Hitting The Road With The New York Mets’ Starling Marte

25.04.2024 - 13:01 / forbes.com

By the time you finish this story, New York Mets outfielder Starling Marte may have collected his 1,500th career hit. That’s a milestone hall of famers Roy Campanella, Hack Wilson and Ralph Kiner never reached. The mark is not only a testament to Marte’s consistency at the plate over 13 seasons mostly with the Mets, Miami Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates, it’s further validation that the decision he made many years ago to journey from his native Dominican Republic to fulfill his big-league dreams in the U.S. was right.

In the offseason, Marte usually makes his way back to the DR, visiting with family and sharing his baseball wisdom with the next generation of Caribbean sluggers. During the MLB season, however, the only travel on his mind centers around whatever city is next on the Mets’ schedule.

With all the packing, flying and being away from loved ones, life on the road for a pro athlete can be grueling. But as the big smiles and latest stats — at press time, Marte was leading his team in batting average, hits and stolen bases — show, the 35-year-old is taking it all in stride.

Forbes Travel Guide recently caught up with the two-time All-Star to talk (through an interpreter) about his game, his road-trip packing routine and his favorite NYC restaurant.

Have the Mets done enough to compete with the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East this year?

They did great adjustments. They added some good pitchers, one of those being Luis Severino. They also brought along J.D. Martinez, who’s a good batter. You know, it’s baseball. We know it’s a hard division. But as hard as they play, we’ll play just as hard. To win this division would be something amazing.

You’ve dealt with some injuries in the past few years. Beyond staying healthy, what are some of your on-the-field goals this season?

I’m a player that’s focused on my body as a whole — like every part of it. I want to improve. I’ve worked on my levels of body fat to avoid [injuries]. I look to get better every day and just ask to keep strong. Obviously, I don’t want to get hurt again, but if it does happen, I’ll accept it and just work on being just as strong as I was the last time and keep pushing to improve myself.

You’ve had some time to adjust to New York life. What’s that been like?

I like everything about New York. I like that I have family and friends here. People who may not have been able to see me in other opportunities are closer to home and can come to see me at games. [Citi Field, the Mets’ home stadium] is very nice. I like it a lot. I always try to go out to restaurants with my family. I get invited to a lot of players’ and friends’ homes, but I’m more of a homebody.

Have you found any great Dominican