Reds activate Noelvi Marte, option Soto to Triple-A

On March 8, the Cincinnati Reds learned that Noelvi Marte had been suspended for 80 games after testing positive for boldenone. Today that suspension ended. The Reds went 37-43 in his absence.

When Marte was activated, the club added him to the active roster and selected Livan Soto to return to Triple-A Louisville. Marte needed a spot on the 40-man roster, so Cincinnati moved Emilio Pagan to the 60-day injured list.

Earlier this month, as allowed by the rules, Noelvi Marte was allowed to go on a “rehab” assignment in the minor leagues. This is allowed so that players can, at least in theory, be ready to join the big league club on the day their suspension ends, rather than having to serve the suspension and then try to settle on the spot. to prepare.

The Reds sent Marte to Triple-A Louisville at the start of his rehab assignment. In retrospect, that may not have been the best idea. He played in 12 games, going 8-53 with a double, no walks, and struck out 15 times. It all added up to a .151 batting average, .151 on-base percentage, and .170 slugging percentage. He also committed three errors in his 10 games in the field. To say it was a struggle would be to be accused of being too generous.

His average exit velocity was only 86.6 MPH. If you eliminate the bottom 50% of his batted ball velocities, also known as EV50 at Baseball Savant or Best Speed ​​(which can be confusing because it sounds like it’s a measure of someone’s running) elsewhere, that adds up to 99.0. To put that in context, Giancarlo Stanton’s EV50 this season is 108.1 and leads baseball. There have been 389 players with 50 batted balls in the MLB this season. A 99.0 EV50 would rank 226th, just behind Jonathan India and slightly ahead of Stuart Fairchild. He also hit the ball on the ground a lot – 58% to be exact – which would be the highest in the MLB among 146 qualified hitters.

For Marte, the sample size is small. And he’s essentially stepping into his own version of spring training. But he’s also getting in against players who are in midseason form, even if they’re also Triple-A guys. Unlike spring training, he won’t get at-bats against guys who will be playing in Single-A in a few weeks, or guys who throw 20 straight fastballs to try to get the pitch where they want it. In some ways, it’s like spring training, but in other ways, it’s not like it at all.

It is clear that Marte was not at his best when his rehabilitation assignment came to an end. However, how quickly he can get there is important. While Cincinnati is still in the running for the playoffs, because in 2024 you don’t have to try to be good, you just have to avoid being absolutely terrible if you want to be “in the running,” the Reds have the fourth worst record in the National League and they are 4.5 games behind the last wildcard spot.

Livan Soto returns to the minor leagues. His call-up was short-lived and he only managed to play in one game, going 0-3 as a designated hitter against Pittsburgh on Wednesday.

Emilio Pagan went from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list. He last pitched on June 8 and has not started throwing yet because he is dealing with a lat injury. The earliest he can return to the mound in the majors is August 8, now that he will miss at least 60 days.