PORT ST. LUCIE — Starling Marte has Opening Day on his radar, even as he eases his way into spring workouts.
The Mets outfielder underwent November core muscle surgery, of which Marte provided additional detail Sunday. Marte revealed the procedure occurred on both groins, to tendons that had separated from the leg. The surgery on his right groin, according to Marte, was preventative — it wasn’t recommended to him until just before undergoing the procedure on his left groin.
Last year the veteran outfielder dealt with left groin issues that forced him to miss games, prompting the 34-year-old Marte to seek what he hopes is a solution.
“It was bothering me for the better part of the season … and thankfully I was able to finish the season,” Marte said through an interpreter at Clover Park. “Once the season ended, that is when we decided to have the operation.”
Marte’s plan is not to rush, which was a significant factor in his decision to remove himself from consideration for the World Baseball Classic, representing the Dominican Republic.
He expects to first get into the weight room and begin testing his leg strength. He answered in the affirmative when asked if he would be ready for Opening Day.
“We have been in constant contact all offseason,” Marte said of his communication with the team. “I have flown up to New York, they evaluated me there and they evaluated me when I got here. Now we’re trying to start a plan for this spring training just to make sure that I’m ready.
“The biggest factor in [missing the WBC] is having the operation and not being at 100 percent, to be able to play at the highest level in a situation like that. It’s unfortunate I am not able to represent my country this go-around, but you just have to move along and make sure you are ready for the season.”
After arriving on a four-year contract worth $78 million, Marte appeared in 118 games for the Mets and owned a .292/.347/.468 slash line with 16 homers and 63 RBIs. Marte missed most of September after he was hit by a pitch and fractured his right middle finger. Marte returned to the lineup for the Mets’ loss to the Padres in the NL wild-card series. With Marte absent from the lineup, the Mets were inconsistent offensively and lost the NL East race to the Braves after leading it for almost the entire season.
“Last season we had a great year,” Marte said. “But for me personally not being able to play in September … I was disappointed I was not able to help the team during that time, but thank God I made it to the playoffs and we tried our best and hopefully this year is better than last year.”
Marte, who went 2-for-12 (.167) in the three postseason games, said the finger is healed, but he still must be vigilant.
“We just continue to do exercises on it to make sure everything is strong and ready to go,” he said.
Marte finished with 18 stolen bases in 27 attempts last season. The implementation of larger bases this year could lead to increased emphasis on the running game, and Marte can envision himself becoming more active attempting stolen bases. In 2021, he was 47 of 52 in stolen base attempts.
“If I’m healthy, most definitely, I’ve always been an aggressive player,” Marte said. “I’ve always been a player that likes to run a lot to get into scoring position so the batter can drive me in. So it really depends on health there and I can do that on the bases and also in the field.”
