Diamondbacks Keep Ketel Marte After Shopping Him in the Offseason
After listening to offers of their All-Star second baseman, the Diamondbacks have elected to move forward with Ketel Marte on the club.
The Diamondbacks have elected to hold onto Ketel Marte. With a tight payroll, Marte served as the club’s best option to get pitching help on the cheap. Failing to get an offer they found suitable, the team has elected to roll with what they have.
John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports reported that D-backs general manager Mike Hazen has told Marte of the situation.
With Marte remaining with the D-backs for 2026, his 10-and-5 rights will kick in on April 6th. With 10 years of MLB service time and at least five years with his current club, he cannot be traded without his approval.
He’s under contract for the next five seasons at $91 million, plus an $11.5 million player option for 2031. So there’s the possibility Marte plays the next six seasons for a total of $102.5 million, with $46 million of it deferred to 2035 and later.
What We Know About Ketel Marte Trade Rumors
The ask for Marte was at least an established starting pitcher plus multiple high-level pieces. Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reported that the D-backs were seeking multiple high-level prospects. Talks with the Tampa Bay Rays involved Shane Baz and Ryan Pepiot, according to The Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro. Reports from Boston suggested that the Diamondbacks would inquire about infielder Marcelo Mayer in talks.
Ultimately, regardless of what was discussed over the past two months, the offers did not come close to Hazen’s liking.
"It never ended up getting that close," Hazen told MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert. "Just sort of reaffirming what I've been saying the entire offseason, like my expectation was this wasn't going to happen. I felt like I had to do my job just to listen to what people had to say. He's a superstar player for us, and has been for a long time, and is going to continue to be."
Bregman Signs Massive Deal with Cubs
The Diamondbacks were linked to free-agent infielder Alex Bregman due to him living in Arizona during the offseason. The idea never made sense, as a Marte trade was a prerequisite to them signing Bregman. Unless Arizona got the perfect deal, they weren’t going to move their second baseman.
Bregman’s camp willingly waited until Arizona decided what to do with their star second baseman. Within 48 hours of Hazen informing reporters that they would hold on to Marte, he landed a five-year, $175 million contract with the Chicago Cubs.
Per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, $70 million of that deal is deferred. That lowers the present-day value to $30-31 million. It’s unlikely the D-backs would have matched that price.
The combination of trading Marte and signing Bregman never made sense for Arizona financially. Marte’s $14.6 million-per-year deal is a steal for his production, less than half what Bregman got in the market. Ultimately, it was a situation that might have worked out in the Diamondbacks’ favor.
Jake McCarthy Traded for a Prospect
While Marte was not traded this weekend, another player was. Outfielder Jake McCarthy has been dealt to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for pitching prospect Josh Grosz.
McCarthy gets a fresh start with the Rockies, while the D-backs picked up a lottery ticket starting pitcher. Grosz was one of the two pitchers Colorado acquired in the Ryan McMahon trade with the Yankees at the trade deadline. His first start in the Rockies’ organization came against the D-backs’ High-A affiliate (Hillsboro Hops). Grosz allowed five runs on eight hits, two walks, and two strikeouts.
McCarthy agreed to a $1.525 million deal in his first year under arbitration. He turned in a rough 2025 season in which he lost the center field job to Alek Thomas after a 3-for-41 start to the season. Following a demotion to Reno, he put up a .236/.267/.406 slash. FanGraphs rated his offense to be 18% below the average hitter with an 82 wRC+.
Expected stats believe McCarthy’s post-demotion run is worth playing, with a .260 xBA and a .405 xSLG. However, there were some plate discipline concerns as well. McCarthy swung at 34.7% of pitches out of the strike zone, leading to a low walk rate of 3.4%. Even with better quality of contact and expected metrics, it led to just a .306 xwOBA since June 24th.
Grosz ranks as the Rockies’ No. 20 prospect in their end-of-season rankings for 2025. However, he doesn’t rank on Arizona’s Top 30 after the trade. Reports on the right-hander are that he sits 93-95 MPH on his four-seamer with a top velocity of 98 MPH.
Grosz projects to start 2026 in Double-A Amarillo’s rotation. Daniel Eagen, Ashton Izzi, and David Hagaman should spend most of the season in Amarillo in 2026.
What’s Next for the Diamondbacks?
The trade of McCarthy lowers the D-backs 2026 CBT payroll to $203.0 million. D-backs Managing General Partner Ken Kendrick said in September that they’re unlikely to field the $220 million figure they opened the season with.
So at most, they have $10-15 million to spend. Hazen has downplayed the payroll situation, but it could govern their future moves.
The bullpen is the team’s primary issue. Injuries to Justin Martinez, A.J. Puk, and Kevin Ginkel have added uncertainty to the late innings. It’s unclear what his situation is, but there’s been no news of surgery, so he might be ready to go next month.
Arizona is searching for a “bridge closer”. Basically, someone who can step up in the closer role, then fall back to a setup role once Martinez and Puk finish their recovery from elbow surgery.
Free agency might not be a route given the team’s history. Arizona has never spent much on relievers, the biggest free agent contract going to Mark Melancon (two years, $14 million). Martinez’s extension is the most total at $18 million, but that was to a player with one year of service time.
They’re also looking for a first baseman, preferably a right-handed bat. A reunion with Paul Goldschmidt could a possibility, provided he completes the first base platoon with Pavin Smith. Goldschmidt has a .315/.389/.522 slash (152 wRC+) and 12 home runs in against southpaws.
Other options include signing Rhys Hoskins or trading for the Orioles’ Ryan Mountcastle.