Noelvi Marte’s road back to the Cincinnati Reds begins tomorrow

Will he be the key to unlocking the Cincinnati offense?

For three months I have wondered how the reaction to Noelvi Marte testing positive for Boldenone would have been different had the order of cataclysmic events been different in Cincinnati Reds spring camp in Goodyear.

Marte, the top prospect in the system according to most everyone, was nabbed on March 8th, an 80-game suspension levied his way. It was a blow, to be sure, as Marte’s breakout cameo in 2023 had him ranked quite high among odds-makers as a potential National League Rookie of the Year winner in 2024. The Reds, though, had held tight to their horde of young position players in lieu of making trades all winter, and the depth within their infield ranks softened the blow to almost shrug level.

Hell, almost every single one of us probably had the idea of well, this saves the awkard need for someone good to get optioned to the minors at the time.

Then came the devastating news about Edwin Arroyo’s shoulder surgery and that he’d miss the entire year.

Then came the devastating news about Matt McLain’s shoulder surgery and that he’d miss the bulk of the year.

Then came the news of Christian Encarnacion-Strand’s busted wrist and that he’d miss a good chunk of the first half of the season.

As the tangible need for Marte to be on the active roster became more pertinent, the lament that he was unavailable due to his own actions kind of became discussed even less. It wasn’t that it was no longer important; rather, the laundry list of other problems facing the active roster helped dilute just how important his loss was.

Had those injuries happened first and Marte’s suspension been the final blow, well, I think we’d all have a bit more sour taste in our mouths about why he was off the roster when the team needed him most.

Anyway, in the wake of Marte’s absence and the wave of injuries to other Cincinnati infielders, here’s where they stand as a team offensively at certain key positions in their lineup as of June 10th:

DH – 72 wRC+ (27th)

3B – 77 wRC+ (28th)

1B – 65 wRC+ (28th)

2B – 95 wRC+ (t-15th)

As of June 10th, June 11th is officially tomorrow. June 11th, per The Enquirer’s Charlie Goldsmith, marks the day Marte’s ‘rehab’ assignment will begin in the minors of the Cincinnati system as he prepares for what will be a return to active roster eligibility on June 27th.

As David Bell intimated, Marte will work his way back while being deployed all over the infield, something that, in theory, will also be the case when he makes his way back to the Cincinnati roster. That’ll allow the other moving parts there to move around, too, with Jonathan India perhaps getting more time at DH/1B while Jeimer Candelario rotates through DH/1B/3B, too. Maybe, just maybe, that’ll allow for Bell to put those folks in better matchups and help raise those putrid wRC+ ranks at each position accordingly.

One thing’s for sure, at least – after wading through 65 games without a sizeable chunk of their expected roster, the Reds are nearing the return of one of their most key pieces for 2024 and beyond.