Arizona Diamondbacks star Ketel Marte was visibly in tears on the field Tuesday, and no one knew why until after the game.
Keeping his own emotions in check, manager Torey Lovullo revealed to reporters that Marte was upset after a fan at the Chicago White Sox’s Rate Field yelled something at him about his mother, who died in a car accident in 2017, per MLB.com’s Casey Drottar. The fan was reportedly ejected.
Lovullo’s comments:
“It was a terrible moment. Fans are nasty and fans go too far sometimes. I love my players and I’m going to protect him … I’ve known Ketel for nine years. He’s had some unbelievably great moments and some hardships as well and some really tough moments in his life. I know this.
“At the end of the day, we’re human beings and we have emotions. I saw him hurting and I wanted to protect him.”
It’s unclear when exactly made the fan made his comment, but Lovullo was seen embracing Marte during a pitching change, with shortstop Geraldo Perdomo also offering his consolations.
When asked what he said to Marte, Lovullo said “I love you and I’m with you. We’re all together and you’re not alone. No matter what happens, no matter what was said or what you heard, that guy’s an idiot and shouldn’t have an impact on you.”
The D-Backs won the game 4-1, with Marte going 2-for-4 with a first-inning solo homer.
Marte’s mother, Elpidia Valdez, died in the Dominican Republic in the middle of the D-Backs’ 2017 season, not long after speaking to Marte on the phone. Marte was deeply affected, leaving the team to fly back to the D.R. and missing four games.
Eight years later, her death still hits him hard.
Ketel Marte had to deal with more than your usual heckling on Tuesday. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)
(Vaughn Ridley via Getty Images)
Marte is currently on pace for the best season of his career and is among the contenders for the NL MVP award, after finishing third for the award last season. The reigning Silver Slugger at second base is slashing .320/.424/.608 with 15 homers through Tuesday. He is the longest-tenured member of the team, going back to 2017.
It’s been a trying few days for the D-Backs overall. Middle-of-the-order batters Corbin Carroll, Eugenio Suárez and Josh Naylor were all out of the lineup on Tuesday, with Carroll hitting the IL due to a chip fracture in left wrist. The team was already without its biggest acquisition of the offseason, Corbin Burnes, who underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this month.
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