BOSTON — Monday night was supposed to be about the return of two key Diamondbacks contributors from injury. Instead, the focus was on the absence of one of their star players. Second baseman Ketel Marte did not show up at Fenway Park for the series opener against the Red Sox due to what the team would later call a “personal matter.” He was placed on the restricted list. Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said he first learned about the possibility of Marte not showing up for the game against the Red Sox when he woke up Monday morning. Lovullo declined to go into details about his contact with Mars. Marte had been included in the lineup as the designated hitter, and the team held the lineup until about 20 minutes before the start of the game in hopes that Marte would appear. “It’s been a crazy day,” Lovullo said after the Diamondbacks’ 11-1 loss. “All I know is that he’s dealing with a personal issue. We’re trying to figure it out, and he didn’t show up today and was put on the restricted list. That’s all I know right now. I was just trying my best to contact him, and there were very few responses.” Lovullo has long been one of Mars’ biggest supporters, and the two are close. Lovullo was asked if he was disappointed with how that day went. “We deal with a lot of things as baseball managers, coaches and teachers,” Lovullo said. “So, you know, sometimes you’re disappointed, sometimes you’re disappointed. But we’re going to figure out how to fix this.” No one seemed to have the details of what Marte was dealing with, only that he flew with the team from Atlanta on Sunday night and was in Boston on Monday. “It was unfortunate he wasn’t there tonight,” Arizona general manager Mike Hazen said. Hazen declined to go into further detail. Shortstop Geraldo Perdomo, one of Marte’s closest friends on the team, seemed surprised that Marte wasn’t in the stadium. “I don’t know anything,” Perdomo said. “I just came here to play, I didn’t see him here and we haven’t talked yet. At the end of the day, we’re a family and we’re going to support everyone, no matter what. So we just came here to play, and that’s the only goal we have now, just to win.” Winning games is a must for the Diamondbacks right now as they find themselves locked in a battle for a National League wild card spot. With the loss to the Red Sox, Arizona (66-60) is one game behind the Padres (67-59), who also lost on Monday, in the race for the final wild card spot and two games behind the second-place Phillies (68-58). “I think you could definitely sum it up as a strange day,” right fielder Corbin Carroll said. “But I thought the coaches did a good job handling it and…making sure we were prepared.” Carroll said he had a brief text message exchange with Marte, but did not know what caused him to miss the game. Lovullo was asked how he thought his players handled the uncertainty leading up to the game. “The players are brave,” Lovullo said. “They bond with each other. I know there were a lot of discussions about it at different times in the clubhouse today. There was a lot of curiosity. “We worried about Ketel, and… once we knew he was okay, I think everyone relaxed and started focusing on the game. But you know, what was the final score, 11-1? I mean, we have our [butts] struck. We have to be better.” When Mars will return is another question that no one in the organization seems to have an answer for. “I don’t know,” Lovullo said.
