Mets' Starling Marte, pushed to the side by Juan Soto, will try to carve out some playing time

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — After the Mets signed Juan Soto in December, they told Starling Marte they would try to trade him, he said Sunday.

But they didn’t find a match, so here he is at Mets camp, still on the roster but without his usual starting spot in rightfield, now occupied by Soto.

Marte said he does not know if a trade still is possible.

Which would he prefer? A minor role with the Mets or a bigger one with another team?

He didn’t seem thrilled with his situation but said he is ready to do whatever the Mets need.

“Well, whenever you’re with a team for the amount of time that I’ve been with the team [three seasons], you get comfortable,” Marte, 36, said through an interpreter. “You don’t want to get traded because you create relationships with the players, with the staff, with everybody around here. But at the same time, any baseball player would love to play every single day, because that’s how a player gets his reps, that’s how a player is able to get better. But at the same time, I’m here. And I’m going to do the best that I can do.

“They were very clear, very honest with me up front. They obviously want the best for this team but also the best for my future.”

For now, Marte’s playing time appears limited. He is slated for the short side of a DH platoon — Marte against lefthanded pitchers, Jesse Winker against righties — and occasionally play the outfield. But with Soto playing virtually every day and other, more defensively inclined outfielders available, it’s not clear how much room there is for Marte.

“We want him here, obviously, and he’s going to help us,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Winning teams have players in that role who are elite players, and that’s the case here. He’s willing to do it. We need him.”

By Tim Healey

timothy.healey@newsday.com@timbhealey

Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.