This Ketel Marte thing keeps getting stranger, at least linguistically. Marte made his return to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday, during their game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Before the game, Marte, who speaks through an interpreter, answered questions about his apparent no-call-no-show from Aug. 17's game against the Boston Red Sox, serving mostly to generate more questions.
"It was a moment of frustration. I'm the type of person that when something is going on in my life, I don't like to talk about it. That morning I woke up, my body was in pain and I couldn't react. No one made the decision for me, I'm the one that made the decision not to show up," Marte said, raising some interesting philosophical considerations about whether the body or the mind dictates agency. He said that he would "stand in front of my teammates like a man" and "ask for forgiveness." He also, in one of the more direct responses, indicated that he had nothing to say to fans.
The home Diamondbacks fans made their own opinions clear, booing Marte when he came up to bat. After the game, it remained unclear whether Marte still had nothing to say to fans. He showed up to the press conference wearing an either highlighter yellow or neon green (depending on your color opinions) hat reading MAY THE BRIDGES I BURN LIGHT THE WAY. This line, I am told, originated from Beverly Hills 90210; in neither case does it hold up to additional scrutiny, though the intended sentiment (burning bridges = good for me!) is obvious.
In one reading, the speaker is metaphorically burning the metaphorical bridge before they can cross it, thus closing off that avenue of passage forever. In that case, what "way" is the bridge lighting? The bridge would likely be too far away to light the alternative route, unless the speaker is choosing another bridge nearby, in a sort of River Thames situation.
In another interpretation, the speaker is metaphorically burning the metaphorical bridge after crossing it, thus rendering them incapable of return. This reading can make slightly more sense, if the speaker is lighting their way so others can see where they are going. That would be an extremely attention-seeking bridge-burner.
It can also mean that the speaker is lighting their future path via backlighting by burned bridge. Unfortunately, that still doesn't quite feel correct, as usually a traveler would like for the way forward to be lit up directly, rather than by a burning fire several steps behind. (Also, wouldn't their own shadow, cast by the burning bridge, then obscure the path?) Perhaps someone can illustrate the burning bridges in a way that makes sense. The less effortful conclusion is that Marte is an intriguing vacationer.
The highlighter yellow/neon green elephant in the room would not go addressed until Tuesday, when both Marte and Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo attempted to unpack the messaging. Marte told reporters, "I didn't know I had that hat on. I didn't know, I just put it on," and said that it was just a hat.
Lovullo, meanwhile, attempted a closer reading. "I want to move past this Ketel stuff as quickly as possible," Lovullo said. "I think if you chop up those words, maybe he's taking some accountability. He feels like he's done some things, and he wants to get better. That's how I read it."
Ah, well, then everything makes sense now!
