Marte alone in MLB history with 18-game postseason hit streak
Paul Casella
@paul_casellaMLBARLINGTON -- Ketel Marte picked the perfect time to extend his postseason hitting streak to an MLB-record 18 games.
After going hitless in his first four plate appearances, Marte roped a two-out, two-run single up the middle with the bases loaded to help the D-backs blow things open on their way to a 9-1 win over the Rangers in Game 2 of the World Series on Saturday night at Globe Life Field, evening the series at 1-1. The base knock -- which extended Arizona's lead to 6-1 -- gave Marte sole possession of the longest hitting streak in postseason history.
"Very happy,¡± Marte said via a translator. ¡°I never imagined doing something like this.¡±
While Marte will eventually send something along to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., to commemorate the record, it will wait until after the World Series concludes. After all, nobody wants to change a thing right now for a guy who is hitting .333 with nine extra-base hits and 11 RBIs in 14 games this postseason.
Marte entered the night tied with a trio of players -- Manny Ram¨ªrez (2003-04), Derek Jeter (1998-99) and Hank Bauer (¡®56-58) -- atop that list. Making Marte's run even more impressive is that his 18-game hitting streak has come in the first 18 postseason games of his career.
"I feel good,¡± Marte said. ¡°It's just another accomplishment for myself. I know what kind of person I am. I'm a person that believes in God. We're going to continue to strike and continue to break records."
Marte's record streak began in 2017, when he went 3-for-5 in the D-backs' NL Wild Card Game win over the Rockies; he then notched at least one hit in all three games against the Dodgers in that year¡¯s NL Division Series. He has picked up right where he left off this postseason, recording at least one hit in all 14 of Arizona's games to this point.
That streak nearly came to an end on Saturday, when Marte went hitless in his first four plate appearances. But with the all-important Game 2 still very much in the balance, the hitting streak was far from Marte¡¯s mind when he stepped into the box against Rangers lefty Mart¨ªn P¨¦rez.
"I don't focus on that,¡± Marte said. ¡°What I'm focused on is winning and just getting on base. That's what I'm focused on."
Marte and the D-backs have done plenty of that this postseason. He will now look to extend his record streak in a pivotal Game 3 when the series shifts to Arizona on Monday.
"It's our house,¡± Marte said. ¡°We're going to be more comfortable there. We're going to have our fans with us supporting us, and we have the talent, so we're going to beat them."