Starling Marte was left off the 28-man roster of the Miami Marlins for their National League Division Series matchup against the Atlanta Braves, which begins Tuesday.
The center fielder was injured when he was hit in the hand by a pitch thrown by Chicago Cubs reliever Dan Winkler during Game 1 of the Marlins’ win in the wild-card round. Marte was diagnosed with a fracture of the fifth metacarpal of his left hand.
He remained on the Miami roster for the decisive Game 2 of the series against the Cubs, but was not used.
Marlins manager Don Mattingly said, “We weren’t comfortable with what [Marte] was going to be able to do.”
Magneuris Sierra will start in center field for Game 1 against the Braves.
The Marlins added two pitchers to their roster from the wild-card round, including left-handed starter Daniel Castano and right-handed reliever Nick Vincent. Left-handed reliever Stephen Tarpley was left off the LDS roster, with Mattingly citing the right-handed slant of the Atlanta offense as the reason for the bullpen switch.
The Braves will include 15 pitchers and 13 players on their roster for the LDS. Manager Brian Snitker cited the compressed schedule — a possible five games in five days — as the main reason for the lopsided roster construction, along with the youth of his starting pitchers. Game 1 starter Max Fried is 26, while Game 2 starter Ian Anderson is 22 and has thrown just six regular-season games in the majors.
Marte, 31, acquired at the trade deadline from the Arizona Diamondbacks, hit .245 with four homers, 13 RBIs and five stolen bases. Marte previously played in three straight postseasons for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 2013 to 2015.