CHICAGO A fan was ejected from Rate Field in Chicago for heckling Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte about his late mother during Tuesday’s game against the White Sox.
Marte’s mother, Elpidia Valdez, died in a car crash in the Dominican Republic in 2017. Marte, who homered in the first inning of Arizona’s 4-1 win, was shown in tears and was visibly shaken on the Diamondbacks’ TV broadcast during a pitching change in the bottom of the seventh inning, as Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo put his arm around Marte and consoled him.
According to the Arizona Republic, Lovullo said the comments were made toward Marte while he batted in the top of the seventh. Lovullo and Diamondbacks bench coach Jeff Banister asked to have the fan removed, and he was subsequently ejected from the stands, a Diamondbacks team spokesman said, according to the report.
The report said Marte declined to comment through a team spokesman after the game, but shortstop Geraldo Perdomo spoke up, calling on Major League Baseball to do something about poor fan behavior.
“I don’t know who it was, but they’ve got to do something,” Perdomo said, according to the Republic. “We can’t continue to do that (expletive) here in MLB.
“He should be banned, for sure.”
The Republic also reported that Lovullo said he heard what the fan said, but he did not want to repeat it.
“I looked right at (Marte) when I heard,” Lovullo told the Republic. “I looked right at him, and he looked at the person, as well. He put his head down, and I could tell it had an immediate impact on him, for sure.”
It’s not certain if the fan who was ejected was a White Sox fan. affiliate WGN has reached out to the White Sox for comment.
The Diamondbacks were also in Chicago, in town for a series against the Cubs, in late July 2017, when Marte’s mom died in a car accident, according to the Republic. He left the team to return to the Dominican Republic at the time, and Arizona placed him on the bereavement list.
That was in Marte’s third season in the big leagues and first season with the Diamondbacks. He’s since made two National League All-Star teams, in 2019 and 2024. He finished third in NL Most Valuable Player Award voting last season.
The White Sox and Diamondbacks conclude their three-game series at Rate Field on Wednesday afternoon, with Arizona going for the sweep. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m.
