The vibes in Arizona are definitely not great right now.
The Diamondbacks lost again on Wednesday, falling to the St. Louis Cardinals by the final of 5-1. The end of the game was particularly unsightly as Ketel Marte, who was up to pinch hit, bounced into a 3-6-1 double play to seal it.
Marte, who was last season’s NLCS MVP, gave no effort on the run, jogging up the first-base line as if he was on a Sunday stroll. The Cardinals were slow to turn two but managed to do so successfully on a bang-bang play because of how casually Marte was running.
Take a look at the video.
ketel marte please run faster pic.twitter.com/U96MsEz4Um
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) April 24, 2024
After their stunning NL pennant win last season, the Diamondbacks have struggled to find consistency in 2024. They have the firepower to win big (with victories of 17-1, 16-1, and 14-1 already under their belt this year). But the Diamondbacks often find themselves getting beaten by the little things and are now just 12-14 on the season overall.
As for Marte, who used to be a double-digit stolen-base threat, he clearly would have been safe if he had run even just an iota harder. While that may not have ultimately mattered in a 5-1 ballgame, it was still a very bad look for a player who had really boosted his reputation last postseason.
