Arizona Diamondbacks star Ketel Marte has provided his own account of the incident that left him in tears on the field on Wednesday.
In an Instagram Live interview with Spanish-language journalist Yancen Pujols, the two-time All-Star revealed that a fan at a Chicago White Sox game yelled something along the lines of “I sent your mom a text last night.” Marte’s mother, Elpidia Valdez, died in a car accident in 2017.
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Marte said the heckle hit especially hard because Marte was in Chicago when he learned his mother had died. His comments, as interpreted by the @dannybeisbol Instagram account.
“I want to thank all of the fans who have been concerned about me. What happened was, seventh inning, I came to bat. I’m ready at the plate. I hear this fan shouting, he was on top of the dugout. He yelled at me, saying stuff about my mom. He was like, ‘I sent your mom a text last night.’
“When everything happened with my mom, I was here in Chicago. I was in this city. My manager had my back. They kicked the fan out. I don’t think he’ll be allowed back in the parks.”
It’s unclear what else the fan, who was banned indefinitely from all MLB parks the next day, said anything else or was even aware of Marte’s past with his mother. Per ESPN, the fan was very apologetic and remorseful when reached, calling his comments “very inappropriate and stupid.”
After the heckle, Marte was seen visibly crying on the field during a pitching change and was upset enough that Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo came out to comfort him. Both Lovullo and shortstop Geraldo Perdomo stood by Marte after the game, with Perdomo calling for the fan to be banned.
Both teams involved in the incident showed their support for Marte, as did MLB. The White Sox posted a message reading “The White Sox community supports Ketel Marte” on the scoreboard at Rate Field during their game on Thursday. The team was also the first to ban the fan from its park, with MLB commending the decision and following suit for the league’s 29 other stadiums.
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Marte said he was praying for the fan involved and that he hadn’t heard any heckles about his mother before Wednesday:
“Yes, I think something needs to be done about the fans. It’s getting out of hand. People always yell stuff at me, but never about my mom. People know that my mom passed away in an accident. But anyways, we’re praying for him and his family too. May God protect them and help him heal his heart.
“They’re always yelling things at me, but I don’t mind. But when it comes to my mom that’s where the line gets crossed.”
Marte is currently on pace for the best season of his career and is among the contenders for the NL MVP award after finishing third in voting last season. The reigning Silver Slugger at second base is currently slashing .313/.416/.596 with 15 homers, but went 0-for-4 against the White Sox on Thursday. He is the longest tenured member of the Diamondbacks, going back to 2017.