Mets' Starling Marte (finger) unlikely for wild-card series

NEW YORK -- The odds of New York Mets outfielder Starling Marte making the roster for the wild-card series are getting slimmer and slimmer.

Speaking before Wednesday's 9-2 winover the Washington Nationalsin the regular-season finale, Mets manager Buck Showalter admitted the outfielder's availability seems like a long shot when the postseason kicks off Friday, but also added, "never say never."

"You can't swing a bat, you can't throw a ball, it's going to be hard," Showalter said.

Marte suffered a partial non-displaced fracture in his right middle finger Sept. 6 against the Pittsburgh Pirates and the bone is still healing, leaving him unable to grip a baseball or bat.

While the 33-year-old outfielder worked out on the field before Wednesday's game, catching popups and fielding ground balls, he did not throw the baseball at all. He declined to comment on his health status through a team representative.

Prior to the injury, Marte hit .292/.347/.468 with 16 homers and 18 stolen bases in 118 games, serving as the team's primary No. 2 hitter. In Marte's absence, Jeff McNeil and Tyler Naquin have split the duties in right field.

Additionally, Showalter said utility player Darin Ruf was healthy after he went on the injured list last Friday with a neck strain. Since getting traded to New York at the deadline, Ruf has struggled mightily, hitting just .152/.216/.197 with no home runs in 28 games for the Mets.

Prior to Wednesday's win, the Mets also activated Mychal Givens from the COVID-IL and placed Tylor Megill on the injured list. Givens was then named the Mets' starter for the regular-season finale.