Terry Francona's brutally honest Noelvi Marte assessment changes Reds' long-term plans

Noelvi Marte's stock has officially hit rock bottom. The former top prospect completely lost his way at the plate this year, hitting just .189/.229/.321 (44 wRC+) in 63 games. Even as the Cincinnati Reds slowly fade from the postseason picture, his performance left management with no choice but to demote him back to Triple-A.

It's particularly crushing since it was just about one year ago that the 24-year-old looked like he had found his footing in the big leagues. Not only did he post a robust .865 OPS and 133 wRC+ last August, but he successfully made the shift from third base to right field during the middle of the season. He earned some reps as the No. 2 hitter in Terry Francona's lineup, looking locked into a full-time role for the foreseeable future.

Unfortunately, that's all come crashing down this year. And if Francona's recent comments about Marte's demotion are taken at face value, it seems like it could take a long while for him to merit a return to the big leagues.

Noelvi Marte has lost the confidence of his manager, and possibly the Reds organization

Marte, of course, had already been demoted once this season, getting a quick ticket down to Louisville back in April. He crushed Triple-A pitching for a few months and earned his way back to Cincy, but he hasn't been able to carry over that success to the big leagues; he was abysmal in 10 games this month, hitting just .133 while posting a ghastly -29 wRC+ (yes, a negative wRC+).

Per Charlie Goldsmith, Francona admitted that Marte is simply a broken player right now. Getting results at Triple-A isn't going to help his case anymore: "This is kind of a pivotal time for [Marte]. Don’t just go down — he’s probably going to find ways to get hits in Triple-A. You’ve got to play with some urgency and get after it.’”

When asked how Marte could show some urgency, the skipper offered nothing more than a few coaching platitudes, like being a vocal leader on the field and showing up early to practice. Generously, one could interpret that as Francona trying to simplify the game for a wildly talented player who has lost his way. Realistically, it might have just been a thinly veiled admittance of lost hope as the right fielder scuffles.

If there's a silver lining to this, it's that this isn't the first time Marte has had to handle adversity. He was equally porous in 2024 -- that year, like this one, he was worth -1.4 fWAR as one of the worst players in the league -- before coming back to produce a career-best effort in 2025. Perhaps some tough love and another confidence-boosting trip to the minors will set him up for success next year.

But it's hard to bet on a player who has, for the second time in three seasons, come darn close to "unplayable" status. Even if he does improve and corrects whatever is haunting him right now, he might not get a chance to show it off with the Reds.

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