Cincinnati Reds Outfielder Shines In Dominican Winter League

Noelvi Marte had a relatively lackluster season for the Cincinnati Reds, but he appears to be turning a corner in the Dominican Winter League after a strong showing on Saturday in which he went 4-for-6 at the plate and drove in two runs in Gigantes del Cibao's narrow 12-11 loss to Estrellas.

Marte also recorded a double and one stolen base on the night. Through just six games, the 25-year-old right fielder is hitting .346 with two extra-base hits and three stolen bases.

These figures have been a significant improvement compared to his fourth season in a Reds uniform in which he slashed a measly .189/.229/.321 and recorded a .550 OPS across 63 games of action.

Marte's struggles against big-league pitching were evident this year as he recorded a 41.2% chase rate as well as a 27.5% overall whiff rate. Furthermore, he only drew 10 walks to his 52 strikeouts.

He spent a significant chunk of the season with Triple-A Louisville where he batted .332 and logged a solid .366 on-base percentage in 66 games. Marte's time in the minors has shown that the talent is there, but it has yet to translate in the majors.

With that, Marte may not have much time left to prove himself. Rookie standout Héctor Rodríguez is a possible candidate who could take the majority of Marte's reps in right field next year after the impressive stretch he had since his call-up in early August.

Rodríguez hit a remarkable .229 while knocking in 17 RBI and launching six home runs. He had one of his best games yet against the division rival Milwaukee Brewers on Sept. 6, going 3-for-5 and scoring two runs as Cincinnati came out on top with a 12-8 victory.

Marte would have his last major-league appearance on Aug. 17. He went 0-for-3 and struck out twice as the Reds suffered a slim 2-1 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.

On the other hand, Rodríguez found a way to stay in the majors near the end of the season. Although Rodríguez went 0-for-4 in Cincinnati's season finale against the Toronto Blue Jays, he made up for it the day prior with a decent 2-for-4 performance.

Given Marte's youth, he still has a shot at improving. Even then, his numbers haven't looked too promising compared to last year when he hit a much more respectable .263 and .316 during his rookie season in 2023.