With just a few weeks left in the regular season, the Kansas City Royals are already looking ahead to 2027. Part of that preparation took place on Monday when the team designated veteran DH Starling Marte for assignment.
Marte, 37, was in his first season with the Royals after spending the past four with the New York Mets. He also had stints with the Athletics, Miami Marlins, and Arizona Diamondbacks, and spent the first eight years of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 59 games in Kansas City, Marte slashed .242/.298/.314 with a pair of home runs, 14 RBI and two stolen bases.
Kansas City signed Marte in March to a one-year deal, worth $1 million guaranteed with up to $2 million in bonuses. As a veteran of more than five MLB seasons of service time, Marte has the option to turn down a minor league assignment while also collecting the rest of his salary. Marte was also surely available at the trade deadline, but likely did not garner much interest due to his lack of production and age.
Either way, it appears that Marte is on his way to free agency and could end up on a contending team if the Royals choose to outright release him. At the age of 37, there is also the chance that Marte’s productive MLB career is coming to an end.
The reason the Royals DFA’d Marte was to make room for the return of Maikel Garcia and Vinnie Pasquantino. Both players have been on the 10-Day IL for most of the past couple of months. Garcia was sidelined with a left hand muscle strain, while Pasquantino missed time with a broken hamate bone and recurring wrist soreness upon his return.
The Royals also recalled left-handed pitcher Connor Thomas from Triple-A Omaha and optioned infielder Josh Rojas and right-handed pitcher Jose Cuas.
