Series and shut the window on any winter moves. Secondly, Mike Hazen would be selling Marte for pennies on the dollar, despite his team-friendly deal. Those two things have me believing he’ll be back. If he does well, his trade value will rise and then the team can look to entice him to waive the no-trade protection.
DBacksEurope: I hope he won’t, but he isn’t going anywhere with those no-trade rights. Can’t believe a team would like such a player on their team anyhow.
Makakilo: It likely depends on what was discussed in his hours-long meeting with his agent, Hazen, and Lovullo.
Ben: Assuming there’s a season, I suspect he’ll still be playing here. There are a lot of factors involved – including any leadership changes with the front office or coaching staff, but structurally I think it would be difficult to find a way to get rid of Marte without significantly damaging the franchise’s health. He already has 10-5 rights so he can theoretically veto any trade, this situation has clearly hurt his reputation within the league, and he’s too good of a player for the team to simply cut bait on him and release him.
Do you believe Torey Lovullo will be able to keep the clubhouse in line and still guide this team to the playoffs?
Spencer: Absolutely (less resolute on the playoffs; other teams have a say in that part). Despite what Twitter Cry-Babies want to force into the ether, Torey Lovullo is a top manager in the sport. It’s his clubhouse and everyone there wants to be there. He’s the type of leader you can respect and want to follow from only tangentially knowing him.
James Attwood: I think so. The Marte saga is certainly not helping things, but Lovullo seems to still have a firm handle on the clubhouse.
DBacksEurope: Torey is doing what he should do, expressing his disappointment in the press, because he obviously isn’t able to reach Marte. That should at least be enough to maintain the respect of the club house. The players know that Marte and his fat contract make it impossible to move on from him. They will have to find a way to play ball with him.
Makakilo: Yes. Torey Lovullo can do it! On 20 August, VeeLoh’s comment stated that the Diamondbacks have the second easiest remaining schedule in the NL. Also, it is vital that the Diamondbacks win their series against the Phillies (31 August-2 September) and their series against the Padres (25-27 September). And it would be encouraging if Marte returns to the active roster at near 100%.
Ben: I fully believe in Lovullo’s leadership and there are plenty of very mature guys in that clubhouse who can keep the team’s focus on the field. The path to the playoffs is still treacherous, but I don’t think this situation will be the reason they aren’t able to make it.
Anyone know any voodoo spells to make the Padres and Phillies stop winning?
Spencer: I know someone. But we may have used up all our power in the World Cup.
James Attwood: Teams just need to start putting the ball in play against the Phillies. Start bunting for hits and stealing bases. Start stretching singles into doubles. If the opposition can find a way to put consistent pressure on Philly’s defense, they will start having success
DBacksEurope: A couple of years back I got a piece of paper from someone about a Haitian voodoo chaman. Let me see if I can find it and I will let you know.
Ben: There’s apparently an Etsy witch that has been talked about in the past, but I don’t know how effective they are.
