Phillies 2024 Season Preview: RHP Yunior Marte

Up next in our Philadelphia Phillies 2024 Season Preview is relief pitcher Yunior Marte.

Previous season previews: José Alvarado, Andrew Bellatti, Alec Bohm, Connor Brogdon, Nick Castellanos, Rodolfo Castro, Kody Clemens, Jake Cave, Dylan Covey, Seranthony Domínguez, Darick Hall, Kolby Allard, Bryce Harper, Jeff Hoffman, Orion Kerkering, Rafael Marchán, Brandon Marsh

We'll look at Marte's 2023 season and then evaluate projections for the 2024 season using the Steamer and ZiPS projection systems, which can be found on FanGraphs.

Yunior Marte 2023 stats and 2024 projections

2023 Stats: 40 G, 39.1 IP, 1-1 record, 5.03 ERA, 4.68 FIP, 1.63 WHIP, 38 SO, 17 BB, 0.2 fWAR

2024 Steamer: 48 G, 48 IP, 2-2 record, 4.13 ERA, 4.34 FIP, 1.36 WHIP, 46 SO, 20 BB, 0.3 fWAR

2024 ZiPS DC: 48 G, 48 IP, 2-3 record, 4.76 ERA, 4.47 FIP, 1.39 WHIP, 49 SO, 20 BB, 0.1 fWAR

Yunior Marte 2024 season preview

Steamer and ZiPS DC project Marte to appear in eight more games with the Phillies this year compared to 2023. He struggled last season, based on his 5.03 ERA and his 4.68 FIP was slightly below the league average of 4.33.

The 29-year-old's numbers were better in the 18 contests he appeared in Triple-A with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. He had a 1.80 ERA, a 3.32 FIP, and a 3-1 record in 20 innings. His other statistics were better with Lehigh Valley than in Philadelphia as well, as he finished with a 1.05 WHIP and nine walks. He also finished with 24 strikeouts in his 18 appearances in Triple-A.

Can Marte translate his success at the Triple-A level to MLB moving forward? Steamer and ZiPS DC both project his numbers to improve slightly with the Phillies in 2024. Steamer projects a lower ERA (4.13) than ZiPS DC (4.76), a lower FIP (4.34) than ZiPS DC (4.47), and a lower WHIP (1.36) to ZiPS DC (1.39).

However, ZiPS DC has the right-hander finishing with more strikeouts (49) compared to Steamer (46). ZiPS DC has him finishing with a BB/9 rate of 3.81, which is a little higher than Steamer's projection of 3.76. The Dominican's K/9 is projected higher with ZiPS DC (9.21) than Steamer (8.62).

Marte's role and usage in 2024

The 29-year-old is projected to have a similar role as he did in the Phillies bullpen last season. Marte will not be used in high-leverage situations and will likely spend time with the IronPigs, particularly if he struggles with Philadelphia.

If he excels in spring training, that would work to his advantage in potentially beginning the season in the majors with momentum. Marte is listed low on the Phillies' bullpen depth chart and will not be used in setup or save situations often. He would need to excel regularly during his outings and rely on injuries or a lack of production from other relievers ahead of him to gain a bigger role.

Marte is looking to improve on his mistakes from last season with the Phillies in 2024. If he can improve his ERA and WHIP and execute consistently, particularly in any late-inning opportunities, he might gain the trust of manager Rob Thomson and get more chances.