Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Left fielder Starling Marte homered for the second time in two days to help give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 6-4 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Marte’s late-game heroics in the series finale are just another reason why the Pirates believe he is the real deal.
The 24-year-old finished the month of April batting .327 with two home runs, 11 RBI, six doubles, two triples, seven stolen bases and a .395 on-base percentage. He continued the surge into the month of May by crushing a two-run blast to tie the game in the eighth inning against the Brewers Wednesday afternoon.
Marte has recorded at least one hit in 10 of his last 11 games, including an eight-game hitting streak. Over that span, he has posted a .349 batting average with two homers and five RBI. More importantly, Pittsburgh is 7-4 during his hot streak, with their only series loss coming at the hands of Milwaukee.
The crazy part about Marte’s outstanding month at the plate is that his numbers get even better. The leadoff hitter has posted a .609 batting average and a .667 on-base percentage to begin games. That means he has given the Pirates a better chance than any other team in all of baseball to get on the score board first.
“The numbers are eye-opening,” manager Clint Hurdle told Pirates.com. “Preparation is part of it, and another big part is laying off bad pitches. His swing has been in a good place, Opening Day to now.
“You don’t expect him to hit .600 in the first inning all-time, but to even carry it a month is pretty interesting. He’s got a chance to be a very dynamic leadoff hitter with the skill-set he has, and it’s been fun to watch.”
It will be interesting to see what Marte will be able to accomplish in May.
