Noelvi Marte is headed back to winter ball, and this time he’ll be doing it in the Dominican Winter League with Gigantes del Cibao.
The Cincinnati Reds have a habit of sending young players to winter leagues once the regular season ends, and Marte is part of that group this offseason. Reds Director of Player Personnel Jeremy Farrell had already said Alfredo Duno would be playing winter ball, but the Marte news came as a surprise.
Marte was originally drafted by Gigantes del Cibao in the 2021 LIDOM Draft in the first round. This will be his fourth season with the club, though his previous two winter stints were limited - he played only 10 games in 2021-22 and 2022-23.
For Marte, the timing matters. After a rough 2026 MLB season, he has work to do.
In 63 major league games, he hit .189 with 10 walks, 52 strikeouts, and a .550 OPS. He had started to figure things out a bit in 2025, and now he’ll try to carry that forward with a strong winter showing.
The Reds have used the offseason to keep players moving, competing, and developing across the globe. In 2025, Ichiro Cano and Yael Romero played in the Mexican Pacific League, while Drew Davies, Hansel Jimenez, Pablo Nunez, and Jirvin Morillo took part in the Aussie Baseball League. That group went deep into the season, and Davies’ Adelaide Giants came away as champions.
In the Dominican Winter League, Francisco Urbaez, Carlos Jorge, and Hector Rodriguez all played a good chunk of the 2025/2026 season. Now Marte joins the next wave of Reds players looking to get sharper before the next year gets rolling.
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