Starling

Marte

There’s probably a spot out there somewhere for Marte in a bench role to close out the season. The 37-year-old veteran went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment earlier this week. He hit just .242/.298/.314 with two homers and two steals across 168 plate appearances for the Royals this season.

Kansas City has decided to end the Marte experiment after he hit .242/.298/.314 with two homers and two steals across 168 plate appearances as a reserve outfielder this season. The 37-year-old veteran has put together a remarkable 15-year career dating back to 2012, but his days as a fantasy-relevant option have been over for nearly a half-decade at this juncture.

Caglianone had to be removed from Monday’s game with right shoulder soreness. The good news is that the Royals placed Bobby Witt Jr. (back) on the injured list before this game, but not Caglianone, so he may not need to go on the IL after all. We will find out in another day or two. For now, Starling Marte will start in right field and bat seventh while Isaac Collins will start in left field and hit sixth.

Perez will miss another game due to soreness in his right elbow, or at least won’t draw the start. He’ll recover from the bench with Starling Marte the designated hitter and Carter Jensen behind the plate against Jesús Luzardo and the Philadelphia staff.

It doesn’t sound like anything serious, but the Royals did add Luke Maile to the roster on Thursday as an insurance policy. Perez is having a disappointing season at the dish, slashing just .201/.241/.327 with 10 homers and 30 RBI in 340 plate appearances. Carter Jensen is behind the dish and batting leadoff for the Royals while Starling Marte functions as the team’s designated hitter against Rays’ left-hander Ian Seymour on Thursday night at Kauffman Stadium.

Marte’s home run was his first of the season. The 37-year-old outfielder hit a three-run shot off Andrew Morris in the fifth inning. It turned out to be a huge hit for the Royals in a game they’d win 6-5. Marte is a part-time player at this point in his career with most of his playing time coming against left-handed pitching.

Kansas City continues to platoon Caglianone against left-handed starters with veteran Starling Marte handling the short-side assignment. The 23-year-old slugger has four homers and eight RBI through 32 games. He’s also struck out in just over 31 percent of his 118 plate appearances this season. Carter Jensen is also on the bench in this one with Cleveland throwing lefty Joey Cantillo.

It’s notable mostly because Isbel often sits against left-handers, but with a .429/.467/.679 batting line in his first 31 plate appearances, the Royals will see if he can stay hot rather than turning to Starling Marte against LHP Anthony Kay.

LHP Chris Sale is on the mound, so the Royals have opted to bat righty Lane Thomas third and place Starling Marte in right field. Caglianone only started 12 games against a left-handed pitcher last year, so this isn’t a total surprise, but it’s disappointing that he’ll apparently have to earn his way into those situations. The full lineup for the Royals is: 3B Maikel Garcia, SS Bobby Witt, Thomas, C Salvador Perez, 1B Vinnie Pasquantino, Marte, 2B Jonathan India, LF Isaac Collins and DH Carter Jensen.

The double was a 109-mph laser to center. If Marte could still play quality defense in a corner, he’d probably be a solid enough regular at age 37. As is, it’s probably for the best that the Royals will mostly limit him to at-bats in left field and at DH against lefties. It shouldn’t be enough to make him helpful outside of deep AL-only leagues.