Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte: An option at DH
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo talked about using the designated hitter position as a way to keep Marte's bat in the lineup while giving him a break in the field, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.
Marte had a breakout season in 2019 before he suffered a stress reaction in his back in September. The theory was that he played too much, particularly in center field, which was a new position to him. "It will give me a chance to get guys off their feet," Lovullo said of the DH. "Knowing the workload is going to be pretty heavy and we're going to be going full throttle, getting a guy off his feet for a day game in Colorado is probably something we would be addressing." The manager had every intention of giving Marte more downtime in 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic put a halt to MLB. The desire to rest him is still there during the 60-game sprint of a regular season. Only now, the rest will be in the form of having Marte serve as the DH. Others being considered for the DH rotation are Jake Lamb, Christian Walker, Eduardo Escobar and Kevin Cron.
