MLB.com is keeping track of all the latest news and rumors surrounding center fielder Starling Marte, who is a free agent.
Read all about Marte here.
Nov. 12: Mets, Phillies, Marlins reportedly interested in Marte
Marte played for Miami for parts of the past two seasons but was shipped to the A’s at the Trade Deadline after the two sides were unable to agree on a contract extension. The Marlins reportedly offered him a deal in the neighborhood of $30 million over three years. It’s unclear how much they are willing to increase their offer now that Marte is free to negotiate with any team, but general manager Kim Ng has clearly made improving the outfield a priority this offseason. The club also has been connected to free agents Nick Castellanos and Avisaíl García.
The Mets have actively looked for a new center fielder in each of the past two offseasons. The club discussed a trade for Marte after the 2019 season, back when the outfielder was a member of the Pirates, but Pittsburgh ended up trading him to the D-backs, who then traded him to the Marlins at the 2020 Deadline. After 2020, New York was in the mix for free-agent center fielder George Springer but ultimately signed Kevin Pillar and Albert Almora Jr. to back up Brandon Nimmo in center. If the Mets sign Marte, they could shift Nimmo to right field to fill the vacancy left by free agent Michael Conforto.
New York is still in the midst of a search for a new general manager, but with president Sandy Alderson still working in the front office, the Mets can take part in player pursuits as they normally would.
As for Philadelphia, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has plenty of areas he needs to address this offseason. The Phillies have an opening in left field after declining Andrew McCutchen’s club option, they need more pitching — both starting and relief — and they could look to replace Didi Gregorius at shortstop. But finding a star center fielder is near the top of the list.
The position has been an ongoing issue for the Phillies in recent years. Since the beginning of 2019, Phils center fielders rank 27th in the Majors with a .669 OPS.
There’s a sizable dropoff after Starling Marte and Chris Taylor among free-agent center fielders, but Byron Buxton, Ketel Marte and Ramón Laureano could be available via trade.
Oct. 3: Marte leads MLB in steals, posts 131 OPS+
Although the A’s ended up missing the postseason, Starling Marte proved to be one of the best Trade Deadline acquisitions of the year. Marte hit .312 with an .816 OPS and 25 steals in 27 attempts across 56 games after Oakland acquired him from the Marlins.
On the season, Marte led the Majors with 47 steals and had a 131 OPS+, becoming just the 10th player this century to record 40-plus steals and an OPS+ of 130 or better after Vladimir Guerrero, Carlos Beltran (twice), Bobby Abreu, Alfonso Soriano, Hanley Ramirez, Carl Crawford, Matt Kemp, Mike Trout and Jose Altuve.
Marte will now get to test free agency for the first time in his career, with his eight-year, $53 million contract set to expire after the World Series.
Although he’s a speed-based player who is heading into his age-33 season, Marte could have a robust market due to the lack of legitimate center fielders available. Clubs in need of a starting center fielder basically have two options among free agents: Marte and Chris Taylor, a utility player who is an average defender in center.
The Marlins reportedly offered Marte a three-year, $30 million contract extension with an option for a fourth year, but the two sides were unable to come to an agreement before Miami traded the center fielder to the A’s. He should be able to top that in free agency, especially because he’s ineligible to receive a qualifying offer and thus will not be tied to Draft-pick compensation.