Diamondbacks All-Star second baseman Ketel Marte was seen in tears on the field after a spectator yelled a derogatory comment about his late mother during an at-bat in Arizona’s game against the White Sox on Tuesday night in Chicago.
Arizona manager Torey Lovullo and bench coach Jeff Banis asked for the person to be removed from the game, a Diamondbacks spokesperson told the Arizona Republic, and Lovullo later said he heard what the fan said as Marte was batting in the top of the seventh inning.
Marte’s mother, Elpidia Valdez, died in a car accident in the Dominican Republic in 2017. Marte, who hit a solo home run in the first inning of Arizona’s 4-1 win, was seen visibly upset during a pitching change in the bottom of the seventh as Lovullo put his arm around his player and consoled him. MLB.com posted video of the emotional scene.
“I just reacted as a dad would when I went out to change pitchers,” Lovullo said, according to the Arizona Republic. “I could see he was sobbing. It hurt.”
“(I told him): ‘I love you and I’m with you, and we’re all together and you’re not alone. No matter what happens, no matter what was said or what you heard, that guy is an idiot. It shouldn’t have an impact on you.'”
AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh 
Marte declined to comment on the incident through a team official. Diamondbacks shortstop Geraldo Perdomo said the fan “should be banned, for sure” and called for Major League Baseball to intervene.
Added Perdomo, per MLB.com: “Everybody knows Ketel has fun, plays the game hard, but I feel bad for him. I feel mad about it. I don’t know who it was, but they’ve definitely got to do something. We cannot continue to do that [expletive] here in MLB. This is baseball, this is for the fans. They came here, they support us, but when they cross the line, we are not with that [expletive].”
Marte, a two-time All-Star and the MVP of the 2023 National League Championship Series, is having another outstanding season, batting .320 with 15 home runs.
