Ketel Marte Out of Diamondbacks' Lineup Against Ohtani, Dodgers

Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte is not in Arizona's lineup against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night.

Facing a tough arm in Shohei Ohtani, the Diamondbacks will be without one of their best hitters, due to what is being described as low-back and hamstring tightness.

Manager Torey Lovullo was adamant that these physical ailments are not signs of a lengthy injury absence, calling it a "one-day thing," with "nothing that's going to linger." Lovullo also said Marte may appear in Wednesday night's game.

"When I spoke to him about it, I said, 'Will you be ready late in the game?' He said absolutely, " Lovullo said.

Utility infielder Ildemaro Vargas will take Marte's spot at second base. Struggling D-backs shortstop Geraldo Perdomo will hit in the leadoff spot in Marte's absence.

Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte out of lineup with nagging injures

May 26, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte (4) celebrates as he rounds the bases after hitting a two run home run during the seventh inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images | Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

This is not an uncommon occurrence for Marte, who occasionally needs days off due to minor injuries of this type.

"Ketel is a situation where he battles this all year long, and... I know how much he means to this team, but it got to the point where with low back tightness and hamstring tightness, when he gets to this level, there's a chance he could break, and we're going to miss him, and we're going to miss him for weeks instead of a day, so I will trade one day for two weeks," Lovullo said.

"I don't want to miss another player, and I don't want to be stubborn enough to say you have to play through this when I know that it's a very risky proposition. I have done this before, and I've watched him limp back from first base in Colorado when I've asked him to play when I know that he shouldn't be playing.

"Through hard, hard experiences, I've learned, and when he says or the medical team says we got to pull back a little bit for one day, I'm going to do it," the manager continued.

Marte was, as Lovullo revealed, "very uncomfortable" physically during Tuesday night's game. Marte did not appear to be moving at full strength, undoubtedly.

"You can see the way he ran to first base a couple times yesterday, I saw him grimacing... picking up ground balls. He's right at that very critical point where it could go one way or another, and I want to rest him.

"I asked him to play yesterday, and the agreement was yes, I'll get there, we'll get there, but I need the next one off. I know it's Shohei Ohtani, he knows it's Shohei Ohtani. It would be awesome to see, but we're going to have plenty of showdowns between these two. It's going to happen, it's going to happen at some point."

Marte has been on a hot stretch since his cold start to the 2026 season. He's hitting .259/.315/.456 on the year after posting an .869 OPS through the month of May.

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