ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

Ketel Marte wastes little time, blasts two homers off Stephen Strasburg

Jun 15, 2019, 3:57 PM | Updated: 6:19 pm
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Ketel Marte #4 of the Arizona Diamondbacks celebrates as he runs the base...
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Ketel Marte #4 of the Arizona Diamondbacks celebrates as he runs the bases after hitting a solo home run in the fourth inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
(Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)

Arizona Diamondbacks center fielder Ketel Marte needed just one swing of the bat Saturday afternoon to make an impact against the Washington Nationals.

Turning on the first pitch of the game, the outfielder jumped on Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, sending a 374-foot moonshot to the stands.

And just like that, the D-backs had an early lead.

The first-inning blast marked Marte’s second career leadoff homer, with his first coming on June 2 against the New York Mets.

He’s also the just the sixth D-back to homer on the first pitch of the game. Jarrod Dyson was the last to accomplish the feat on June 10 against the Philadelphia Phillies.

On the flip side, Marte’s first-pitch home run was the first ever surrendered by Strasburg on his first pitch of the game.

But Marte’s day was not over there.

With no outs and up 5-3 in the fourth inning, Marte changed up his plan of attack, waiting for the right pitch.

He found it on the fifth toss of the at-bat, crushing a four-seam fastball 433 feet into right-center field.

The HR marked Marte’s fourth multi-homer game of the season. He now sits at 19 home runs, passing Eduardo Escobar’s 17 for first on the team.

With his performance Saturday, Marte surpassed Escobar in runs scored (46) and sits just one hit behind the third baseman with 81. Marte also sits in second in RBI with 49.

And while Marte leads the way with two homers, he wasn’t the only D-back to go yard against the Nationals.

Three batters after Marte’s first blast of the game, Adam Jones went deep, hitting a 379-foot bomb to left field.

Christian Walker followed it up in the second inning down 3-2, needing just three pitches to tie the game with a 380-foot HR.

In the eighth inning, Kevin Cron got in on the scoring, roping a 407-foot homer for the first baseman’s third HR of his career.

All told, the D-backs accounted for five dingers in Saturday’s contest, beating the Nationals 10-3.

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Ketel Marte #4 of the Arizona Diamondbacks celebrates with Ildemaro Vargas #15 after hitting a solo home run in the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Stephen Strasburg #37 of the Washington Nationals pitches in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Adam Eaton #2 of the Washington Nationals hits an RBI safrice fly to center scoring Trea Turner #7 (not pictured) in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Trea Turner #7 of the Washington Nationals hits a triple in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Juan Soto #22 of the Washington Nationals celebrates as he runs the bases after hitting a solo home run in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Taylor Clarke #45 of the Arizona Diamondbacks pitches in the second inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Stephen Strasburg #37 of the Washington Nationals reacts in the second inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Juan Soto #22 of the Washington Nationals celebrates with Adam Eaton #2 after hitting a solo home run in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Ketel Marte #4 of the Arizona Diamondbacks celebrates as he runs the bases after hitting a solo home run in the fourth inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Yoshihisa Hirano #66 of the Arizona Diamondbacks pitches in the sixth inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 15: Nick Ahmed #13 of the Arizona Diamondbacks celebrates with his teammates in the dugout after scoring on a single by Carson Kelly #18 (not pictured) in the second inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on June 15, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Archie Bradley, left, and catcher Carson Kelly celebrate after the team's baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Thursday, June 13, 2019, in Washington. Arizona won 5-0. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

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Ketel Marte wastes little time, blasts two homers off Stephen Strasburg