The Miami Marlins placed outfielder Starling Marte on the injured list on Tuesday after he suffered a non-displaced fractured rib during Sunday's game against the San Francisco Giants. In a corresponding move, the Marlins recalled fellow outfielder Lewis Brinson from the alternate site.
It's unclear how long the Marlins will be without Marte. Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald wrote Monday that the Marlins said "that he would be shut down for five to seven days before being re-evaluated."
Marte, 32 years old, was off to a brilliant start in his first full season with the Marlins. In 15 games, he'd hit .316/.420/.491 (152 OPS+) with two home runs and three stolen bases on four tries. Miami acquired Marte in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks last season, parting ways with pitchers Caleb Smith, Humberto Mejia, and Julio Frias.
Brinson, who will turn 27 in early May, was once a big trade acquisition himself, albeit as a youngster. This is his fourth season with the Marlins, and he's yet to put things together. For his Miami career, he's hit .193/.240/.302 (47 OPS+) with strikeouts in more than 29 percent of his plate appearances. Brinson originally came to Miami as part of the return from the Milwaukee Brewers on Christian Yelich.
In addition to Brinson, the Marlins could fill their center-field vacancy with some combination of Magneuris Sierra and perhaps even Jon Berti.
The Marlins entered play against the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday with a 7-8 record on the season, good for third place in the National League East. Miami's plus-3 run differential is the second best in the division, however, behind only the New York Mets.
After a two-game set with the Orioles, the Marlins will go on a 10-game road trip with stops in San Francisco and Milwaukee before concluding with a three-game set against the Washington Nationals.
