Torey Lovullo wasn’t ‘surprised’ by Diamondbacks fans’ reaction to Ketel Marte
ClutchPoints · Jedd Pagaduan · 2026-09-01T05:35:40+00:00 · nguồn gốc
On Monday, Ketel Marte returned to the Arizona Diamondbacks lineup after he suddenly didn't show up to their away game against the Boston Red Sox two weeks ago. Marte's behavior off the field has been making waves as well, as he was caught liking a post that implied that he had already played his final game for the Diamondbacks.
It became evident that the Diamondbacks brass wasn't too happy with Marte's actions. It later came out that Marte needed to take that time off to recover from an injury, but even then, manager Torey Lovullo sounded almost disappointed with the 32-year-old infielder whom he's coached in Arizona since 2017.
Marte returned to mix reactions from the crowd at Chase Field on Monday, although there were some loud boos that reverberated around the stadium whenever he came up to the plate. The Diamondbacks manager was “not surprised” that this was the kind of reception that Marte got after leaving the team without explanation, although he believes that Marte handled the adversity well, as reported by Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
The 32-year-old infielder started at designated hitter and batted cleanup for the Diamondbacks in what ended up being a 2-1 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in his return game. This was the role he was slated to play two weeks ago against the Red Sox before he ghosted the team.
For what it's worth, Marte was apologetic and was fearless in the face of taking accountability after leaving the Diamondbacks in the middle of chasing a postseason spot.
Nonetheless, the Diamondbacks believe that Marte is still an integral part of the team, and they were more than willing to welcome him with open arms. But Marte's penchant for unexplained absences may be wearing thin and could lead to some changes once the season ends.
Marte went 1-3 with a walk in his return game on Monday against the Phillies.